Freedom Fountain Exhibit

Bernie and several of his art students will have paintings on exhibit at the Council for the Arts "Freedom Fountain" Exhibit from May 5 - 25, 2013. Opening Reception, Sunday, May 5th from 2:30-4:00pm. Drop by the Council and see this special show. Several students' work is shown in this video produced by G10 for the city of Jacksonville.

Freedom Fountain Art Exhibit from City of Jacksonville NC on Vimeo.

Onslow Art Expressions Artists Represented:

Bailey Stocker
Johnnie Shane
Betty Brittian
Linda Haley
Connie Wenner
Barbara Soos
Curtiss Russell
Sue Murphy
Ruth Casey
Olivia Rosage
Bernie Rosage Sr
Bernie Rosage Jr.

 

 

Bernie and his Onslow Art Expression's artists, the Onslow Outdoor Painters Society (OOPS), and other local artists create artwork for the Council for the Arts. May 2013 exhibit centered around Jacksonville's newest landmark, the Freedom Fountain. Check out this video...

 

 

 

 

Math and Art... huh???

Here's what an artist does to make a connection to "examples of real world math" for a college math assignment... Hope you enjoy it...

Art since the early Renaissance times has included mathematics, especially geometry, in creating the most pleasing compositions for drawings, paintings, and architecture. As an artist, I still use these methods today to create interesting compositions that hold a viewer’s interest and put emphasis on the focal point of the work. Two main examples are the use of the “Rule of Thirds” and the “Golden Mean.”

The “Rule of Thirds” simply divides the canvas into thirds with a “Tic, Tac, Toe” type grid. The four points where the lines intersect naturally create the points of the most interest on the canvas. The artist situates his or her focal point on or near one of these points to create a pleasing composition.

 

Example from one of my paintings…

 

 

　

The “Golden Mean” or “Golden Ratio” is another mathematical way artists use to set up engaging compositions. The “Golden Mean” is based on the mathematical sequence discovered by mathematician, Leonardo Pisano Bogollo, who lived between 1170 and 1250 in Italy. "Fibonacci" was his nickname, which roughly means "Son of Bonacci".

As well as being famous for the Fibonacci Sequence, he helped spread through Europe the use of Hindu-Arabic Numeral (like our present number system 0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9) to replace Roman Numerals (I, II, III, IV, V, etc).

By definition, the first two numbers in the Fibonacci sequence are 0 and 1, and each subsequent number is the sum of the previous two. In mathematical terms, the sequence F_n of Fibonacci numbers is defined by the recurrence relation and can be written as a rule mathematically:

x_n = x_n-1 + x_n-2

or

F_{n =} F_n-1 + F_n-2

The “Golden Mean” highlights a spot very close to the “Rule of Thirds” method determined to be the point of interest.

 

 

Examples of the “Golden Mean” in art and architecture…

 

 

The Fibonacci sequence is a consistent and infinite sequence that is found in nature. Here is a surprise. If you take any two successive (one after the other) Fibonacci Numbers, their ratio is very close to the Golden Ratio "φ" which is approximately 1.618034...

Recent studies have linked the Fibonacci sequence follows the patterns in nature, uniting math, science, and nature design. For example, sunflowers often have precisely 55, 89, or 144 petals, numbers that figure in the famous Fibonacci sequence. Nature, it seems, has certain mathematical underpinnings.
 

Researchers have even dubbed the sequence as the fingerprint of God. Read more on this at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/describing-nature-math.html .

 

This all proves that math can be COOL!

Thanks for dropping by...
In Art (and Math),
Bernie



Sources and resources:

http://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/fibonacci-sequence.html

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/describing-nature-math.html

 http://www.homeschoolmath.net/teaching/fibonacci_golden_section.php

 http://www.maths.surrey.ac.uk/hosted-sites/R.Knott/Fibonacci/fibnat.html

　

　

　
　

Monet for a day at NBMS

Claude Monet aka Bernie and Mrs. Nickle
 

Claude Monet (aka Bernie Rosage Jr,) spent the day with Janet Nickle's 6th, 7th, and 8th grade art classes at New Bridge Middle School in Jacksonville, NC... 12-13-2012. Bernie covered art history, biography of Claude Monet, the Impressionism Art Movement, and did an Impressionistic painting demo of Monet's home at Giverny, France. 

Bernie painting demo for students at NBMS.



