February 2020 Issue

February's Cover artist Mark Bettis
Clockwise:
Mark Bettis, (photo by Matt Rose);
Victoria Pinney;
Cason Rankin;
“Rolling Sunset,” by Mark Bettis;
“Leave a Light In,” 40 x 40, by Victoria Pinney;
Inside the Mark Bettis Studio and Gallery
Two new artists are now at Mark Bettis Studio & Gallery
BY STAFF REPORTS • RIVER ARTS DISTRICT, ASHEVILLE
Mark Bettis Studio & Gallery, located in the
heart of the River Arts District, at 123 Roberts
Street, offers contemporary art from emerging
and mid-career artists.
The gallery is easily accessible on the street-level.
His mission is to provide thought-provoking,
museum-quality, beautiful art to the public.
Featuring exceptional paintings, original prints,
and innovative glass and metal sculptures, Mark’s
gallery also has art openings throughout the year,
check out his website at www.markbettisgallery.
com for more information.
This year Mark is welcoming two new artists
to his studio/gallery at 123 Roberts Street in the
WEDGE Building. Joining painter Mark Bettis,
glass artist Deb Williams, sculptor, and painter
David Sheldon and collage artist Grant Penny are
Victoria Pinney and Cason Rankin.
Victoria Pinney’s brightly colored abstractions
have been shown in galleries from coast to coast
and are in private collections across the country.
Art Galleries and Artists of the South recently
identified Victoria as an “emerging artist”.
Pinney says, “I’ve always been moved by
color and texture. With the elements I use in my
painting - oils, wax, and sand - I build up layers
and layers of ‘history’ which I scratch through
and then build up again until the image reveals
itself. To me, my paintings feel ancient, as though
they contain all of history. They allow peeks at the
past through erosion of the present - each layer
partially visible through the next. The textured
surface is as essential in appreciating the painting
as color or shape.”
Cason Rankin creates paintings of figures and
faces. This can be either people or wildlife. The
emotional impact of a portrait is just as essential
as the image. The painting is exactly right when
it’s as if the essence of that person or animal has
entered the room. She conveys the intensity of
what the person or animal is feeling in a single
moment in time.
Rankin has participated in numerous national
and international shows, including the National
Watercolor Society, Transparent Watercolor
Society of America, Florida Watercolor Society
Exhibition, the International Miniature Art Society,
and the World Federation of Miniature Art. She
was also included in the National Watercolor Society
traveling exhibition and have been fortunate
to have received awards in numerous national
and state shows.
IF
YOU
GO
Mark Bettis Studio & Gallery
123 Roberts St., Asheville
(941) 587-9502
www.markbettisgallery.com
VOL. 23, NO. 6 — FEBRUARY 2020 | RAPIDRIVERMAGAZINE.COM | RAPID RIVER’S ARTS & CULTURE | 15