BIOGRAPHY: WILLO BALFREY

I grew up in Durango, Colorado, a town surrounded by the Rocky Mountains, meadows, red rim rocks, trees, streams, and the beautiful colors of fall.  These impressions are with me today as an inspiration for my landscape paintings.  Now living in Weed, California, the beauty still surrounds me with the many changing faces of the majestic mountain of Mount Shasta and the areas of Northern California and Southern Oregon.  Working on location as often as possible, I bring the viewer into my work by painting the dramatic sense or quiet solitude I find in nature.

Many of my early works were of individual wildlife subjects but as observing wildlife also included being in the landscape of the animals, the next logical step was to paint the landscapes.


Signature status:   Northwest Pastel Society
                           Pastel Society of the West Coast
                           Sierra Pastel Society
                           Pastel Society of Oregon

Awards and Exhibits
       Pastel Society of the West Coast - Award - Great American Art Works
       Northwest Pastel Society 2009 - Accepted
       Pastel Society of the West Cost 2009 - Accepted
       Northwest Pastel Society 2008 - Accepted
       Pastel Society of the West Coast 2008 - Accepted
       Northwest Pastel Society 2006 - BEST OF SHOW
       North Valley Art League 2006 - BEST OF SHOW
       Pastel Society of the West Coast 2005 - Accepted
       Plein Air Painters of the Northwest Society 2005 - Award of Excellence
       Plein air Painters of the Northwest Society 2004 - Award of Excellence

ART EDUCATION:
       Mentoring under Richard McKinley 2000-2010
       Richard McKinley, Pastel                                  Cortona, Italy, 2008
       Richard McKinley, Pastel                                  Levenworth, WA 2007
       Bob Rohm, Pastel, Oil                                       Medford, Or  2007
       Terry Ludwig, Pastel                                          Medford, Or 2007
       Richard McKinley, Pastel, Oil                            Bend, Or 2006
       Maggie Price, Pastel                                          Medford, Or 2005
       Roberta Remo, Oil                                            Medford, Or 2003, Redding, Ca 2005
       Albert Handell                                                   2001, 2000, 1999, 1998,
       Anita West, Pastel, Oil                                       Mendocino, CA 2003, Jacksonville, Or 2002
       Daniel Green                                                      Eugene, Or
       Harley Brown                                                     Jacksonville, Or 1998

Demonstration/Teaching/Judging
       Pastel and Oil classes  2008-2010
       Pastel Landscape Underpainting Techniques, Scott Valley Art Guild, 2007