COLOR 26, 9th Annual Juried Exhibition
Dive into a Spectrum of Creativity at 3 Square Art Gallery, Fort Collins, Colorado! Are you ready to unleash a riot of colors? Welcome to COLOR 26, the year's most electrifying, anticipated exhibition where color isn't just seen—it's experienced! Imagine walking into a gallery where every shade, hue, and tint tells a story, where art doesn't just hang on the wall but leaps into your senses.
This September 2026, we’re not just hosting an exhibition; we're celebrating color in all its glory. From splashes of paint, lines of colors, dabs of color, colored fabric, colored lights to digital canvases, COLOR 26 invites you to get creative and immerse yourself in an unparalleled journey of color vibrancy.
Color is the heartbeat of art. It's where the art theory begins, with the color wheel spinning into primary and secondary colors, creating a dance of light and shadow. We pay homage to the legends like Mark Rothko, Joan Miró, and Helen Frankenthaler, whose explorations in Color Field painting revolutionized how we perceive art. Now, it's your turn to push the boundaries even further!
Jurors:
Steve Scheuring
Denise Demby
Kumiko S. McKee
Craig McKee
Artwork shown (top to bottom, left to right): Gordon Middleton, Roger Sherman, Robert Schwarzenbach, Alicia Thompson, Annie Briggs, Janis Goldblatt, Miguel Osorio, Aki May, David Thoutt, Meghann & Kevin Haase, Diana Yeagle, Gloria Campbell, Susan Montague, Sarah Brice, Todd Cookman, JoAnn Hovland, Catherine Brown, Bob Coonts
Details
Exhibit Date: September 11 – October 16, 2026
Opening Reception: Friday, September 11, 2026 from 6-8pm
Gallery Hours: Thursday - Sunday: 1-5pm
*** Monday, Tuesday, & Wednesday: Closed
Jurors
Steve Scheuring
Steve Scheuring is a highly credentialed, award-winning realist painter known especially for his realistic, complex still life paintings. His luminous canvases also capture the vibrancy of everyday life—from bustling Paris streets and Roman scenes to small-town Pennsylvania markets, parades, and Jersey Shore summers—often incorporating the human element through portraits, crowds, and family references. “My work is a means of connecting to fond memories of my past, feelings I'm trying to understand or reconcile, moments I don't want to lose, my dreams and aspirations, and people, places, and things that inspire me and have formed the essence of who I am.” A self-taught artist influenced by masters like Dalí and Wyeth, Scheuring serves on the Board of Directors of the Allied Artists of America, is a Signature Member of the Hudson Valley Art Association, and holds elected or juried memberships in the American Artists Professional League, International Guild of Realism, Portrait Society of America, and NOAPS. His work has been featured in numerous magazines and won many awards, most recently with “Tastes Of Home” taking first place in the still life category of the Portrait Society’s 2025 Members Only Competition and entering the permanent collection of The Reading Public Museum. He lives in Southeastern Pennsylvania with his wife and children, who frequently inspire his paintings.
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Denise Demby
Denise Demby is an award-winning juror, curator, and gallery owner as well as a contemporary abstract painter and sculptor based in Arvada, Colorado. Her minimalist works explore harmony, simplicity, and emotional resonance, drawing from the arid Colorado landscape and architecture to create color-field paintings, steel-and-glass sculptures, and mixed-media pieces in reduced forms that evoke joy, peace, and quiet beauty. She holds a B.F.A. in Printmaking and Ceramics from Metropolitan State University of Denver, has exhibited widely in regional and national venues, and owns/curates 931 Gallery while actively supporting the arts through collectives and juried exhibitions.
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Kumiko S. McKee
Kumiko S. McKee is an award-winning realist artist and co-founder of the McKee Art Foundation (MAF) and 3 Square Art. She received a BFA in painting from the University of Wyoming. She is creating large oil paintings of Japanese-themed historical subjects as well as extremely detailed portrait drawings in large scale format revealing the true spirit of her subjects. She has received prestigious awards in National and International Competitions and Juried Exhibitions including Honorable Mention at the 15th International ARC Salon Competition. Her graphite drawing "Isaiah" has been featured in Sotheby’s NY and European Museum of Modern Art (MEAM) in Barcelona, Spain. Her artwork has selected for one of the 28 artworks for the “Contemporary Realism: Important 21st Century Work” auction at Sotheby's in 2021. Received first place award in the Strokes of Genius 12 and featured in The Top Award-Winning Drawings of 2020 (Artists Magazine - The Best of Drawing). In 2025, two of her drawings “Constance En Fourrure” and “He She Me”were chosen for the Lunar Codex project (Polaris Codex), a global cultural archive to be preserved on the Moon. Her graphite drawing “Savion” has been acquired for the permanent collection of the Reading Public Museum.
