ART SHOW DETAILS CREATIVE INSPIRATION.

Byline: Jim Skeen Daily News Staff Writer

In a time crunch to produce an entry for the Antelope Valley Fair's art exhibit, Marci Bishop created a painting from a 7-year-old photograph of her daughter on horseback.

Bishop can't recall exactly how well "Pocahontas Was a Blonde" did in August in the fair, but she knows precisely how it did at the 11th annual Juried All Media Art Exhibition.

It won her the $200 top prize.

"I was really flabbergasted," Bishop said. "I enter every year and for the last two or three years I got an honorable mention. I thought that was the best I could do. I almost didn't enter."

The painting depicts a blond girl on horseback picking grapes from a vine that had climbed from a terrace into a tree.

Bishop, 51, of Palmdale said her daughter had to ride the horse under the tree in order to pick the grapes.

"This painting is a reflection of the joy of life," art juror Dona Anderson wrote of Bishop's painting. "It has a free and open feeling to it. The artist has created a wonderful balance between the placement of objects."

The painting is one of 137 works by 107 artists featured in the exhibition, which runs through March 10 at the Lancaster Museum/Art Gallery. The exhibition, presented by the museum and the Antelope Valley Allied Arts Association, features photography, oil, acrylic, ceramic, pastel, watercolor, painted china, and computer generated artwork.

One of the intriguing works of the exhibition is "Samurai Warrior," a painting by Antelope Valley High School art teacher Peggy Jane Murray depicting a black and white cat dressed in a striking orange and blue samurai warrior outfit. The painting was judged as the third best of the exhibition.

"The subject matter at first appears only to be comical," Anderson wrote. "However, upon further examination the artist shows us a serious side - the all knowing eyes of a cat recall another time - the place and the lives of samurai warriors."

"I'm very influenced by the Japanese prints," Murray said. "I use animals as people I know or as myself sometimes."

Murray said she started doing anthropomorphic art about 15 years ago after a stray dog saved her from a burglar breaking into her home. Murray, who adopted the dog, drew the animal as a statue.

Another work is "Windmill," an acrylic painting by Sharon Powell.

The painting, which earned a $50 prize from the Antelope Valley Arts Council, depicts a windmill against a sky of pastel green, purple and blue.

"The loneliness of the single unmoving object that is placed within the busy sky is dramatic," Anderson wrote. "The paintingly quality and choice of color is wonderful and an unusual treat to the eye."

The Lancaster Museum/Art Gallery is located at 44801 Sierra Highway. The museum/art gallery is open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.

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Photo (Color) Christy French inspects a work entitled "Carries Dreams" by the artist Karla at the 11th annual Juried All Media Art Exhibition running through March 10 at the Lancaster Museum/Art Gallery. Jeff Goldwater/Daily News