The Art League of Ocean City’s new exhibitions and gallery show for September kicks off with their regular first Friday artists’ reception at the 94^th Street Ocean City Center for the Arts on Sept. 5 from 5 to 7 p.m. The reception is open to the public and light refreshments will be served.

The Thaler Gallery is featuring “Unspoken Story,” a solo exhibition by artist Jinchul Kim, a realist oil painter known for his exceptional portraiture. A resident of Maryland since 1996, Kim was born in South Korea and came to the U.S. in 1989. He earned a BFA and MFA from King Se-Jong University in Seoul, Korea, concentrating on painting. In 1993 he received another MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City, focusing on multimedia and sound installation. His work has been exhibited in Korea, Japan, France, Spain and the U.S. and he has had 20 solo exhibitions in New York, Florida, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Seoul and over 170 invitational shows and group exhibitions. Kim currently teaches painting and drawing at Salisbury University.

An all-media, 2-D and 3-D “Artists Choice” competitive show fills the second floor Galleria in September and will be judged by Grover Cantwell Jr. of Salisbury, MD. Cantwell, himself a watercolor and oil painter, is a native of the Eastern Shore and president of the Wicomico County Art League and Co-chairman of the Salisbury Wicomico County Arts Council.  He is also a past Board member of the Ward Foundation, Arts Council, and Art Institute & Gallery in Salisbury.

September’s Artist-in-Residence in Studio E is Rosemary Burns. Ms. Burns’ is a watercolor, acrylics and pastel artist whose background also includes acting, singing and dance. She has appeared in professional and community theaters in Florida and Maryland, as a principal ballerina in Washington, DC, and been involved in professional musical theater, opera, and community musical groups. She has exhibited extensively in Maryland and Florida, is a member of several art leagues and has received a number of awards in Daytona Beach, Flagler County, St. Augustine, Ocean City, Rehoboth Beach and Millsboro, DE.

The Members Spotlight gallery will feature Phyllis Jaffe, who earned a BFA from Ball State University, a doctorate in art and education from Indiana University and an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts from Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, MI. After retiring as president of Kendall College, Ms. Jaffe continued on an eclectic creative path, establishing women’s crafts programs in developing countries, earning two theological degrees, and being ordained and serving as a hospital chaplain. She then brought her attention back to her artistic side and began taking workshops and studying with various artists and authors as she developed her signature style.  She says her art is about “embracing grief, loss, poverty, depression, and fear into the whole of life, merging it with the boldness of being healthy and leaving a positive mark, relying heavily on color and texture across all media.”

For more information about the offerings at the OC Center for the Arts, contact the Art League at 410-524-9433 or visit www.ArtLeagueofOceanCity.org

Funding for public programs and exhibits by the Art League of Ocean City at the Ocean City Center for the Arts is provided, in part, by the Worcester County Arts Council, Maryland State Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts, organizations dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive.