Florida Artists Group

Sydney's Bio:

Sydney McKenna holds a degree in Visual Arts from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg and attended graduate studies in 1996 at the Cortona, Italy campus of the University of Georgia. After her return to the States she relocated to St. Augustine, where she opened the Sydney McKenna Gallery in 1997.
Sydney was the poster artist for the Anna Maria Festival of Fine Arts in 1989, and has been featured on the cover of numerous magazines, including “Florida Living Magazine” July, 1992 issue. Four of her paintings were included in Florida’s American Heritage River-Images from the St. Johns Region, written by Mallory O’Connor, Professor Emeritus of Art History at Santa Fe College) and Gary Monroe, Professor of Fine Arts and Photography at Daytona State College.
Sydney’s paintings are found in corporate, public and private collections, including Capital One’s corporate collection of American art, (McLean, VA), The Museum of Florida Art, (Deland, FL), Admiral Kevin Delaney (ret.), The Contrarian Group and the private collection of Patrice Munsel, retired opera star (Schroon Lake, NY).
To read her full vitae and view additional samples of her work, visit her website at: www.sydneymckenna.com .

Artist Statement:

I am fascinated with evaporation. In the symbolic sense, the ethereal nature of evaporation reminds me of the spark of life: a lifting of the physical, into the spiritual. In the physical sense, evaporation serves to merge our regional environment with the rest of the world. We are all truly connected through evaporation and rainfall. Clouds are colonized by life and substances that are transported around the globe. In the South, our active humid environment provides me with a constant source of inspiration for expressing my fascination with this event.

Selected Awards

Best of Show, St. Augustine Art Association Honors Exhibit, July 2010
Merit Award, Museum of Florida Art, Florida Biennial IV, June, 2008
Best of Show, Cultural Center at Ponte Vedra Beach, November 2007
2nd Place, St Augustine Art Association Honors Exhibit, Spring 2003
2nd Place, Jacksonville Watercolor Society Spring Exhibition 2003
Best of Show, Black and White Exhibit, St. Augustine Art Association 1997
Best of Show, 1995 Riverfest, Bradenton, FL
First Place, Northern Trust Exhibit, Longboat Key Art Center 1995
First Place, Temple Terrace Fine Art Exhibit 1994

Solo Exhibitions

Riverside Fine Arts, Jacksonville FL, September 2010
Hollingsworth Gallery, Palm Coast, FL,  January, 2010
Cultural Center at Ponte Vedra Beach, July 2008
Butterfield Garage Art Gallery, St. Augustine, FL, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2007
Piano Expo, Jacksonville FL December 2004
Florida School of the Arts, St. Johns River Community College Gallery, Fall, 2003
57 Treasury Art Gallery, St. Augustine, FL, January, February 2004, October 2002
Unity Gallery, Sarasota, FL, April, 1996
Quimby Country Resort 100th Anniversary Exhibit, Averill, VT, 1993

Group Exhibitions

Jacksonville Museum of Contemporary Art, “Imagination Squared”, September 1 - November 14, 2010
Boca Raton Museum of Art, “All Florida” Exhibition, June 2010
Museum of Florida Art Biennial, Deland, FL, April - September 2010
Backus Museum (4 artists) Ft. Pierce, FL, April 18, 2010
Atlantic Center for the Arts, Harris House Gallery, New Smyrna Beach, FL, 2 person show
with Sculptor Marcia DeBroske, May 2009
Mennello Museum, “Picturing Florida” Exhibit, January 8 - February 28, 2009
Fogle Fine Art, Jacksonville, FL, September 4 - October 11, 2008
Haskell Gallery, Jacksonville International Airport, April - June 2008
MiArte Gallery, 85@85, Coral Gables, FL, December 7, 2007 to February 29, 2008
Daytona Museum of Arts and Sciences, Florida Artists Group Exhibition, May - September 2007
Boca Raton Museum of Art - “All Florida” Exhibition, May 2005
Mount Dora Center for the Arts - “It’s in the details”, September 2004 
Florida Gulf Coast University, Ft. Myers, FL, Florida Artists Group, June 2005
ArtServe, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Florida Artists Group, April 2004
Florida State Capitol Building, Tallahassee, FL, Florida Artists Group, Spring 2002
Edison Community College, Ft. Myers, FL, Florida Artists Group, Spring 2001
University of Georgia, Cortona Exhibition of Selected Works, Spring 1997
“Mostra di Lavori in Corso”, Cortona, Italy, Fall 1996
Manatee Community College, Bradenton, FL, “Sci-Art Gallery”, January 1996
The Arts Center of St. Petersburg, All Florida Exhibit, May 1995 (Second Place)