Akay wins prize for musician watercolor

Sonoma artist Patricia Akay last week was honored for her watercolor sketches of local and notable musicians.|

Sonoma artist Patricia Akay last week was honored for her watercolor sketches of local and notable musicians. Her work entitled “Terrapin Crossroads” won a President’s Award in the “Aqua Areas” juried Northern California watercolor show. This show, hosted by the Watercolor Artists of Sonoma County, is the largest annual watercolor and water media showcase in the North Bay.

Akay has painted since she was a child. She says she tends to focus on local scenes, including vineyard workers, wineries and coastal landscapes. She created her first watercolor sketches of musicians at Sonoma’s Erik James wine bar (now Sonoma Speakeasy), where she would set up at a table and give her works to the musicians as tips.

As a thank you for working with her, Akay has given a large print of each finished painting to local musicians Tim Eschelman, Stevie Gurr, Susanne Marie Copperman and Bryan Rashap. “That’s just so far,” said Akay. “I hope to do many others.”

Her new series will be shown for the first time at Akay’s Studio at 750 Third St. East during the juried Sonoma County Art Trails, Oct. 10 to 11 and Oct. 17 to 18. Sonoma will have 10 local artists in this open studio tour, including painters Irene Ehret, Helen Mehl, Kathleen Truax, Evan Garber, Theodora Elston, Sandra Lane and Christine MacDonald. Wood artists include Hugh Buttrum, Michael Palace and Roxanna Ahlborn (fiber). Catalogs with maps of the participating studios are available at each location.

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