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Craig McKee
Craig A. McKee is an artist, educator, and co-founder of the McKee Art Foundation (MAF) and 3 Square Art in Fort Collins, with plans for Miami. With lifelong training in drawing and painting and a BA in Studio Arts, he focuses on figure drawing and landscape while emphasizing mastery of multiple mediums—oils, graphite, and watercolor—as essential tools. He teaches observational skill and classical fundamentals, believing in rigorous skill and deep learning as well as a love of modern approaches. As a Director of MAF alongside his wife and co-founder Kumiko S. McKee, he helps lead the mission of Create, Share, Learn through studios, exhibitions, and education.
AWARD WINNERS
3SA Gold Award – $2,000 Cash Prize:
Phillippa K. Lack - “Vortex”
3SA Silver Award – $1,000 Cash Prize
Aki May - “Woods”
3SA Bronze Award – $500 Cash Prize
Kathy Suprenant - “In Flight”
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Annie Briggs - “Closer”
Marilyn Davis - “Blue Ceiling”
Miguel Lazaro Osorio Martinez - “Concretion”
Rebecca Kuri - “Get Lifted II-A”
GOLD AWARD
Phillippa K. Lack
“Vortex”
Textiles, 27” x 37”
2026
SILVER AWARD
Aki May
“Woods”
Pen and Colored Pencils, 14” x 17”
2026
BRONZE AWARD
Kathy Suprenant
“In Flight”
Fiber Art, 18” x 24”
2025
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Annie Briggs
“Closer”
Oil, 48” x 36”
2025
Marilyn Davis
“Blue Ceiling”
Photography, 12” x 12”
2025
Miguel Lazaro Osorio Martinez
“Concretion”
Mixed Media, 54” x 54” (36 pieces: 9" X 9" each)
2025
Rebecca Kuri
“Get Lifted II-A”
Photography, 48” x 66” (36 pieces: 8" X 11" each)
2024
AWARD NOMINEES
FINALISTS
SELECTED ARTISTS
Aki May, Fort Collins, CO
Alicia Thompson, Fort Collins, CO
Alison Dickson, Fort Collins, CO
Andrew Traub, Boise, ID
Ann Corbett, Keedysville, MD
Annie Briggs, Loveland, CO
Barbara Keim, Westfield, MA
Blake Welch, Louisville, CO
Bob Coonts, Fort Collins, CO
Catherine Brown, Fort Collins, CO
Darryl Erdmann, Farr West, UT
Dave Hanson, Price, UT
David Thoutt, Thornton, CO
Diana Yeagle, Loveland, CO
Gary Hixon, Fort Collins, CO
Gloria Campbell, Fort Collins, CO
Gordon Middleton, Loveland, CO
Janis Goldblatt, Fort Collins, CO
JoAnn Hovland, Fort Collins, CO
Kathy Suprenant, Lawrence, KS
Ksenia Winnicki, Ridgewood, NY
Leonard Mahoney, Fort Collins, CO
Marilyn Davis, Loveland, CO
Mary Lu Lovett, Fort Collins, CO
Megan McGrath, Midlothian, VA
Meghann and Kevin Haase, Berthoud, CO
Melinda Mergendahl, Fort Collins, CO
Meredith McCarthy, Fort Collins, CO
Michael Moss, Timnath, CO
Michelle Angelina, Fort Collins, CO
Miguel Lazaro Osorio Martinez, Windsor, CO
Natalie Wetzel, Valrico, FL
Phillippa Lack, Cheyenne, WY
Rebecca Kuri, Fort Collins, CO
Robert Schwarzenbach, San Francisco, CA
Roger Sherman, Fort Collins, CO
Sara Simonson, Macomb, IL
Sarah Brice, Fort Collins, CO
Sue Sell, Fort Collins, CO
Susan Montague, Fort Collins, CO
Todd Cookman, Sheridan, WY
Curator
Kumiko S. McKee
Co-Founder I Gallery Director & Curator
OPENING - SLIDESHOW
EXHIBITION - SLIDESHOW
