Karen MacDonald of Art on Fifth Gallery

By: Tobin Bennison

Article Category: Skilled Labor 1 Comment

Local artist and gallery owner Karen McDonald describes herself as always having been “artsy-craftsy,” dabbling in disciplines like batik, stained glass, decoupage, candle making and tole painting since her teens. But she always thought she couldn’t draw and wasn’t “good at art.” All that changed when she enrolled in a night class about 15 years ago while living in San Diego.

“I had an urge to take a night class and wanted something artistic,” she recalls. “Believing I couldn’t handle paint and a brush, but loving color, I chose a colored pencil class. I surprised myself by actually doing a pretty good job at it, so then I took a watercolor class. Well, I was hooked.” Karen describes loving the process from the first stroke, and when her yellow and orange dabs blended into each other, she found they’d formed a beautiful pear. It’s on that ebullient sense of discovery art holds that she founded her bright and wonderfully eclectic Art on Fifth Gallery in downtown Indialantic this past March, and the inspiring story of its conception is filled with similar serendipitous moments.

After creating that first pear, she continued taking watercolor classes, and after a few years, began to feel comfortable enough with drawing to consider pursuing an art-oriented career. To that end, she began teaching art in after-school classes at local elementary schools, to groups of home schoolers out of a garage, and in several small private studios.

Seven years ago, when Karen and her husband relocated to Brevard with their two sons, she continued taking watercolor classes, unaware that a new discovery was waiting for her just around the corner. “I never thought I would venture into any other medium because I loved the magic of watercolor so much, but one day I saw an acrylic painting of tulips by Fritz Van Eeden,” she tells me. “It was so exciting and different from what watercolor could do. I just had to learn how to paint like that.” She soon signed up for her first acrylic class with  beloved Satellite Beach artist Heather Everett, who at the time ran a studio on South Patrick. “Heather was so much fun and so encouraging,” Karen says. “She introduced me to the fun of acrylic painting with splattering and dripping and texture building techniques. I did a painting of tulips that really didn’t look anything like Fritz’s, but I loved it anyway.”

Excited to find that Van Eeden taught classes of his own, Karen enrolled in several workshops, learning to coax rich, bold and wild effects from acrylics in the style she so admired. She continued painting in both watercolor and acrylics, but couldn’t resist other classes being offered at the Brevard Art Museum — stained glass, fused glass, PMC (precious metal clay) and pottery. “By then,” says Karen, “I felt like I was so spoiled and having so much fun delving into all of this art, that I felt like I should be making some money to fund my art habit.”

Using her degree in secondary education, Karen, who’s held a variety of jobs over the years (including civil draftsman and real estate appraiser), started teaching art to 1st through 8th-graders at a small parochial school in Rockledge, something she regards as “a huge challenge.” “It was also lots of fun, and a great learning experience for me, but the stress of handling everything that goes with that job was tremendous,” she tells me. After a year there, Karen began teaching classes at Akademia in Indialantic before opening her own studio, Art ‘n Soul, in the Lori Laine Center on South Patrick.

“It was a pretty small space and not very visible as far as a business location, but I just wanted a studio where I could do my own art and teach some classes,” she explains. “It turned out that I loved it so much and I had became involved in offering classes in so many different media that I felt like I was being squeezed out of that space, so I decided I needed to either scale back or expand. When I found the space on Fifth Avenue, I knew that was where I wanted to be.”

The location turned out to be the perfect place for Art on Fifth. Only few blocks from the beach, the gallery boasts a well-lit front area and a large studio space at the rear where Karen and other artists teach workshops and where openings and special events are held. “When I opened, the only pieces in here besides mine were a few of Heather’s dramatic acrylic paintings and some of Alice Ahrens’ whimsically colorful watercolors. There are so many wonderfully talented artists in this area. It’s amazing,” Karen beams. “Every few days, another artist comes through the door to see what’s going on in the gallery, and they end up bringing their artwork in.” Thanks to Art on Fifth’s inclusive, open-minded ethos, over 40 artists are represented in the gallery, among them: Damien Share, Frank Palmieri, Jeff Leppard, Mary Moon, Paul Ero, and Viola Pace Knudsen.

During the summer, Karen offers multi-media camps in the afternoon, and mini-camps in the mornings taught by some of the gallery’s artists, including Mike Bryan, who taught caricatures, Heather Everett (painting), Alice Ahrens (tiki carving), and Panther Staton who taught charcoal drawing. Staton’s courses proved so popular that she’ll be returning to teach next month, along with New Smyrna Beach’s Carolyn Land, who’ll be hosting collage workshops September 14th and 15th and again on the 21st and 22nd. Weekly after-school classes are divided by age group at Art on Fifth, and are designed to be malleable according to the ever-changing nature of kids’ and parents’ schedules.

Karen explains. “I do 10 week packages, but they’re flexible as far as not being required to be attended consecutively. You pay for ten classes, and come ten times, so kids don’t have to lose a class because they want to go to the beach or have a dentist appointment. I want them to be glad they can come to class, and not have to miss another fun opportunity because they ‘have to go’ to art class.” This welcome adaptability extends to other aspects of the classes. “I do have a daily project for each class, but the kids are always welcome to choose another project. The classes are for their enjoyment and learning. I’m there to encourage, support, and inspire them to get to where they want to be with their art. One thing I’ve learned is that there are guidelines in art,” Karen continues, “but there are certainly no rules. Just because one technique or method works for one person, doesn’t mean it’s the only way to get to a successful result. And it’s successful if the artist likes it.”

Each month, Karen transforms the studio area into an extension of the gallery for openings and shows. In July, the brightly colorful paintings of Jeff Leppard inspired Art On Fifth’s fun-filled “Life’s a Beach” show, which featured beach-related art by 20 local artists. Due to its overwhelming success, August’s show, entitled “Jewels of the Sea” and slated for Saturday, August 22nd from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., will feature beach-inspired hand-made jewelry and accessories.

Despite its great location, Art on Fifth is somewhat hard to find. “I do have a visibility issue,” Karen admits. “I feel like we’re kind of invisible in between these two big buildings, but several artists are working on ideas for sculptures we could install to at least draw attention to the gallery.”

Until that time, regard Art on Fifth as a hidden treasure that’s well worth the hunt.

Art on Fifth is located at 425 Fifth Avenue in downtown Indialantic between Riverside Bank and the ReMax office. Parking is in the rear, so if you’re driving, enter from Sixth Avenue to the parking behind the building. You’ll be amazed not only by both the variety and the quality of artwork, but by their reasonable prices as well. Expect an eclectic collection of watercolors, acrylic and oil paintings, pottery, jewelry, baskets, fabric art, wood carvings, and tikis. To find out more about monthly classes and events, call 724-4490. Check back with the Resident next month for gallery-related announcements.

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