ARTIST'S STATEMENT

The fundamental imagery in my paintings is the female form. Though my daughters, friends, and class models often pose for me, I am never interested in creating an exact likeness, but rather in depicting a moment in time, conveying the model's attitude, and experimenting with space by merging the form of the figure with the flatness of the background. Exploring the relationships of value, shape, texture, and color leads me on a creative journey through each painting. An effort to create interesting surface texture in my work, has led me to experiment with integrating the mediums of watercolor, gouache, and watermedia crayons.

I strive to draw viewers into my paintings by allowing them to see the figure in a new way. Using repetitive, decorative motifs in strong geometric compositions and a unique representation of the figure, I believe, inspires beauty and poetic reflection.

Jan Ledbetter     

For the children of the community!!!!
The subject of several of Jan's paintings in her exhibition will be of the children's book character FLAT STANLEY AND HIS FRIENDS Every child, parent or grandparent is well acquainted with Flat Stanley In 2005, more than 6,000 classes from 47 countries took part in the Flat Stanley Project.

WHO IS STANLEY
Stanley Lambchop is flattened when a bulletin board falls on him. He survives and makes the best of his altered state, and soon he is sliding into rooms through the opening at the bottom of closed doors and being kind to his younger brother by playing as a kite for him. Stanley even helps catch some art museum sneak thieves by posing as a painting on the wall! But one special advantage is that Flat Stanley can now visit his friends by being mailed in an envelope.

PROJECT
The Flat Stanley Project encourages school students to write their own Flat Stanley journals. A Stanley outline is printed off the internet and sent by students to family or friends living around the world who then treat him as a visiting guest and even taking photographs of his journeys. When the Stanleys are returned students have the opportunity to learn about his travels, find the locations on maps, and see photos of his travels.

ARTIST INFORMATION

JAN LEDBETTER's award-winning mixed-watermedia paintings are pictorial tapestries layering observations and imagination, design elements, abstract motifs and personal symbols.

She earned her MFA from Syracuse University and is a Signature Member of the National Watercolor (NWS), Southern Watercolor (SW) and Virginia Watercolor (VWS) Societies. Recent important national and state juried exhibitions and awards include: NWS Exhibition and Travel Show 2007; NWS Exhibition, award, Travel Show, and painting used for Exhibition invitation 2006; SW Exhibitions 2008, 2007 and 2006 with awards each year; and (VWS) Exhibitions 2007 third place and 2006 second place. Her paintings have received recognition at This Century Art Gallery Member's Shows including several "Best in Show" awards. She has taught and exhibited her work for over thirty years and is represented in numerous private collections. Her paintings have been reproduced on posters for charitable events and art festivals, were featured in American Artist Watercolor Magazine, "The Joy of Paint and Paper," winter 2007, and will appear in Mary Todd Beam's new book, The Creative Edge (to be published). In March, 2009, this popular instructor will be giving a 10 day Painting Workshop/tour of Guatemala through Explore Guatemala. (www.exploreguatemala.com) Jan and her husband are avid gardeners where her love of color and texture is reflected in winding stone paths, carved arbors, and colorfully painted gates. Visit her website to see her watermedia paintings and take a photo tour of their Williamsburg garden. (www.janledbetter.com)