A Waterfowl Weekend with Artist Sandy Alanko

If it’s November in Easton, you can’t help but notice that the streets are busier, tents are appearing throughout town, and talk is all about the upcoming Waterfowl Festival. Inside Studio B Art Gallery, featured artist Sandy Alanko’s work fits the moment—paintings of water, marsh, and the wildlife that define the Shore. Watercolors that catch early light, wings over water, and the quiet places that define the festival.

“It’s my favorite show of the year,” Alanko said. “I’ve been coming for about eight years, and I love nature, conservation, and painting animals. It fits me so well. The fact that the proceeds go for conservation makes it even more meaningful.”

Her ties to that mission run deep. “I visit a lot of wildlife refuges, especially Blackwater,” she said. “They’ve benefited from Waterfowl Festival support over the years, and that makes me feel like we’re all part of the same circle—artists, collectors, and the environment we all care about.”

Her paintings grow from that connection.. One of her newest shows an osprey nest perched on Taylor’s Island. “You can see it from the back window of the little restaurant there,” she said. “It’s built on the pole that holds the fire siren. People wondered what would happen when the siren went off, but the ospreys just ignore it. For me, the painting was complex with all those twisted branches—but I loved it.”

Her interest in the natural world began long before she called herself an artist. “When I was a little girl in Illinois, I made it my mission to learn the names of everything in the backyard—birds, insects, reptiles,” she said. “By fifth grade, I could identify all the local birds.”

That curiosity led her to spend several years working with the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History on a coral island off the coast of Belize, along with her husband. “We hosted scientists from all over the world,” she said. “Because of the research done there, the island and surrounding reef were declared a World Heritage Site. The biodiversity was extraordinary.”

It also changed how she looks at a subject. “I’ve always had a sensitivity for habitat restoration,” she said. “Painting is a way of paying attention—to light, to movement, to balance. It’s my way of showing respect.”

Alanko works in several media but sees herself primarily as a watercolorist. “It’s so transparent,” she said. “When it’s used right, light bounces between the pigment and the paper and gives the painting a glow. That’s what creates atmosphere. When I want a painting to feel airy and alive, watercolor is what I reach for.”

For landscapes, she paints on site when she can. Wildlife is different. “Animals don’t pose unless they’re asleep,” she said. “So I take photos and work from them. It’s still about watching and noticing.”

Her return to Studio B for Waterfowl Festival weekend brings her back into a familiar circle of artists and collectors. “I was honored when Betty Huang asked me to come back as a guest artist,” she said. “My work looks beautiful there. I can’t wait for people to stop in during the festival and talk about what they see. That’s what makes this weekend special.”

The feeling is mutual. Gallery owner Betty Huang is thrilled to have Alanko back. “Sandy, other than being a fabulous human being and a fabulous artist, does such beautiful work,” Huang said. “She brought paintings in oil, pastel, watercolor, and gouache, and they’re all amazing. She has always painted such beautiful waterfowl-related pieces, and that’s why I wanted to feature her again.”

Huang sees Alanko as part of the fabric of the gallery. “She’s a member of the Working Artists Forum, she’s local, and she’s so willing to share her techniques. It’s wonderful to be able to promote our own artists during an event that’s so much a part of Easton.”

She added that the Working Artists Forum, of which both she and Alanko are members, will also hold its annual Waterfowl Festival show at Christ Church. “It’s such a great partnership,” she said. “The Festival and Christ Church have supported the arts community for so long, and it gives people another chance to see what our local artists are doing.”

Even with artists from across the country represented, Studio B keeps a strong local focus. “I have award-winning artists from Maine, California, Texas, and Florida, but it’s important to highlight the incredible talent right here,” Huang said. “These artists aren’t only accomplished; they’re generous people. That’s just as important to me.”

That spirit carries through the town each November. The days leading up to the Waterfowl Festival are among Huang’s favorites. “Along with Plein Air Easton, Waterfowl is when the town really comes alive,” she said. “The streets are busy, the galleries are full, and everyone is talking about art. Easton is a charming, historic town, but it also has a cosmopolitan side. We really do have the best of both worlds.”

Alanko feels the same. “Easton is the hub of the Mid-Atlantic for art,” she said. She would know. Besides the Working Artists Forum, she’s part of the St. Michaels Art League and the Academy Art Museum community. “There are so many ways to grow and share your work,” she said. “It’s a very supportive place to be an artist.”

When she isn’t painting, she’s often on the water. “My husband and I belong to a kayaking group,” she said. “We go out every Wednesday to explore the tributaries that feed into the Chesapeake. I love reflections on the water and the vegetation along the shore.”

Sailing has been another lifelong thread. “We once took our boat to Bermuda and back,” she said. “So yes, I’m comfortable on the water.”

Her new work includes a series of large water birds that look ready to lift from the paper. “Watercolor is flat compared to oil,” she said. “So I started painting the bird on another sheet, then layering it—sometimes three layers deep—so a wing or a beak comes forward toward the viewer. It gives the impression that the bird is about to fly right out of the frame.”

She’s also discovered a way to display her watercolors without glass. “I found a spray that makes them UV-protected and waterproof,” she said. “It means people can see the work directly. There’s no reflection, no barrier.”

Her goal is simple. “I hope people see the beauty of the animal or the landscape,” she said. “And maybe it makes them want to preserve it.”

Huang believes that respect is what makes Alanko’s paintings stand out. “Her work reminds people what’s worth protecting,” she said. “You can see her love for nature in every piece. When people come into the gallery and see her paintings, they feel that.”

The Waterfowl weekend is an important time for Easton, and Studio B on Goldsborough Street is bringing Sandy Alanko’s world of water and wings into the heart of the festival.

Studio B Art Gallery is located at 7B Goldsborough Street in Easton.