'Explore the Luminous': Quincy Egginton To Teach Watercolors in Bridgehampton

Watercolor painting is an art form that Quincy Egginton of Wainscott has honed for years.

So is the teaching of art — a career that has brought Egginton joy and fulfillment, not just a paycheck. From 3-year-olds up to college-aged students and adult learners, she has taught at every level, often leading classes at places like libraries, grade schools, colleges and universities, parks and museums.

Thus, when she steps into the Bridgehampton Museum’s workshop space at the Nathaniel Rogers House to teach her first adult watercolor class there on March 20, Egginton will be continuing a life’s work begun five decades ago and sustained by her own passion for making art.

“I’m excited, but I also know I will feel challenged to be effective with each student,” she said in an interview. “My goal is to have each student feel the pleasure of a creative experience.”

Over coffee and a Danish pastry on a recent chilly morning, Egginton took a trip down memory lane by digging into her teaching portfolio for a visitor. She unearthed artwork made by the children and adults who took her classes in Westchester County, where she and her husband, Hersey, had resided in Chappaqua before relocating full-time in 2021 to the Wainscott home they bought more than 45 years ago. Not limited to watercolors, Egginton has also taught charcoal drawing, oil pastels, computer graphics and graphic design, printmaking and other media.

The upcoming class at the Nathaniel Rogers House, titled “Painting Watercolors … Make a Splash With Dr. Quincy Egginton,” runs six Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. starting next week. Each session will cover a different technique or aspect of watercolor painting, beginning with the paints and brushes.

An event description entices: “Explore the luminous and fluid watercolor medium and experience how the transparency of the overlays produce subtle variations of color and tone.” Who wouldn’t want to sign up for that?

Not only will there be method-based demonstrations and lessons, Egginton said, but there will also be plenty of working time and an opportunity for students to view each other’s work and offer constructive critiques.

“I feel that doing art challenges an individual to be very observant, to interpret what they see, and to appreciate how they have expressed their interpretation,” she said. “That’s my goal — to have people feel comfortable to try something that might be challenging.”

Egginton herself was educated at Syracuse University’s School of Visual and Performing Arts, where she earned a bachelor’s degree with a major in illustration. She went on to the Columbia University School of Art before enrolling at Teachers College, where she earned her master’s degree and doctorate, as well as master printmaker’s recognition as a teaching assistant before she even graduated. She has a New York State public school teaching certification, was a full-time professor at Mercy College for several years, and has also taught at College of New Rochelle and SUNY Westchester Community College.

Here on the South Fork, Egginton is a member of the Wainscott Sewing Society and volunteers at the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center. She has also worked with Project Most, the South Fork Natural History Museum, the Art Barge and now, the Bridgehampton Museum. For the latter, she met its executive director Connor Flanagan when she signed up last summer for Howard Rose’s plein-air painting class there.

“Connor is so delightful. He’s so ready to have new experiences happen there,” Egginton said. “It’s really been a pleasure to work with him, and I anticipate that it’s how it will be when I teach a class there.”

For his part, Flanagan was impressed by Egginton’s artistic talent.

“Her work is really wonderful. It’s beautiful,” he said, adding that what draws him into it even more is the fact that she addresses local subject matter in her work. “She lives right here and is part of the local community, so having her teach a class is exactly what I’m trying to find, to build a community of local artists to participate and lead classes and workshops like this for other artists and the general public to enjoy.”

Currently on view at the Bridgehampton Museum is “Joel Perlman: Finish and Form” and “Eric Dever: The Warhol Montauk Project,” which will be on display through April 20.

Rose will be returning to the Bridgehampton Museum to lead classes and workshops this year, including a plein-air painting series that became so popular that it has been expanded from six weeks to 10. Its next destination, on May 10 from 10 a.m. to noon, is The Bridge, the private golf course on Millstone Road that is steeped in history as the original site of the Bridgehampton road races. There will also be painting sessions at the Arts Center at Duck Creek Farm in Springs and the Carl Fisher House in Montauk.

Also on tap in the months ahead at the museum’s Corwith House is “Beer and Blacksmithing,” with Ricky Bottenus partnering with Springs Brewery for sessions on June 14, July 19, August 9, September 6, and October 3. Flanagan notes that if small groups of friends are interested in booking private blacksmithing workshops, that’s an option as well.

In addition, two weeklong sessions of an encaustics workshop (painting with wax) are planned in July and August, and an ongoing oral history project called “Our Story” has Flanagan looking toward the future — 50 to 100 years in the future, to be more specific. Those interested in taking part can sign up by filling out a form online at bridgehamptonmuseum.org/ourstory.

So far, people have been a bit shy about taking part, Flanagan admitted.

“We’re asking for everybody to come in and tell us their stories,” he said. “It can be something impactful and big, like someone who worked on the civil rights movement, or maybe they’re a guy that lived here and worked an interesting job and has some quirky stories to tell.

“I’m happy to take any and all of these ideas.’

“Watercolor Painting ... Make a Splash With Instructor Dr. Quincy Egginton” runs Thursdays from March 20 to April 24 from 10 to 12:30 p.m. at the Nathaniel Rogers House, 2539 Montauk Highway, Bridgehampton. The cost is $120 for all six classes and there is a limit of 12 students. Basic materials will be provided, but students who have their own are encouraged to bring those to class as well. Visit bhmuseum.org for details.