March 12, 2011 Speaker, Melanie Miller, and workshop on ‘Surfaces That Suffice and Delight’

Our Speaker for our March 12th Program is Melanie Miller from Aiken, South Carolina.

Melanie will present from 10:00 am – 12:00 Noon during our regular bi-monthly membership meeting, and offer a three hour workshop Saturday afternoon.

Surfaces that Suffice and Delight
APS After Meeting Workshop:
1 pm – 4 pm – $45.00 for APS members
Instructor: Melanie Miller
You can view Melanie’s work at her website, Paintingsbymelanie.com

This fun filled workshop will offer an exploration in new surfaces for the novice or experienced pastelist. It will be hands on in creating new textures that you can custom and control according to your subject matter or surfaces just for fun to take your work to a new level. You will see that there is no limit to what this fabulous medium can provide in creating texture and beautiful luminosity as well as color exploration.

The demo will provide enlightening grounds that further open creativity in painting in the pastel medium. There will be opportunity for you to make your own surface and feel the tactile magic of pastel.

How to Register for Melanie’s Workshop:

We have space for 15 participants in Melanie’s workshop. Please pre-register for the Saturday afternoon March 12th workshop by mailing your check payable to APS for $45.00 to

Gail Wheeler
APS Program Chairperson
635 Park Ave
North Augusta SC 29841

Gail’s phone is 803.624.2274 and her email address is wheeler.gail@gmail.com A supplies list will be provided via email when you register for the workshop.

More Information About Melanie

Nationally noted artist Melanie Miller Longshore is a sixth generation Southerner who grew up in Montgomery, Alabama and is currently living in South Carolina. Melanie signs her work using her maiden name Melanie Miller. She obtained a degree in Art and Education with a minor in Art History and History from Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama. Her Pastel portraits and original works are found in private and corporate collections throughout the United States. Her work has been published in several publications and periodicals throughout the South. Melanie has received numerous awards and recognition for her work. She is a member of The Portrait Society of America and The National Degas Pastel Society. Her pastel portrait work was chosen to represent the national Degas exhibit in New Orleans . She is also a member of the Northwest Florida Pastel Society. Melanie is a member and founder of the Piedmont Pastel Society of Charlotte, NC . She is also a member of the Charleston Artist Guild and the North Augusta Artist Guild.

Melanie has spent much time traveling and painting internationally the last few years and studying under famed artists throughout the United States as well as abroad. Among her inspirations and study are world famed Presidential portraitist Daniel Greene. She has studied under Thomas Boskett, Professor of Art and Design at Parson’s Institute of New York. Her studies abroad include the Academia Italiana in Florence, Italy.

IN her own words…..”Capturing the human spirit, the wonder and the beauty of nature in pastel and oil is an ongoing and endless passion of mine. The limitless possibilities in exploring the luminous medium of pastel provide me the opportunity to stand in awe of the great universe and its beauty at every changing moment.”

Melanie greatly enjoys sharing the endless possibilities of the pastel medium through her teaching. Her work may be viewed at numerous galleries in Aiken, SC, The Re-Fresh Gallery, The Hitchcock Center Lobby of Aiken Regional Medical, and other locations in Charlotte, NC, Pensacola, Fl, North Augusta and Augusta, Ga. You can also view her works by appointment and on line at http://www.Paintingsbymelanie.com Melanie enjoys teaching workshops in the pastel medium as well as individual painting lessons. She works by commission in pastel and oil. She recently established and taught pastel classes at Queens University of Charlotte, North Carolina. She currently teaches at the Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art in Augusta and also teaches in her studio in Aiken.