THE CONNECTION! -------A Monthly Newsletter for ArtistsConnect in Edmonds, Washington------ January 2007, Vol. 2, Issue 3
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NEW BEGINNINGS I don’t know about you all, but I am thrilled that the days are slowly getting longer. As the sun moves northward in the sky I get better light in my east-facing basement studio. Light is a precious thing down here and natural light can be hard to come by, especially in the dark days of winter. Still, when the sun does come out and it manages to shine in my studio for a few moments, I can’t work. I sit in wonder at this rare phenomenon! What is the matter with me, I think to myself. There it is! In all its glory - the SUN! And then poof, it’s gone for the day. Sigh. I always try to make my little column here of interest to the members of AC. I share a little bit of myself in the hopes of furthering the purpose of the group (connection between artists). But you know, this newsletter isn’t just for me. It’s for you too! And if anyone EVER has comments, suggestions or any other information they’d like to share I urge you to get in touch with me so that I can add it to The Connection’s next issue. Hey! Maybe I’ll start a Letters to the Editor column! What do you think? As always, comments and suggestions are welcome, as are your own announcements about shows and events. I leave you with an image from a small book I did for my husband a few years ago. Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!
-Amy Peacock
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Featured Artist - Samantha Saether
After earning a Bachelor of Fine Art from Ohio State University, Samantha worked as a commercial interior designer for several years, then spent 25 years in a business career of marketing, advertising and sales while residing in Atlanta. Early retirement brought her west to spectacular sunsets and the refreshing air of Edmonds. Unstructured time allowed her to become reacquainted with her expressive, playful self out of which an enchantment with beads and crystals evolved. Fascinated by both the 3 dimensional and precise, detailed work of assembling jewelry, Samantha is completely captivated by the colorful materials and the effects of light on them.
In fact, it is all about color. Color excites. Color fascinates. Color inspires. And glass beads and crystals fused in fire radiate energy through their reflection, almost as if they are animated. They capture the eye, speak to the heart and lift the soul.
"I am especially enchanted by color in full-spectrum of both vivid and muted values set in a neutral venue. I am also captivated by a single color in mass of different shapes and textures for a monochromatic impact. Bits of colored glass and crystal are so attractive and magnetic to me that the process of working with these vibrant and dynamic materials has become an overwhelming source of pleasure. I hope others will enjoy playing a bit of dress-up with my creations as much as I find the process truly uplifting!"
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January Meeting Minutes Thank you to Autumn Kegley for taking minutes at the January meeting! Amy Peacock began the meeting with an update on the progress for our art auction concept accompanying our July group show. Any and all members of Artists-Connect are encouraged to participate in the art auction, whether or not they are displaying work in the general show. Amy proposed considering donating either a portion or the entire proceeds from our silent auction sales to a charity other than the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation. She suggested organizations such as Garden Harvest or Heifer.org in an effort to support fundamental needs of a wider population. If we did choose to give a donation towards another charity, we would have to handle the auction sales ourselves. The EAFF currently handles all of the sales during our group shows, as they are recieving a commission/donation on each one. We would also have to consider changes in our sponsorship listings in various press releases, etc., if we determined to give proceeds to a charity other than EAFF. In our previous shows, 25% of the sale amount has been donated to EAFF. It was suggested that we consider donating the entire proceeds of this show's auction sales to a chosen charity. (See the July Art Auction sidebar for the latest news on the art auction.) Changing our charity benefit from EAFF to one with a broader mission might draw a wider audience base to our show. As Amy put it - "We can't create art unless we have adequate food and shelter." Overall this is a complicated issue - the AC members present took a vote on whether to donate to EAFF or another charity. Changing to another charity carried the majority vote. If 100% of the sale went to a particular charity, then the checks could be made out to them. However, we would not have the flexibility of using EAFF's credit card machine for auction sales. Because a wide range of charities were proposed at the meeting, it has been determined to bring in suggestions to next month's meeting for a vote to pick one. Amy's tentative title for the silent auction - which will be miniature work, is: Small Delights - Minatures and other Tiny Treasures. She suggests that we keep our submissions within 6x6x6 inch dimensions. Any media is welcome. The minature scale will be our uniting theme. Bidding will likely start at $10, and perhaps we will offer a buyout cap set somewhere between $75 and $150. Next to address the group was Joan Longstaff from The Edmonds Gallery. She attended the ArtsNow 2007 BizArt conference, and was very impressed with the range and depth of topics