Diane Szczepaniak

“My interest is in the recognition of consciousness and in the fact that this experience can be expressed in painting and sculpture.”

Born 1956, Detroit, Michigan

Solo Exhibitions
2005 "Abstract Paintings" Black Rock Center for the Arts, Germantown, MD (two person exhibition in fall 2005)
2004 “Non-Sensory Perception of Form,” Dumbarton Concert Gallery, Washington, DC
2003 “Departure of Form,” Icehouse Gallery, Greenport, NY (two artists)
2002 “In Pursuit of Form,” Xavier University Art Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2000 “Abstract Concrete Daydreams,” Galerie Ingrid Cooper, North Bethesda, MD
1998 “Watercolors,” Embassy of the Republic of Poland, Washington, D.C.
1997 “Abstracted Space,” Arts Club of Washington, Washington, D.C.
1995 “Paper, Scissors, Rock,” University of Cincinnati Medical School Library, Cincinnati, OH (two artists)
1987 “Paintings,” Risch Gallery, Fort Thomas, KY
1985 and 1984 “Painting and Sculpture,” Merchant’s Gallery, Inc. Cincinnati, OH
1984 “Drawings,” Meadowland Fine Arts Institute, Covington, KY
1981 “The Figure,” S.S. Cyril & Methodius Seminary, Orchard Lake, MI
1980 “Transition of Three Artists,” Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY (three artists)

Selected Group Exhibitions
2005 "Thick and Thin" Gumenick Family Gallery, Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, Richmond, VA (Co-curated by N. Elizabeth Schlatter and Gwen Van Ostern)
2005 "SELECT III, 2005," Washington Project for the Arts\ Corcoran, Washington, DC2004 Youngblood Gallery, Sag Harbor, NY
2002 Curator's Choice Exhibition, Washington Project for the Arts\ Corcoran, Washington, DC,
2001 Greater Reston Arts Center, Reston, VA
2001 “Peace Exhibition,” Anne Fisher Gallery, Washington, D.C.
2000 Works on Paper Show, New York Armory, New York, NY
2000 Pinkard Gallery, Bunting Center, Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore, MD
1999 Samson Fine Arts, New York, NY
1999 “22nd Annual Art on Paper Exhibition,” Maryland Federation of Art, Annapolis, MD (Judges Choice Award)
1999 Galerie Ingrid Cooper, North Bethesda, MD
1998 “66th Annual Cumberland Valley Exhibition,” Washington County Museum, Hagerstown, MD
1998 Galerie Ingrid Cooper, North Bethesda, MD
1998 Time Warner Building Gallery, New York, New York
1997 “Intimate Objects,” The Ralls Collection, Washington, D.C.
1997 “Work on Paper and Canvas,” Galerie Ingrid Cooper, North Bethesda, MD
1997 Touchstone Gallery, Washington, D.C.
1996 “Abstraction II,” DOSHI Center for Contemporary Art, Harrisburg, PA
1996 Savage Mill Gallery, Savage Mill, MD
1996 Mattawoman Creek Art Center, La Plata, MD
1995 and 1994 “Fresh Art Exhibition & Auction,” Behringer-Crawford Museum, Covington, KY
1994 The Field, Michael Straw Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
1984 and 1983 Kingsley Inn Gallery, Bloomfield Hills, MI
1983 Merchant’s Gallery, Inc. Cincinnati, OH
1983 Meadowland Fine Arts Institute, Covington, KY
1981 Contemporary Arts Center\ Westin Hotel, Cincinnati, OH
1981 Academy of the Sacred Heart, Bloomfield Hills, MI
1980 Eleanor and Edsel Ford Estate, Soroptimist Club of Grosse Point, MI
1980 American Institute of Architects National Convention, Cincinnati, OH
1979 “Thesis Exhibition,”Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY

Selected Collections
Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH
Americans for the Arts, Washington, D.C.
St. Mary’s College, St. Mary’s, MD

Selected Awards
2001 Ulric Bell Memorial Award, New York, NY
2001 Rittenhouse Square Fine Arts Annual Philadelphia, PA
1999 Judges Choice Award, Maryland Federation of Art Gallery on the Circle, Annapolis, MD
1997, 1999, 2000, 2001 Paintings Under Glass Award, Bruce Museum Art Festival, Greenwich, CT
1997 Best in Show Award, Arts Atlantica Exposition, Ocean City, MD

Professional Experience
1999-2004 Artistic Director / Screen Painter for five theatrical productions, Herbert Hoover Middle School, Potomac, MD
1998 Lecture on watercolor painting techniques to art teachers, Fairfax County Public School System, Fairfax, Virginia
1993-1995 Drawing Instructor, Studio 620, Cincinnati, OH
1990-1991 Welding Instructor's Associate, Evanston Art Center, Evanston, IL
1990-1991 Membership Coordinator, Mary and Leigh Block Gallery, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
1985-1988 Membership Coordinator, Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH
1983-1985 Education Coordinator & Drawing Instructor, Cincinnati Arts Consortium, Cincinnati, OH
1981-1984 Treasurer, Merchant's Gallery, Inc., Cincinnati, OH
1981-1982 Darkroom Technician, University of Cincinnati Media Services, Cincinnati, OH

Education
M.A., Art Education, University of Cincinnati, 1983
B.F.A., Sculpture, Northern Kentucky University, 1981
Welding Certification, Northern Kentucky Vocational/Technical School, 1981
Sculpture and Drawing Studio of Michael Skop, Master Sculptor (apprentice of Ivan Mestrovic), Kentucky, 1978-82
B.A., Economics, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, 1978

Selected Bibliography
City Beat, Cincinnati, Ohio, October, 2002
The Villager, New York, New York May 23, 2001

Diane Szczepaniak’s paintings are minimal compositions where form emerges from layers of color.
Three-dimensional physical objects have form, music also has form, even an emotion has form in a certain sense. Form is a very important part of my work. One could almost say that the subject matter of my paintings is form
itself, an attempt to capture the essence of something as it exists in a painter’s mind. I agree with Kandinsky, who wrote that form is the outward expression of an inner meaning.

I paint with a wide brush and a lot of water. Most of my paintings begin with a thin wash of color other times the paint comes directly from the tube. The colors of paint are mixed and then applied one on top of another, red on
top of blue, blue on top of red, sometimes yellow over everything. I turn the painting several times as I work,
allowing the color to run. As I layer thin washes, I look into the painting as if it were a sheet of glass. This lets
me see where the piece started and where it’s going.

I work on a painting at different times of the day and in different seasons. I need to spend time with the work;
this lets me notice small changes in color. The smallest variations of a hue can lead to significant changes in the piece. In this way, painting is like tuning a violin. When the note sounds just right you know it. The painting begins to hum.

dcszcz@aol.com . www.dianeszczepaniak.com