A full-time artist specializing in watercolor paintings, Ms. Blain maintains a studio in Minnesota.  Her work has received wide recognition; winning awards in many regional and national exhibitions and is part of numerous private and corporate collections.  She is a signature member of the Midwest Watercolor Society.

In addition to her painting, Judy conducts watercolor workshops throughout the country.

Judy uses watercolor in a direct and expressive manner, with a mastery of the medium, which allows her to paint many different subjects.  She continues to try new papers and approaches so that her work stays fresh and vital, but all her work has in common a love of rich color and strong values.  For the past few years, Judy has been working on a series of exotic and colorful tropical themes, full of parrots and monkeys and blooming with orchids.  She is now adding North American animals and birds to her repertoire.

Born:

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1937.

Education:

1959 Western Reserve University, B.S., Art Education
1960 Western Reserve University, M.A., Art Education
1960 Cleveland Art Institute, Four-year Certificate
Graduate Study at Carnegie-Mellon, and Pennsylvania State
University
Independent Study with nationally recognized watercolorists:
Eliot O'Hara, Dong Kingman, Robert Wood, Morris Shubin,
John Gaddis, Zoltan Szabo, and others.

Publications:

All In One Basket, Exhibition poster, Rivertown U.S.A. - 1982
Harvest - 1987
St. Paul Derby Poster - 1988
Summer Bounty - 1988
Set of Four Flowers - 1989
Hollyhocks, Ordway Music Theatre Program - Spring, 1989
Bathed In Sunlight (poster) - 1994
Strolling Through The Garden (poster) - 1994
Splash 3 - 1994
Strengthen Your Paintings with Dynamic Composition - 1995

Major Exhibitions:

Courage Center Winter Art Show - 1987
First Prize &
Best of Show

*Midwest Watercolor Society Annual Exhibitions, 1977 - 1982, 1984  - 1986, 1987, 1989-1994
Award of Excellence - 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982
Award of Merit - 1984
Inter-North Foundation Award - 1981
Special Merit Award - 1986
Helga's Pallette Award - 1994

*Kentucky Watercolor Society
Purchase Award - 1982
Robert Simmons Inc. Award - 1986

*Pittsburgh Watercolor Society's Annual Exhibitions
Aqueous Open 1983 - Prize

Northstar Watercolor Annual Shows, 1976 - 1986, 1989-1991
Award of Excellence - 1976, 1987
Award of Merit - 1978
Best of Show - 1979, 1980

*Rivertown U.S.A. - 1982
Painting chosen as the exhibition poster

Western Colorado Watercolor Society Annual Exhibition - 1993

Collections (selected listing):

Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing (3M)
Pillsbury
General Mills
Pittsburgh Plate Glass
Westinghouse
Piper Jaffray & Hopwood
Wausau Insurance Company
Radisson Suite Beach Resort