Where the Arts Flourish Gallery Opening Reception

Join us for the opening reception of Where the Arts Flourish featuring Laurie Basham and Sean Kammerlohr

Laurie Basham is an award-winning pastel artist known for capturing the beauty of light,

color, and atmosphere in everyday subjects. Drawn to unique angles, intriguing

patterns, and the luminous interplay of light and shadow, she is especially inspired by

backlit scenes, where light creates a glowing halo around her subjects. Through her

paintings, Laurie seeks to celebrate ordinary moments and transform them into

extraordinary visual experiences.

Since retiring from a thirty-four-year career as an art educator in 2019, Laurie has

embraced the opportunity to focus more fully on her own art and teaching. Her work has

earned awards in plein air competitions and has been recognized in numerous local,

national, and international juried exhibitions.

A sought-after instructor, Laurie teaches pastel and PanPastel workshops,

demonstrations, and private instruction. She has presented programs for organizations

including the Maryland Pastel Society, the Pastel Society of North Carolina, Florence

Thomas Art School, Streamline Publishing’s Pastel Live, and numerous art groups

throughout the region, as well as teaching online. Her approach encourages artists to

combine strong observational skills with spontaneity and intuition, finding their own

voice and joy in the creative process.

Laurie’s own process varies with the subject and the feeling she hopes to convey. Her

paintings may begin with quick, bold sketches, PanPastel, or loose India ink

underpaintings before evolving through layers of color and expressive mark-making. At

times carefully observed and at others intentionally loose and impressionistic, her work

balances freedom and control while allowing each painting to develop organically. For

Laurie, painting is both exploration and meditation—a way to connect with beauty,

presence, and the quiet wonder found in the natural world.

Laurie is a Signature Member of the Piedmont Pastel Society, where she previously

served as President, as well as the Pastel Society of North Carolina and the Maryland

Pastel Society. She is also a Juried Associate Member of the Pastel Society of America.

Laurie lives in Clemmons, North Carolina, and maintains a studio at 6th & Trade in

Winston-Salem’s Arts District. Her work is represented locally by Artfolios in

Winston-Salem, Four Corners Gallery in Mooresville, and Florence Thomas Art School

in West Jefferson. Her paintings and information about upcoming workshops can also

be found at LaurieBashamFineArt.com

Sean Kammerlohr is a painter based in Winston-Salem who uses oils in the studio and acrylics when painting en plein air to achieve his style of exaggerated realism where both colors and light are amplified.

Tree Friend Fine Art is all about challenging the notion that Nature is somehow “less than” or “other.” In his paintings he invites the viewer to wonder what the tree is thinking, feeling, and doing in the scene.  He believes that viewing Nature as a living, breathing Being with thoughts and feelings akin to our own will encourage society to adopt more environmentally responsible behaviors.

Kammerlohr has been a lifelong artist and has had little formal training. He spent decades working service and labor jobs but for the last five years he has been able to focus on painting full time. In that time, he has received multiple awards through competitions and arts shows. He has exhibited his work alongside other local artists in multiple venues including the Milton Rhodes Center for The Arts, Elberson Fine Arts Center, the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem, NC and Rock School Arts Foundation in Valdese, NC.