| When Kay Smith Talks |
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people listen, they hear and see America come to life
through the eyes of an artist and through the words of a master
storyteller, educator, and historian.
Sahuarita, Arizona Live Presentation
A painter of historic sites, Kay Smith has traveled
extensively in Canada, France, England, Italy, Spain, Cuba and
the length and breadth of the United States to paint our nation’s historic events and landmarks.
Her American Legacy Collection is a magnificent body of
work consisting of 270 watercolor paintings and black and
white drawings. It is the largest collection of its kind ever done by a single artist in one medium, watercolor. In 1994, in
recognition of the importance of this work for education and
preservation of our history/heritage, the Lincoln Academy of Illinois invested Kay Smith Artist Laureate of Illinois as a life
time appointment.
Kay Smith has an unique perspective on the men, women,
and events that shaped our American lives. With humor and
charm she gives insights into past and present America that are
not found in most chronicles of history. Her three stimulating
talks described below are realistically illustrated with slides of
her paintings and can be adapted to any audience. |
| Titles of Kay's Talks & Lectures |
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Live Event: Friday, February 28, 1:30 to 2:30 pm
Kay Smith
Artist Laureate of IL
will discuss her “Red Tails Escorting the B17s”, painting commissioned by the Pritzker Military Library, Chicago, to provide insight into the research, including interviews with the veterans that inspired her work.
It is a powerful narrative of our American Heros, the Tuskegee Airmen “Red Tails Escorting the B17’s |
The Tuskegee Airmen had to fight for the right to fight for victory overseas while simultaneously fighting on the home front for victory over racism.
Madera Club House
2055 E Quail Crossing Blvd
Sahuarita, AZ 85614
The talk will be in the
Silver Room and will be
45 minutes in length.
Immediately followed
by a Q&A session
Then the 12 minute prize winning film
“Kay Smith Paints the Red Tails”
will conclude the talk. |
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program flyer .pdf |
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Holding Hands With History,
The Life and Times of Abraham Lincoln
click image for description of this talk
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At Home With The Illinois Governors,
A Social History of the Illinois Executive
Mansion 1855-2003
click image for description of this talk |
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Ernest Hemingway in Watercolor
click image for description of this talk |
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The Lewis and Clark Expedition,
1804-1806, "the wildest adventure
our nation's history"
click image for description of this talk |
| Holding Hands With History, The Life and Times of Abraham Lincoln |
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| Through her paintings and words, the artist, weaves a powerful narrative of Lincoln’s passage from childhood to rustic frontiersman to successful lawyer: from log cabin to the White House and how and why the decisions not made and the actions not taken at Independence Hall by Washington and the Founding Fathers in 1775 affected Lincoln’s life choices, led to the Civil War and the “inestimable loss of Abraham Lincoln to an assassin’s bullet.” |
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| Holding Hands with History is an exhibit of paintings on the Life of Abraham Lincoln by artist Kay Smith. You will feel the triumph and tragedy of Vicksburg. You will grasp the life style of the frontier as she relates Lincoln’s half-year travels as an Eighth Judicial Circuit lawyer. How he formulated insights into the desires, passions, thinking and struggles of the men and women living on the open prairies that would help him govern our turbulent, troubled country during the Civil War. |
| 30/40 minutes illustrated with slides |
At Home With The Illinois Governors,
A Social History of the Illinois Executive
Mansion 1855-2003 |
Illinois Executive Mansion |
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| Kay Smith skillfully blends stories of the lives of Illinois governors and their families with her personal experiences of being a guest at the Mansion while she completed the watercolor paintings of the interiors and gardens for the book. Stories of Illinois political life in context with national events, spectacular marriages, tragic deaths, life-affirming births, and ghosts that walk the halls. From the portico of the Mansion. Gov. Richard Yates addressed the Illinois regiments as they marched off to serve in the Civil War. |
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| Here Governor Adlai Stevenson gave a deposition on his friendship with accused spy Alger Hess at the height of the Cold War. Stories of how the Mansion was saved from the wrecking ball in 1961; how the Executive Mansion Association was created. These incomparable real life stories are illustrated with slides of the artist’s paintings. It is a revealing 30/40 minute talk laced with humor and insight. This full color coffee table book is for sale at each talk and is only available through the Artist or at the Abraham Lincoln Bookstore in Chicago. |
30/40 minutes illustrated with slides
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| Ernest Hemingway in Watercolor |
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| Using the writer’s own words in passages from “The Sun Also
Rises”, “Death In The Afternoon”. “For Whom The Bells Toll”,
“The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “The Old Man and The Sea,”
the artist has illustrated in thirty paintings, scenes that tell
these stories and the writer’s purpose in watercolor. They were
created for and exhibited during the Hemingway Centennial in
Oak Park, Illinois for the Ernest Hemingway Foundation and
Museum. |
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Using power point or slides of these unusual paintings,
the artist reveals another perspective on the works and life
of Ernest Hemingway: explains the grammar of reading a painting and the symbols used to interpret the intent of the
author visually. The artist gave this presentation in Havana, Cuba for the
Hemingway Museum of Cuba’s Colloquium for Hemingway
scholars that commemorated the 40th anniversary of his death.
