The Gmeiner Art & Cultural Center is pleased to announce an opening reception for a new Atrium Gallery exhibit for February 2024. “In Awe of England, But Happy to be Home” is an exhibit of pastels by Wanda Short of Stony Fork.  The pieces in this exhibit were inspired by Wanda’s recent tour of the British countryside with a knitting group. The opening reception will be held on Saturday, February 10^th from 2-4PM. Light refreshments, including desserts from Yorkshire Meadows, will be served at the reception, which is free and open to the public.

Wanda Short is originally from downstate Pennsylvania. She attended Mansfield College from 1964-1968, graduating with a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Art. She moved back to the area in the early 2000s, first to Galeton, and then settling in the village of Stony Fork. Wanda has tried her hand at many different media, but has always loved pastels which bridge the divide between drawing and painting. Wanda studied pastel portraiture with Leo Gilroy in Hershey. She does still create some portraits; however, her more recent work has focused on landscapes.

When she traveled to Great Britain in May of 2023, Wanda was awed by the beauty of the country. The Cotswalds are considered an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty” in England, a land of rolling green hills and picturesque towns built of golden stone. Wanda hopes that visitors to her exhibit will be similarly inspired to see the beauty in simple things like a fence, a fountain, and the neighbor’s dog. Whether you are venturing out into the world, or simply appreciating the wonders of your neighborhood, there is beauty to be found all around us. This exhibit will be on display in the Atrium Gallery from February 10 through March 3.

The Gmeiner is open from 12-6PM Tuesdays through Sundays and is located at 134 Main Street in Wellsboro behind the Green Free Library. Admission to the gallery is free.