Thelma VanSchoiack Biography
Thelma VanSchoiack was born and raised in a rural area near the town of Fall River, Kansas. She's spent most of her adult life pursuing the wonderful journey of an artist, though her art training didn't begin until she hit her fifties. Today, Thelma works from her Wichita studio, choosing her subject matter by the emotion that attracted her to it.
Winning Best of Show in her first exhibit in 1996 inspired Thelma to continue learning, competing, and absorbing everything possible to improve her skills. She was rewarded in 2011, when Thelma was honored with a First Place Award by the Kansas Art Guild for her painting, Conejos River Solitude.
With a strong work ethic fortified by a deep desire to constantly improve her painting skills, VanSchoiack has been an active member of the Kansas Art Guild since 2007, and has studied with accomplished artists in Colorado, New Mexico, and Kansas. She is now studying with Rick Howell of Mogote, Colorado, in his Chasing Shadows plein air and oil painting mentoring program. She will take a private workshop with Rick in October 2011, painting en plein air in the San Luis Valley and along the Conejos River Canyon in southern Colorado, a few miles from the New Mexico border.
Artist Statement
I paint for the sheer enjoyment of it. I can be in a bad mood or not feeling well, but picking up a paint brush and mixing paint gives me instant pleasure. Some would say that's medicine for the soul. I truly believe that.
It has taken me years to zero in on the subject matter that lifts my spirit the most. I have finally come to the conclusion that, as long as I create profusely and get pleasure from that, the subject matter isn't terribly important, as long as it's done well.
My goal is to improve my en plein air painting skills. I'm focusing on landscapes, as nature is all around us. What beautiful paintings await me!
Awards and Recognition
2011 14th Annual Richard Schmid Fine Art Auction, Bellvue CO
2011 Kansas Art Guild Exhibition, Larksfield Place, Main Street Shops, Sedan KS
2011 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, Birthplace of the Rio Grande
2011 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, Conejos River Winter
2008 Kansas Art Guild, Second Place, Sandy-Age 40
2008 Kansas Art Guild, Second Place, Jewel in the Snow
2007 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, The Mission Inn
2007 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, The Day the World Cried
2007 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, Main Street Shops
2007 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, Ruidoso Still Life
2007 Kansas Art Guild, First Place, Catalina Pier
2007 Kansas Art Guild, People's Choice, The Day the World Cried
2007 Kansas Art Guild, People's Choice, Winter's Grip
2007 Kansas Art Guild, Honorable Mention, Main Street Shops
2007 Kansas Art Guild, Second Place, Spruce House
2007 Kansas Art Guild, Second Place, Penza, Italy
2007 Kansas Art Guild, Second Place, Winter's Grip
2001 Wichita Oil Painting Society, Second Place, Portugal
2001 Wichita Oil Painting Society, Second Place, Washday in Sorrento
2001 Wichita Oil Painting Society, Second Place, The Old Salt
