Exhibits -

John MacDermaid was much more than a fine artist. He was one on the nicest men we’ve ever had the privilege to know. John passed away on May 9 after a long illness. The Art Reach on Broadway Gallery will honor his memory with an exhibition of his Military Art work from June 1-25. John served as a bomber pilot in the Army Air Corps in WWll, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross and three Air Medals. His paintings for the Coast Guard are shown around the world. He and his wife, Rexine, traveled the U.S. gathering material for his “Painting America” series. It was our good fortune that they settled in Canadian Lakes where he found beautiful scenery and subjects for his work there and throughout Michigan. John was the winner of the 1998 Art Reach Poster Contest He has supported Art Reach and other arts organizations with donations of his paintings and prints, and enjoyed teaching and working with young artists to help them get started. His classes at Art Reach were always full. ArtWorks of Big Rapids has tentative plans to host a retrospective exhibition of his work in September. Please stop in at the Gallery sometime in June to view his wonderful paintings and remember a great artist and a kind man.