Artists Janet MacLeod and Susan Sanford will present “Impressions of Light” at the Hills Gallery, Newburyport Art Association, Newburyport, MA, May 10 to 19, 2007 with a reception Friday, May 11 from 7 to 9 P.M.

Janet is an award winning pastelist who lives and paints in Newburyport. She worked in advertising for many years in Boston, working with some of the best photographers, designers, and printers in the graphic arts industry. It was retirement that finally gave her the time to devote to a life-long love – painting.

She has studied oils for several years and just last year started working in pastels. Her work highlights the local marsh areas, Cape Cod, Scotland and imaginary locales. She has studied with JC Airoldi, Karen Jones, and Kevin Shea.

Last year she received the Award for Pastel in the Fall Juried Show at NAA. The judge, Susan Erony, Executive Director SeArts, Gloucester, had these comments “This is a work that glows, that one can enter into and take a break. The color is luscious and the trees are animated.”

Susan Sanford, an oil painter, is inspired by the natural landscape, focusing on the light, water and coastal marshes surrounding the North Shore and Cape Cod. Susan’s use of color and her impressionist esthetic captures the nuances of the changing seasons. She paints “plein air” during the mild weather and lives and retreats to her full-time Newburyport studio during the colder months.

Susan received her BA in Art Education from Mass College of Art, Boston, and her MFA at the San Francisco Art Institute. She also received a teaching fellowship to Skidmore College. Susan has retired from teaching art at Masconomet Regional High School. She is a frequent exhibitor in both regional and national juried art shows.

Susan believes that she is fortunate to have found her mentors, JC Airoldi and Kevin Shea. They have shown her the unimaginable beauty of the outdoor in all conditions.