July 1, 2009, 9:36 pm
Ron Ukrainetz recently became the first Great Falls artist to have two paintings selected in a single year for the prestigious Paint the Parks 100, an annual international art competition also known as Art in the Parks.
Ukrainetz also may be the first Montana artist with two paintings chosen for the competition during one year, but officials with Paint America, the organization in charge of Paint the Parks 100, were unable to determine that Tuesday.
"This is truly an amazing experience," Ukrainetz said. "Each time I enter a competition, I go in with no expectations. If I enter and just consider the entry fees a donation, acceptance brings humble satisfaction and a small sense of pride."
Paint the Parks 100 is America's leading competition and exhibition designed to illustrate the beauty and significance of the country's national parks, according to a Paint America news release. Artists from around the world submit their paintings for the show. To be considered, works must depict one of 390 areas supervised by the National Park Service.
The 100 winning pieces travel to several locations around the country for exhibition. Michigan artist Patrick McManus won this year's grand prize for "Trail Watchers," a scene from Glacier National Park.
Ukrainetz submitted two paintings, "Loons and Lilies," set in Glacier National Park, and "A Drink at Dawn," which features moose in a scene from Yellowstone National Park. Both pieces are clay-board engravings with acrylic.
"The Yellowstone piece was from a series of sketches and photos," Ukrainetz said. "The field work for the moose was done in pencil. The loons were done in a particularly compositional style — I moved things around quite a bit to get the right composition."