presented. This conference concept began in Chicago several years ago, and has branched out to many cities since then. She highly recommended attending to our members who wish to develop their professional artistic careers. Personally, Joan Longstaff is seeking to creatively link artists with the real-estate community locally. She feels there is a great opportunity for sales and exposure through such connections. Joan wants to change her approach to hanging at her gallery - and is currently seeking a "manager" to screen the artists and take care of hanging shows. Heather McGilvray came forward to encourage AC members working on bird-themed artwork to download a prospectus for her juried Bird Art show during May 2007 at the Edmonds Conference Center on 4th Avenue. Prospectuses are posted online at the Artists-Connect website, and will soon be available through the Bird Fest website as well. The juried show will hang for the entire month, with a 30% commission on sales. There will be an associated marketplace during the Bird Fest weekend only - if you are interested in renting a table to promote a wider range of your bird-themed artwork contact Sally Lieder for further information. And finally, a silent auction of art birdhouses will further benefit the Bird Fest. Bird photographer Paul Bannock will be speaking on May 18th for the opening night of Bird Fest. Heather put together both the juried show and birdhouse auction, and hopes they will increase the exposure for Bird Fest along with showcasing the range of local bird art. A short note of progress on the July group show: the main display area is filled. If you are interested in showing in the back room, or would like to be placed on the wait list, contact Bill Butler as soon as possible. See the AC website for further show details/requirements/committee participation-needs. General member announcements: Janis Graves will be teaching her first workshop at Denise Cole's new gallery - Cole Gallery and Artist Supplies. This one-day, $75. workshop will focus on her brilliantly colored pastel techniques. Call Cole Gallery at: 425-697-ARTS for further information. Throughout February, Pam Harold will be having a retrospective show at the Edmonds Library which includes her lovely travel journals. She also has a watercolor included in the ongoing Northwest Watercolor Society exhibit at the Snohomish County Arts Council gallery in downtown Everett. Cheryl Hufnagel has a water-themed show of her pastel work - "With the Flow" on display at Autumn's Framing & Gallery throughout February. She also has work at the Anderson House for the coming 2 months. On a side note, the Anderson House retirement center is continually searching for artwork to display in 2-month blocks. The Edmonds Gallery has extended their display of Artist and Sculptor Sabah Al-Dhaher, due to the inclement weather last month. Sabah Al-Dhaher was born in Nasriyah, Iraq. At the age of fifteen he was accepted to the Institute of Fine Arts in Basra, Iraq, where he lived and received his training in classical art, graduating first in his class in 1989. Al-Dhaher fled Iraq in 1991 due to his involvement in a failed uprising against the regime of Saddam Hussein at the end of the first Gulf war. Edmonds Senior Center is implementing a new program on Wednesday afternoons from 1-4pm. Free arts workshops will be held in the View Area overlooking the Sound. Donations are accepted to support the center's programs. During the second half of our AC meeting, Julie Scandora presented her experiences with Artist's Trust, and her participation in their Edge program for professional development: Artist's Trust gets their funding through donations and their annual PONCHO arts auction. They extend these funds to local artists via the GAP awards, which do not require any particular demonstration of their usage once awarded. You could use a GAP award for a wide range of personal projects, from framing your work for a show, to purchasing camera equipment to document your work, paying entry fees to a Studio Tour, etc. The Edge program offered through Artist's Trust is set up for groups of 15 artists. Each group works closely together on their professional development. Participants recieve review and instruction from museum curators, gallery owners, and other experienced/established people in the arts. They will help you to analyze your presentation to GET NOTICED. The portfolio segment breaks down the details of your approach to galleries and other venues. At the end of the session an actual curator will review your protfolio and artist's statement and give feedback. For Julie, creating a powerful artist's statement was the most challenging part of the program. During the course, poor and excellent examples of elements such as artist's statements were presented to learn through example. Because the Edge program requires you to follow through with "homework", it forces you to go through with the professional development you've been meaning to do, but have put off. This course brings together 15 artists as a support group - to talk over ideas, go to art walks and openings. You are encouraged to go out and see art in the area together, and find new influences, see what different galleries are hanging, and make connections. The program encourages you to go to galleries at times other than artwalks as well, to experience the art more fully and have an opportunity to speak with gallery owners when they aren't too busy to do so. It doesn't make sense to randomly send out your portfolio; you need to research galleries to find a good match for you. The Edge course runs about $250 for the extended program of 8 once-a-week sessions. They also have an intensive retreat near Port Townsend which runs a week, and costs about $500. Excess expenses are covered by Artist's Trust. Applicants to the program need to submit 10 slides of their work and a small statement outlining your interest, and what professional goals you hope to pursue. Julie felt the extended once-a-week sessions were overwhelming enough - she appreciated (and needed) the week between sessions to absorb information and begin working towards new directions in her professional development. You can view work from Julie and her fellow Edge program group members at the Edmonds Conference Center now. |
