Joan Watkin: a quiet person and expressive artist
Ray Watkin next to a self-portrait of his late wife Joan, whose work was on display Sept. 12-14 at the Universal Preservation Hall. |
The
times I would run into Joan Watkin, she was pretty quiet. I learned that she was a
shy person, the perfect foil for her husband, Raymond.
But
she most definitely expressed herself: through her art.
Joan
was a talented artist, and I was glad to get to see some of her work on display
this past weekend at the Universal Preservation Hall, the renovated former church
at 25 Washington St.
You may recognize some of the portraits by the late wife Joan Watkin, whose work was on display Sept. 12-14 at the Universal Preservation Hall. |
Joan
passed away Aug. 19, 2013, a couple of months after her and Ray’s 50th
wedding anniversary. She was a trained artist and worked as commercial artist
for various places, including The Saratogian. Her passions were art and animal welfare.
Although
I never really got to know Joan, I’ve had a special connection to her husband almost since moving to Saratoga Springs to become a newspaper reporter
in June 1977. But it wasn’t because Raymond Watkin was mayor when I was covering the city
beat. It’s because one year later he performed my marriage ceremony, a story
for another day. He and Joan were guests at the wedding.
So it
was a pleasure to see Joan’s work on display – a variety of media and a mix of self-portraits,
portraits of many
local people, landscapes, animals and more. My husband and I bought a couple of packs of notecards
of her work to benefit the UPH. I think I’ll use some and
save a few, just to enjoy. Her lovely artwork is a reminder that a quiet person may have quite
a lot to say.
1 Comments:
Barbara, Very nice write-up. I was out of town for Friday night's reception, but spent some time with Ray on Sunday admiring her art.
Best,
Sarah Burger
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