MERIDIAN STAR - MERIDIAN, MS

Meridian Museum of Art welcomes new exhibit
By Terry Heder / special to The Star
Saturday, September 10, 2005 1:27 AM CDT

The Meridian Museum of Art will host a reception today for its newest exhibit, featuring paintings by two of the South's outstanding watercolorists, Laurin McCracken and Clint Herring.

Both painters are recognized for their control in a medium not known for control. McCracken favors floral subjects and still-life paintings full of silver and crystal. Herring focuses on painting people he meets in his travels.

Laurin McCracken

Laurin McCracken is a 1961 graduate of Meridian High School. He attended Auburn University and earned bachelor of arts and bachelor of architecture degrees from Rice University and a master's degree in architecture and urban planning from Princeton.

He is currently the marketing and strategies officer of Looney Ricks Kiss Architects.

McCracken's paintings have been accepted in more than 20 major juried art shows and have garnered a number of awards - including Best of Show in last year's Tennessee Watercolor Society.

His still-life paintings were the subject of a feature article in Watercolor Magazine and his floral paintings were featured in The Artist magazine. He has also been published in International Artist and in several books on watercolor.

Seven of his paintings will appear in the upcoming book Splash 9. He has studied with Gwen Bragg at the Art League School in Alexandria, Va., and with Alain Gavin at the Art Institute in Chicago.

"I interpret the real world through the medium of watercolor," McCracken said.

"Flowers, and in particular the magnolia, have a strong emotional appeal to me. Perhaps that comes from growing up in the Deep South. One of my goals is to help people see everyday things in a new light. My still life paintings owe much to the work of the Dutch and Flemish still-life painters of the 16th and 17th centuries. I try and bring their sense of life and light into objects that reflect today's society."

Clint Herring

Clint Herring's works in the show are studies taken from his work in the islands of the Caribbean and the Texas Hill Country.

His recent works have been painted in a freer manner born of a newfound confidence and a sincere interest in seeing how far he can take his talent and his art. Clint lives in Auburn, Ala., with his wife, Cristen, and daughter, Cara.

His work has been featured in the Alabama Watercolor Society's 61st National Exhibition and in the Louisiana Watercolor Society's 32nd International Exhibition. He was a finalist in The Artist magazine's 2003 Annual Art Competition (Portrait Category) and in the 2004 Competition (Landscape and Portrait). He and his work were also featured in the July 2004 edition of the magazine.

"My work depicts the unspoiled essence of the subject and the intense emotion it stirs in me. A resigned wisdom, solitude, and lack of worldly things are embodied in my subject matter," Herring said.

"It is not only the initial visual attraction, but also the characteristic and mood of the subject that I try to share with the audience Š I am motivated to portray a subject's essence and aura. Within that aura I find isolation, innocence, and a spiritual element - a sense of the old and the emergence of the new."

Terry Heder is director of the Meridian Museum of Art.

WANT TO GO?

Reception for new exhibit of works by Laurin McCracken and Clint Herring
Meridian Museum of Art, 628 25th Ave.
Information: Call Terry Heder, (601) 693-1501 or e-mail MeridianMuseum@aol.com

Meridian Star - Meridian, MS