Miscellaneous Announcements JULY ART AUCTION I volunteered to head up the art auction for the July AC show. I don’t have all the details hammered out yet but I did want to give everyone a brief update. First of all, all this information is subject to change. To stay current I urge you to join the AC announcements email list. This is the very best way to get information when you can’t make it to meetings. Second, I will be seeting up some new pages on our website for show stuff - lists and links and all that good stuff. I hope to also expand the information to the public about our shows. Due to lots and lots of complications regarding my idea presented at the January meeting about benefiting another charity we will NOT be choosing another charity to benefit at this time. As in the past, auction items will be up for bidding and 25% will go to the EAF and the rest will go to the artist. Title: Small Delights: Miniatures and Other Tiny Treasures Media: Any (paintings, 3-d, jewelry, etc.) Size: nothing larger than 6x6x6 - Please make sure your item has a hanger or if it is a tabletop item that it will also be easily displayed. - Bidding will likely begin at $10 and $75 will buy the piece outright. - You can submit more than one piece to the Auction Gallery. - The idea here is to offer a piece from each artist that is beautiful and affordable. I mentioned at the meeting that we might be able to open the auction up to everyone in AC, regardless of your participation in the show. We are still in the process of figuring out if that will work or not and what the participation requirements would be for those folks. I will let everyone know what happens with that. Please contact me if you would like to offer something in the auction. Also, if possible, please let me know if your item will be hung or if it will be a tabletop item. Call 360-668-5342 or email me at apeacock@pavoninestudios.com. Our next AC meeting will be February 24th 2007, from 10-noon. The show meeting will follow directly after the regular meeting. 2007 AC Show Dates Announced! Show dates 2007: July 18 (setup day) thru 22; Holiday show: November 14 (setup day) thru 18. 2006-2007 AC Meeting dates: Feb 24; Mar 24; Apr 28; May 26; Jun 23; Jul 28; Aug 18; Sep 22; Oct 27; Nov 24; Dec 22. Your newsletter needs your help! Donations of $1 are appreciated! Your dollar goes to defray expenses such as postage, printing, and envelopes. Thank you! ArtsNow Gallery at the Edmonds Conference Center EDGE WORK -graduates of the Artist Trust/ArtsNow EDGE program Feb. 1-March 29 Opening on February 15th (5-8pm) during the Edmonds ArtWalk You are invited to visit the ArtsNow Gallery at the Edmonds Conference Center Come view the work by the graduates Artists Trust/ArtsNow EDGE Program (Cycle D) Meet the graduates during the Edmonds Art Walk on February 15th. Future ideas for programs should be directed to Tonnie Wolfe. As a follow-up to our panel last fall on creating in series, the program committee is inviting anyone interested in experimenting with a series to create a new one between now and March. At the March 24, 2007 meeting, we will present those series and have a discussion of the experience. So start now and be prepared to share in March. Sue Robertson has a show at The Gardens at Town Square from January 28 through April 27. There will be an opening reception on February 11 from 2:30 to 4:30. The address is at 933 111th Ave. in Bellevue. She also has a show at the Eastshore Gallery at 12700 SE 32nd St. in Bellevue from February 11 to March 11. Lynette Hensley will be at Salon Pena for the Edmonds Artwalk on Feb 15th. Poster Contest for Magnolia Summer Art Festival 2007: The Annual Magnolia Summer Festival and Art Show, which is held the first weekend in August, is inviting artists to submit art work around the theme of Summer in Magnolia. The media can be photo, watercolor, oil, and mixed media. The finished poster will be 11 x 17 inches, in color, and contain information about the festival. The winning piece of art or design will be featured on the 2007 Magnolia Summer Festival and Art Show poster and postcard, the cover of the program, and other print media advertising the event. Information about the artist will appear in the program. If desired, the winner can have a free booth at the Summer Festival. Deadline: May 1, 2007 Deliver to: Magnolia Chamber of Commerce 3214 West McGraw St., #301B Seattle, WA 98199. For more information, please contact: Jeniene Kroeger or Andrew Parker, Summer Festival Art Show Co-Chairs (206-284-5836) www.magnoliachamber.org Julie Scandora is in a group show at the Edmonds Conference Center, featuring the participants of the Edmonds EDGE Program. She was also accepted last month into the Bainbridge Arts and Crafts gallery and has three works in their rotating rental exhibits in Bremerton. She will be in the main Bainbridge A&C exhibit in April. She also has a few works in Julia's Gift Gallery on NE 65th near Roosevelt Way NE in Seattle, and has a new work in Semantics Gallery in Edmonds.
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