News-Record.com

Friends of longtime Greensboro artist Keith Rose have contacted us to report that he passed away at age 87 last week in Matthews, N.C.

His obituary appears in today's News & Record.

During his 30 years in Greensboro, Rose became known for his passion for painting and his unflappable will to live life and take risks.

A self-taught artist, Rose left the corporate world as a chemist at age 55 to paint full-time. His watercolors sold, and he showed his work in galleries across the state. And he became a mentor and teacher in Greensboro's art community.

But in 2004, his eyesight failing, Rose sold his paintings and moved with his wife, Betsy, to the Charlotte area, to be closer to his son and daughter-in-law.

"I think the last 30 years have been the richest, most meaningful part of my life," Rose told News & Record staff writer Jeri Rowe for an article at the time.

A memorial service will be held Saturday in Matthews. A celebration of his life and his art is being planned in Greensboro, sometime in January.

Filed by Dawn DeCwikiel-Kane

Amid all the downtown holiday fanfare this past weekend, the Greensboro Cultural Center alone showed the local arts scene's high level of activity.

On Saturday night, hundreds of arts supporters filled the Green Hill Center for North Carolina Art for Collector's Choice, the fund-raising opener for its annual Winter Show. More than 100 artists displayed paintings, sculpture, ceramics, photography, jewelry, wood and fiber work.

Across the hallway, the Guilford Native American Art Gallery and Center for Visual Artists opened their doors, too.

The CVA hosted its holiday invitational show of members' works. And Tanya Beckerdite will take home something special: She won the drawing for the CVA's Instant Art Collection of more than 20 original works.

On the lower level, the Eastern Music Festival hosted a standing-room-only concert by Eric and Jeff Silver, with special guest Victor Wooten of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Proceeds went to EMF's Silver/Mayer Scholarship Fund.

Then on Sunday afternoon, the African American Atelier auctioned works from several local artists. Proceeds will benefit the 21st annual African American Arts Festival (Jan. 13-March 31) and the Atelier Around the World Youth Program.

If you didn't get to the cultural center this weekend, there's still plenty of opportunity to see the art shows in the 200 N. Davie St. center.

Although galleries are closed on Mondays, they're open the rest of the week. And the Winter Show at Green Hill and the CVA's Holiday Invitational will be up through the holidays.