We would like to introduce or re-introduce all of you to Donna Schortt. Donna is a life-long Indiana resident and skilled in the use of the oil and pastel mediums. She paints still life objects from life with other plein air painters. She travels all over the USA in all seasons to become familiar with the landscape. In 2019, she traveled beyond the USA to the Provence area of France to paint the countryside and villages. Her goal is to give her paintings a sense of place, mood, atmosphere, and light.
Several of her plein air paintings were included in the 2013 book “Painting Indiana III: Heritage of Place”, and the 2020 traveling exhibit catalog for Historic Indiana en Plein Air. Her paintings are in the permanent collection of the Indiana State Museum, the Richmond Art Museum, Richmond Bank, both in Richmond, Indiana, the Historic Oliver P Morton Home collection, and the City of Carmel, Indiana. Her pastel Paintings and oil paintings have been accepted into both local and national juried exhibits where her work has received numerous awards. She has been entering the Will Vawter Juried Exhibit since about 2008. In 2011, she received Best of Show and in 2012, she received People’s Choice.
She does enjoy the competition side of plein air painting events and as a result her work has been honored with numerous awards, most recently a plein air painting received Best of Show at the Carmel on Canvas event in Carmel, Indiana in 2021.
Donna’s Artist Statement: My inspiration to paint starts with the light at early morning or late afternoon and I would be content to spend most of my time capturing it. It is a 50/50 relationship with both the oil and pastel mediums, now as I love both equally. I consider each painting not a destination but a journey, always looking forward to working on the next blank surface.
To learn more about Donna, visit her website: Pastel and Oil paintings by D. Shortt (dshortt.com) Thank you Donna for your commitment to Hancock County Arts.