Gallery showcases mixed media

Two multimedia artists share The Discovery Room in The Olde Ramona Hotel Galley in July, Margaret Rangel and Robin Staton.

Rangel has been drawing most of her life, from calendars on the blackboard in first grade to backdrops for high school plays. She works in oil, watercolor, pastel, geode rock slabs, silk scarves and polymer jewelry.

Her art is on display at Southwestern Artists Association in Spanish Village, Balboa Park. She has taken some art classes, but she is mostly self-taught from books and lots of practice.

Staton says she is “a watercolorist who likes to play in mixed media.” She is dabbling in encaustic (bees wax), watercolor and rice paper. She has been a member of The Coachella Valley Watercolor Society for three years and has won awards each year.

Her work has been described as bold yet intricate. She is working on two series, ”Animals of the Cave” and ”Notable Flower.” Her petroglyphs are generally watercolor collage with rice paper and mixed media. Her watercolor flowers employ tea, coffee, often musical notation, and occasionally primitive symbols, Middle East signs or musical notes.

In college, Staton studied watercolor with a Native American instructor; in Algiers, she belonged to an art group of teachers from five different countries.

In the Featured Artist Room, members present “Red, White and Blue” this month as a tribute to the Fourth of July holiday and to those whose sacrifice keeps that day alive.

A reception for the artists will be held Saturday, July 11, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the gallery, 845 Main St.

For more information, visit the gallery, go online to theolderamonahotelgallery.com, or call 760-789-4983. The gallery is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.