American Orchid Society Exhibition
Jerry Gotkin, a Smithsonian Institution collected artist and a supporter of Hospice by the Sea, will be a featured exhibitor at “Color Your World,” the American Orchid Society’s largest orchid exhibition of the year, to be held November 19-21 in Delray Beach.
The annual show and juried competition, which last year drew more than 3,000 orchid lovers from as far away as Hawaii and overseas, features thousands of spectacular live orchids on display and for sale, as well as related activities, including orchid judging, educational lectures, orchid supplies and garden crafts.
Gotkin, who was specially selected to display his artwork at the show, will bring works from his acclaimed “Orchid Series: An Intimate Portrait of Beauty,” which he has been creating for the past four years and now includes more than 200 distinct images. Using photography and multi-media techniques, he is able to realistically depict the brilliant colors and vivid beauty of orchids in full bloom, which are meticulously reproduced on a variety of decorative items and keepsakes.
At the show, Gotkin will exhibit six large limited-edition giclées produced on high-gloss, UV-protected pigment ink photo paper and sealed with a polyester overlay to keep colors true. He will also exhibit several hundred music and keepsake boxes and key holders featuring tiles that have been similarly designed with colorful orchid images. Also available will be a variety of framed 12” x 12” tiles that can be produced as indoor and outdoor installations of up to 8 by 20 feet, suitable for display in homes, restaurants, hotels and even swimming pools. All of the artworks is fully customizable and available for purchase.
Reproductions from the Orchid Series are currently housed in the Smithsonian Institution American Art Museum Libraries, catalogued as the “Marjorie and Jerry Gotkin Collection 1965-2007.” Artwork from the series is also featured in the book, “Orchids: An Intimate Portrait of Beauty,” also in circulation at the Smithsonian Institution Libraries.
Closer to home, numerous works from the series have been on semi-permanent display at the Boca Raton branch of Northern Trust Bank for the past two years, as well as on permanent exhibit in the branch’s atrium.
For the past ten years, Gotkin has dedicated all proceeds from the sale of his artwork to Hospice by the Sea, Inc., a not-for-profit organization providing a variety of healthcare and self-care services for patients, families and caregivers in Palm Beach and Broward counties.
He is looking forward to participating in Color Your World and the opportunity to present his Orchid Series work to devoted orchid lovers and collectors. “If people who raise and surround themselves with orchids look at my work and see orchids in a new light, then I know the art has been successful,” he said.