September 20, 2022, Vero Beach – The Galleries at First Pres will offer an opening reception of the Summer Art Show on Sunday, October 23, 2022, from 2:00 to 4:00pm. The show will feature the works of local artists Valerie Cecire, Grace Cormier, and Theresa Kelso. The galleries are located throughout the campus of First Presbyterian Church at 520 Royal Palm Boulevard in Vero Beach. Admission is free, light refreshments will be provided.
Valerie Cecire is a contemporary landscape painter and printmaker as well as abstract artist. Her impressionistic and abstract monotypes, prints, and oils capture the balance and change of light in nature. Through form and color, and motivated by introspective inspiration, Valerie’s compositions emphasize feeling. Her evolving artistic approach is derived from creative intuition. Art pieces are done in plein-air and studio settings and are impressions and concepts derived from nature with abstract dimensions. Valerie is a Vero Beach Art Club member and Vero Beach Museum member. She has been a 20-year Artist Guild Member at the Silvermine School of the Art in New Canaan, Connecticut. She has all so been a member at the Rowayton Art Center, The Graphic Art Center, and The Westport Art Center. She has attended classes at the Art Student League in New York City and the New School for Social Research and graduated from Finch College in New York. She has shown her work in Japan, Italy, New York, and Connecticut. Her works are in private collections in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East.
Grace Cormier was born in Szczecin, Poland. At the age of eighteen, she began her new life in the United States, settling in Miami. In 2001, she owned and operated Interior Design Service and a small Art Gallery on Long Island, NY. She retired in 2019 and returned to Florida where she committed herself full time to create art. Her art is mixed medium inspired by nature. There are unique elements incorporated in her paintings, sculptures, textile fiber art and jewelry. She is a member of Vero Beach and Sebastian Art Club. Her art work is exhibited in several local Art Galleries. Many of her paintings received 1st place awards at Art Shows hosted by Eau Gallery in Melbourne, Annex Gallery in Vero Beach, SRAC Annual Art Show, Indian River Bird And Nature Show and the Environmental Learning Center.
After a career as a Clinical Psychologist, art is another form for Dr. Theresa Kelso to express herself and experiment creatively. Art, volunteering and gardening is a natural transition of creativity for her after her retirement. As of July 2022, Theresa Kelso served three years on the board for Tykes & Teens Organization, which provides mental health for children. Presently she chairs the VNA Grand Harbor Health & Wellness Fair and VNA-Hospice Grand Harbor Golf-a-Thon. In addition, this is her third year on the board for Grand Harbor Community Outreach Program, working as the chair of the Evening of Giving Event and a member of the Philanthropy committee providing site visit evaluations of local charities requesting grants. Dr. Kelso has crisscrossed the country, growing up in Duluth, Minnesota, then attending Eastern Florida State College at first studying environmental science and moving on to Rollin’s College for psychology, finally receiving her doctorate in psychology at Florida Technological Institute in Melbourne, Florida. She moved to New Jersey where she had a private practice in Mountain Lakes for approximately 30 years. She then returned to Florida in 2018 with her husband, David, when they both retired. Theresa loves living in Vero Beach because of its’ southern atmosphere and small-town feeling with a lot of activity. After retiring, she began taking art lessons at the Vero Museum and after they closed due to Covid she was able to continue at the Artist Guild Gallery. This First Presbyterian Gallery showing not only displays Dr. Theresa Kelso’s art, but also highlights the importance of art for the young. Living in Florida, she is appreciating the contrasting surroundings in comparison to Minnesota; Florida has beautiful palm trees, tropical wildlife and Atlantic Ocean coast. Theresa feels there is so much to enjoy in art because it is an expression of all aspects of life.
The Galleries at First Pres feature a wide variety of works by local artists, on rotation throughout the year. The Galleries are located throughout the campus of First Presbyterian Church, 520 Royal Palm Boulevard, Vero Beach; they are open for viewing from 12pm to 3pm Monday through Thursday, and on Sunday mornings between church services. Admission is free and open to the community.
For more information, please contact Ginger Lagemann, Music and Arts Administrator, at (772) 562-9088 or ginger@firstpresvero.org.