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30/40 minutes illustrated with slides
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The Lewis and Clark Expedition,
1804-1806, "the wildest adventure
in our nation's history" |
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| Lewis & Clark’s Expedition opened the Great West for settlement and the expansion of our nation to the Pacific Ocean. Led by Merriwether Lewis and William Clark, they and their Corps of tough frontiersmen “endured incredible hardships and saw incredible sights, including vast herds of buffalo and Indian tribes that had not had contact with white men." |
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The artist tells the life of the men on the Trail. With humor and insight she includes in-depth stories of the men’s character, hardships. and loyalty and how together they achieved their historic mission and of Sacagawea, the Indian girl whose invaluable help was never recognized or rewarded by the U. S. government.
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| 40/60 minutes illustrated by slides |
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Circle of Arts to host event for Artist Laureate
The Charlevoix Circle of Arts will host a reception for Kay Smith, a well known Chicago-based artist and Artist Laureate of Illinois
from2-4 pm on Saturday, Aug 21. .......Smith is well known as being the artist who was commissioned by the Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park,Illinois to illustrate the life of Ernest Hemingway in watercolor paintings for his centennial birthday in l999.
...during the reception, Smith will answer questions about her work and give a painting demonstration.
Charlevoix Courier, Charlevoix, Michigan 2010 |
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Historical painter to visit Circle of Arts
An artist who has been described as
the foremost living painter of the United States historical sites,
landmarks, and events, will be in Charlevoix this weekend.
Kay Smith will hold a lecture and
demonstration from 2-4p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 21, at the Circle of Arts.
Petosky News-REview, Petosky, Michigan 2010
Rave Reviews for Kay Smith |
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A Brush With History
Kay Smith paints the pages of our past in watercolor hues .
Kay Smith, who lives in and works in
Chicago, is in Decatur this week giving lectures at Millikin University
about her exhibition in Kirkland Hall, "In the foot steps of
Columbus".
The Herald & Review, Decatur, Illinois 1992 |
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Brush Strokes of Genius,
Kay Smith gave a lecture on
Lincoln and the Civil War illustrated with slides to a full house at
the Fayette County Historical Museum.
in Vandalia on Sunday. The Museum
hosted a tea for the artist following the lecture.
The Leader-Union,
Vandalia, Illinois 2009 |
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History in Art--
Watercolorist Kay Smith is currently
featuring her artwork at the Canton Museum of Art depicting the
historic scenes and events spanning 500 years in American history.
She will give two lectures while the
exhibit is here. Mrs. George Ryan, First Lady of Illinois, Shirley
Madigan, chairman of the Illinois Arts Council , and Rhoda Pierce of
the Illinois
Arts Council were present for the
opening as was Ohio Senator Ralph Regula and Mrs. Regula.
The Review, Akron, Ohio 2000 |
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Awash in History
Kay Smith, Illinois Artist Laureate,has logged 300.000 miles to illustrate our country's great moments in watercolor.
Chicago Tribune, 1994 |
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Artist Kay Smith travels to France
Kay Smith, well-known, historical site painter,will travel to France this month to paint Omaha Beach for Amvets.
Kup's Column, SunTimes. Chicago, Il. 1994 |
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Local woman followed her calling to the life of an artist
Using watercolors to capture the
spirit of Americans, Lincoln Park artist Kay Smith is a leading
authority on the country's historical sites. With more than 250
paintings of historic
buildings, battlefields, and national
landmarks, Smith frequently lectures on American histaory and is
currently displaying om DePaul University's Richardson Library. She
will share secrets
or her craft starting this JAanuary by
teaching a 10 week course at the Old Town Triangle Art Center, 1763
N. North Park Ave.
Lerner Papers, Chicago, Il. 1996 |
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History as art
What sets Kay Smith's historic
watercolor illustrations apart from others of the genre is that Smith
is first and foremost an artist. Her research and watercolor techniques
are flawless.
Kay Smith's visual interpretation makes learning about history a treat.
The Zephyr, Galesburg, Illinois 2009 |
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