The Wrightwood Community Arts Center & Gallery will host a special exhibit this June featuring the work of award-winning artist and local arts educator Colleen Sparlin. The exhibit opens with a free community reception on Saturday, May 31, from 5 to 7 p.m., including an artist talk scheduled for 6 p.m.
As a longtime Phelan resident, Sparlin brings decades of artistic experience, passion, and dedication to the High Desert community. The upcoming exhibit highlights both her creative accomplishments and her lasting impact as an educator and mentor in the arts.
Sparlin’s path to artistry began early. She recalls receiving her first artistic compliment in sixth grade. “We were working with monochromatic colors, and the teacher stopped at my piece and complimented the balance of lights and darks,” she said.
Her love for art continued through school and into higher education, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in studio art from Cal State San Bernardino and a Master of Fine Arts from Boston University. Over the years, her work has earned numerous awards from groups such as the American Association of University Women, the San Bernardino County Fair, and the SOHO Gallery in Claremont. Her artwork was even published in a book titled: Incite: Color Passions published by Northlight books.
In addition to refining her own artistic practice, Sparlin has devoted much of her career to teaching and community arts engagement. She taught art at Sultana High School in Hesperia for many years and has offered classes and demonstrations throughout Southern California at organizations like the Art Association of the Inland Empire, the High Desert Cultural Arts Foundation, and the Corona Art Association.
Most recently, she led a single-color block print workshop at the Wrightwood Community Arts Center, sharing her hands-on approach and creative enthusiasm with local participants.
Sparlin’s work spans a wide range of media, including encaustics, ceramics, photography, watercolor, and colored pencils. She currently focuses on acrylics, pastels, printmaking, and glass, with a style rooted in realism and impressionism.
When asked about what inspires her artwork, she stated, “In everyday things, watching and photographing animals, landscapes, still life, and people.” Sparlin also names John Singer Sargent, Edward Hopper, and Modigliani among her artistic heroes.
When not making art, Sparlin enjoys playing piano and gardening, which are similarly creatively artistic outlets which emphasize working with your hands.
To aspiring artists in the Tri-Community, Sparlin offers this advice: “Be creative every day. No one began as a Rembrandt, we all were terrible before we became good. But no one achieves without applying themselves to working on becoming better.” She even quoted the great Michelangelo who famously said: “If people knew how hard I worked to get my mastery, it wouldn’t seem so wonderful at all.”
Colleen Sparlin’s exhibit will remain on display throughout June at the Wrightwood Community Arts Center & Gallery. Visitors are welcome during regular business hours, Friday through Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free, with artwork on display available for purchase.
