Yaquina Art Gallery Spotlight Shows Featuring Sharon Cook, Robin Beckwith, and Eric Paukstaitis–October 21st to November 3rd « Yaa Spotlight

Yaquina Art Gallery Spotlight Shows Featuring Sharon Cook, Robin Beckwith, and Eric Paukstaitis–October 21st to November 3rd

In a two week Spotlight Show from October 21st to November 3rd, the Yaquina Art Association will be featuring Watercolor artist Sharon Cook, Watercolor artist Robin Beckwith, and Wood Engraver Eric Paukstaitis. The Yaquina Art Association Gallery is located in Nye Beach at 789 NW Beach Drive. Hours of operation are 11 am to 4 pm every day.

Sharon Cook discovered watercolor in 2003 and knew from that moment she would become an artist. When she retired from her position as a flight attendant for Alaska Airlines in 2015, she began the pursuit of her dream: painting every day.

She says, “Beginning a new career late in life means a lot to catch up on and a lot to learn. Watercolor is magical, and my goal is to show that magic with spontaneity and surprises. Now I’ve discovered painting in acrylics with a palette knife, and each day is more exciting than the next.” Sharon resides in Salem and Lincoln City with her husband William J. Cook, an independent writer. She is a member of the Yaquina Art Association in Newport, where her works are on display. She is also a member of the Beach Stone Gallery/Artists Studio Association in Lincoln City Sharon encourages everyone to “find the artist within!”

Robin Beckwith says, “Art gives me a reason to exist and a way to make special things for people. The image often is something that means a lot to me or the person it is for.”

Primarily Robin works in watercolor, pastel and fabric paint. She paints murals in acrylic and occasionally works with oils or tiles.

She paints a yearly banner for display in Nye Beach, has painted a mural for the Beachcomber house in Florence Oregon, and painted a historical watercolor in the lobby of the Pier Point Inn in Florence, Oregon.

Robin has worked as a bartender, waitress, tile contractor, in a plywood mill, and lots more. All that time she was painting when she could.

Her love of art began when finger painting at 6 in Manhattan Beach, California. In high school, she took classes at California Institute of the Arts and majored in art at the University of Oregon. She has studied under many great artists and even taught a little. After college she moved to a commune and then Florence, Oregon. She moved to Newport in 2001 and got married at age 54. She loves tennis and playing with her two cats and Corgi dog Ham.

Eric Paukstaitis wanted to do something different following his retirement to the Otter Rock after 40 years as a hydrogeologist. He had dabbled in various fields including photography, woodworking, laser etching, and woodblock printing among others. He decided to combine his skills to experiment with a unique artistic medium – hand-painted, engraved wooden panels using a combination of original photos and hand sketches. His works can be seen at the Artists CO-OP gallery in Lincoln City, the Yaquina Art Association Gallery in Newport, and the Pacific City Gallery in Pacific City. Eric is currently showing some of his smaller etchings.