robin lee makowski NWS, FWS, NMWS-MP, WFWS, TaWS
fine artist | illustrator | author | instructor 

So What's Going On?

AWS - I was thrilled to receive notification of acceptance for the 158th Annual American Watercolor Society International Exhibition!  The show was held at the prestigious Salmagundi Club in NYC in April.  Many thanks to the judge panel for this honor.  In 2026, I will be an AWS Signature Candidate, so I definitely need to put my best foot forward!

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FWS - We are in full-blown Convention mode, getting everything ready to go live on the website to start Convention and other activity registration for the fall festivities.  I can't believe how fast the time goes!

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​WFWS - On the heels of my acceptance with Clarety to the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies show in Phoenix last year, the next piece in the series, Optunistic, was accepted to the 2025 show in Lubbock, TX!  Many thanks to judge, Ken Call, and to the West Texas Watercolor Society for hosting this year's show.  I'm thrilled to say it also won the M. Graham & Co. Merchandise Award!  Woohoo!

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WPAG - I will be teaching a one-day workshop for the West Pasco Art Guild in January 2026!  We did Kickin' Glass with them in 2024, so this time they wanted a custom, multi-faceted workshop.  We're doing Outstanding Watercolor Compositions: Design & Application Techniques on January 17th.  The venue is in New Port Richey, FL.  It's an honor to be asked back!  I will put the information on my Workshop Page.  See you there!

 

Workshops & Judging - Speaking of which, I just added a page to the website outlining workshops I teach and judging credentials, if anyone is looking for those services.  Right now, I only teach in-person workshops, nothing online.  Not set up for it...yet.   

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Lost Art Gallery - I was thrilled to receive the news from Alex that I have a new collector!  At the Corner of Olive & Onion was purchased just before Christmas and was shipped to its new home in NC.  That painting is a three-time award winner, including NWS & AWS, and took Best of Show in Tallahassee last year!  It was time to let it go - doesn't get too much better than that.  Lost Art Gallery is AWESOME!  So glad to be a part of it.  Check it out online or in person in St. Augustine, FL.

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Happy Hour Series - #53, Five O'Clock Shadow, and #54, Happy Hour Squared, have been entered into the Florida Watercolor Society's 54th Annual Exhibition this year.  I'm hoping judge & juror, Matthew Bird, who is also a realistic painter, will appreciate them.  It's not necessarily a given that a judge will select a piece because it's similar in style to his own - in fact, sometimes it's a detriment - but it's a good guess he will appreciate the effort.  Happy Hour Squared was a monster!  It was originally drawn out and started on November 3rd, 2024, with the intent of finishing it in time to be first to enter FWS by April 29th, 2025.  Try as I may, I didn't finish until May 1st, at which time I entered them both.  It's easily the most challenging and intricate painting I've ever done.  I can tell you one thing - I will never paint another Jack Daniel's bottle label!  What a nightmare!  Won't hear if one of them gets accepted until the middle to end of June.  

 

NWS - Two Too Many, Happy Hour Series #51, was supposed to be my NWS entry last year, but I didn't finish it in time, so I entered it in NWS this year.  Still accepting entries, so the notifications won't go out until the middle of June.  Fingers & toes crossed that I get to pay exorbitant shipping and handling fees to get it to San Pedro, CA, if I'm fortunate enough to be accepted this year.

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TaWS - I was thrilled to get accepted into the 2025 Tallahassee Watercolor Society's Annual Tri-State Exhibition which gave me Signature Status with TaWS!  Five O'Clock Shadow was accepted by judge & juror, Kathleen Conover.  The show runs through June 28th at LeMoyne Arts in Tallahassee.

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SW - An oldie but goodie was accepted into the Southern Watercolor Society's 2025 Exhibition in Panama City.  They started accepting paintings as old as five years, which put Dragon Fire in contention!  Usually the paintings can't be older than two or three years.  It was one of my favorites and was only in two shows in its day.  I was very happy judge & juror, Keiko Tanabe thought it worth of this prestigious Exhibition.

Updated May 20th, 2025