Spartanburg artists Patrick DeCrane and Gale Roberts will share their paintings inspired by a 2025 European cruise in “Cruising Down the River from Budapest to Amsterdam” set for May 5 through 30 in Gallery III of the Artists Collective | Spartanburg.
An artists’ reception will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Thursday, May 21, and a second one will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. the same day as part of Spartanburg ArtWalk. The receptions and exhibition viewing are free and open to the public. The pieces in the show will be offered for purchase with prices ranging from $55 to $300.
“Our goal is to convey some of European history and culture,” says DeCrane, who works primarily in watercolors. “The art Is based on the Grand European Cruise we took in 2025 down the Danube, Main and Rian rivers. The variety and scope of the subject matter is meant to inspire the viewer to feel like they had been there.”
Roberts, a native of Erie, Pennsylvania, works primarily in acrylics, says she enjoys “bringing brush to paint to capture people, places and things that mean something to me when I see them. I like the bright colors that catch my eyes and the happy smiling faces of my grandson or my two golden retrievers. If you look very close, life will talk to you. The singing of the birds, the movement of the trees, the color of the flowers, the rush of falling waters and even the silence of an old building about to be torn down.”
She adds that she hopes the viewers “get a taste of the vastness of the colors and the life of our surroundings both indoors and out through some of my art.”
DeCrane, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, says he has been painting and drawing most of his adult life. “While I enjoy painting with acrylics and pastels, I find watercolors the most enjoyable. I also find great satisfaction in drawing with pencil and charcoal. My subject matter generally includes flowers, trees and still life.
A graduate of Park College and retired from the U.S. Army, DeCrane spent 11 years working for the Military Officers Association. Prepared for a new adventure, he then opened, owned and operated a bed and breakfast for 10 years with his husband, Michael Thomas.
Both DeCrane and Roberts are members of the Artists Collective | Spartanburg. “Our history of exhibitions at ACS together is substernal proof that this venue is home for our art,” DeCrane says. “As members of ACS we have many opportunities to show our art work and enjoy comradery with other artists.”