Finished painting... 11x14" oil on canvas
"Monet's Home at Giverny"
 

Bernie portraying Claude Monet



Progression of painting #1

#2

#3

#4

Final painting...

Carolina Country Exhibit ~ Eastern NC Landscapes by Bernie Rosage Jr.

FOR IMMEDIATE NEWS RELEASE: "Carolina Country" Exhibit July 19 - August 23, 2012 featuring NC Landscapes by Bernie Rosage Jr.

CAROLINA COUNTRY
July 19 to August 23

The Arts Council of Wayne County
Main Gallery, First Floor

Artist Opening Reception

July 19, 2012

5 - 7 pm

With a focus on paintings that celebrate the landscape of eastern North Carolina, this exhibit will feature the work of three talented painters, Bernie Rosage, Skip Surman, and Sharon Killette.



Here is my personal artist statement and bio that will be played audibly at the show:

My name is Bernie Rosage Jr. and I’m a native of Onslow County, North Carolina, where I reside with my wife, Tami, our children and grandchildren. My passion for art started at an early age and it continues as a self taught artist. I like the term "self motivated to be taught" as I work hard to fuel my passion of painting.

I use a painterly approach to color and texture which gives me a unique sense of style, best defined as Impressionistic Realism. As you will see from this exhibit… I love to work in oils and acrylics and my style varies from true impressionism to the luminous style.

My subjects are often personal and convey feelings of peace, serenity, and nostalgia. I am drawn to country roads, marshlands, cottages, barns, trees, open fields, flowing rivers, etc... anything that eludes to a peaceful, calming feeling when viewed.

I mostly paint from life, either in the studio or on location “en plein aire“… a French term that translates to “in open air.” I am a firm believer that painting from direct observation really hones the artist’s skills and develops the art of seeing.

My mindset and work lately has taken a shift… I have moved beyond just capturing what my subject looks like to something deeper… I am striving for the divine and sublime as I paint now.

Bringing everyday objects to life in fresh and artistic ways by capturing light, mood, and atmosphere are goals I am consciously and consistently achieving. My favorite subject is the landscape… for me… painting the landscape is spiritual. It’s as if I am savoring God’s creation by painting it.

As a Down East son coupled with this love of the landscape makes this exhibit dear to my heart. I am honored to take part in it with two other talented artists who share their passion for Carolina Country.

My paintings are a culmination of sensitivity and skill and are collected throughout the United States, Ireland, Australia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. I hope you enjoy the show… and maybe one of my paintings will tug at your heartstrings and find a new home.

I’d like to close with a quote by Robert Henri from his book… The Art Spirit… that sums up my life as an artist…
"All any man can do... is add his fragment to the whole.

No man can be final... but he can record his progress...

What he leaves is so much for others to use as stones to step on, or stones to avoid.

After all, the goal is not making art... It is living life.

Those who live their lives will leave the stuff that is really art."

Robert Henri, The Art Spirit

Here are the 15 paintings representing the Eastern NC Landscape in the Carolina Country Exhibit by Bernie Rosage Jr.

Morning Has Broken

100% Cotton

Afternoon Burst

Down East Tobacco Barn

Down East Tobacco Barn in Snow

Tobacco Row

Across the Field

The Marina

The Brock Mill, Trenton, NC

Cedars at Northeast Creek

Carolina Marsh

Meandering Marsh

Topsail Thunder

Surf City Sail

Bouge Pier, Emerald Isle, NC

In the News: I delivered several new paintings to New Bern ArtWorks Gallery.

If you are in New Bern, North Carolina, you have to drop by New Bern ArtWorks and Company Gallery. It is  one of the most impressive galleries in the state. The owners have done a great job of transforming the historic Baxter Jewelry Building into a functional gallery and working artists' open studios while maintaining the essence of the old jewelry store. I am honored to be represented by the gallery and associated with some of the best artists' around.

New Bern ArtWorks & Company
323B Middle Street
New Bern, North Carolina 28560
252.634.9002

Here is a link to my available paintings at New Bern ArtWorks.... click HERE...

These are a few of the paintings I delivered yesterday...

In the News: Two generations enter 51st OAS Show.

Recently my father (Bernie Sr.) and I both entered paintings in the 51st Annual Onslow Art Society Spring Show. Dad painted when I was a kid but has recently taken up the challenge again. Here's a photo of us at the opening. The show runs at the Council for the Arts through April.

I was fortunate enough to be awarded the "Onslow County Artist Award" due to the painting "Blue Ridge Autumn" pictured below. A good friend of mine purchased the painting... thanks Karen.

A Journey through the Passion Week of Christ in Art...

Jesus Christ has been a central figure in art for centuries. Artist... past and present... known and unknown... have captured the Passion of Christ in their artwork. This video celebrates that and is set to the music "King of Glory" by Third Day. A special thanks and credit to the following artists: El Greco, Caravaggio, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, Titian, Reuben's, Leonardo DaVinci, Rembrandt, Ben Long, Lynn Phillips, Larry Seiler, Morgan Weistling, Bernie Rosage Jr., and several unknown artists.



The Passion of Christ in Art

The message of the Passion Week is timeless and priceless... it shows us "there is no greater love" than the love showed that week over two thousand years ago... "it is finished... the debt has been paid"...
May you and yours have a blessed Easter Holiday...
Bernie

Bernie interviewed by the Durham Independent Weekly concerning Arts Day 2011...

Letters from Mrs Hobbs Art Society
students at Carolina Forest Elementary
Click on image to enlarge

Connie Wenner, Stephen Greer, and I were interviewed by Byron Woods of the Independent Weekly concerning Arts Day 2011, the cutbacks, and visit with our (rather rude) Onslow County Representative George Cleveland. The two images are letters to Mr. Cleveland from Onslow County 5th grade art students in Mrs Hobbs art class at Carolina Forest Elementary.

Click HERE to read the article...

Letter from Mrs Hobbs Art Society
students at Carolina Forest Elementary,
Jacksonville, NC

Click on image to enlarge

ARTS DAY 2011... Do you want the good news first?



Council for the Arts representatives:
Brenda Johnson, Stephen Greer,
Connie Wenner, Bernie Rosage Jr.,
and Doug Parker.



I attended Arts Day 2011 last Tuesday in Raleigh, NC. I attended with fellow members of the board of the Council for the Arts as representatives from Onslow County. The event is organized and lead by ARTS North Carolina, a statewide advocacy organization for the arts. ARTS NC calls for equity and access for the arts for all North Carolinians, unifies and connects North Carolina's arts communities, and fosters arts leadership. The day is filled with key note speakers, arts advocacy materials and training, plus speaking with government officials to exemplify the importance of the arts on our economy, education, and well being. The event is a yearly Legislative event that organizes and facilitates Grassroots Advocacy... the main source of arts funding for Onslow (and most NC counties) County.



Karen Wells
Executive Director of ARTS NC



Most people have the misconception that government funding of arts means their hard-earned tax dollars are going straight to some hippie busker playing an acoustic guitar on the street corner, or an artist whose goal is to shock the world with crayon masterpieces, or the photographer whose wants to stretch the boundaries of censorship but the truth of the matter is that art is a investment.  Like most investments, there are some risks and some returns are greater than others but investing in the arts is a sound venture with overall paybacks too consistent to ignore.  When our tax dollars are used to fund the arts they provide direct economic benefits to states and communities, they create jobs, attract investments, generate tax revenues, and stimulate local economies through tourism and consumer purchases. A robust arts industry prepares our children for the 21st century, and fills our lives with discovery and learning. Government funding is a crucial element in maintaining the arts industry even in tough economic times.  After all, the arts are not part of the recession; they are part of the recovery. Pablo Picasso was on to something when he said, "Art washes from the soul the dust of everyday life".

Jazz singer and NC resident,
Nnenna Freelon

On a positive note: I got to spend the day with some great friends plus meet a ton of people passionate about the arts! I got to hear inspiring stories by several speakers including the golden voice of jazz singer and NC resident, Nnenna Freelon. We had the pleasure of meeting Onslow County Representative Phil Shepard. He was kind enough to meet with several members of our group without an appointment. He even invited us to lunch but we had to decline as our lunch was already provided by ARTS NC.


On a negative note: Our meeting with Onslow County Representative George Cleveland was cut short from the fifteen minutes scheduled to a whopping three minutes. Our appointment with him was disappointing to say the least as his mind seemed elsewhere. The main disappointment was the 23% cut in funding of the grass roots art grants that will directly effect us here in Onslow County.





NC Legislature Building
Raleigh, NC