Notes From the Gallery - July

Gallery Gratitude :

This month’s Gallery Gratitude Blue Ribbon goes to Ellen McNees, WAC’s office manager, who is on sabbatical from WAC. Ellen’s smile and unflappable Southern grace will be missed by staff, volunteers and visitors.

We’re also grateful to Staples graduate Molly Agnes Evans, who did her senior internship at WAC during May and June. Molly’s outstanding photography skills helped enormously with our gallery documentation. We wish her the best as she heads out West start her freshman year at San Francisco Art Institute.

A special award should be given to the “Boys from Gault, Inc.” Led by Gault manager Dave Bright, they arrived on the hottest morning in June to deinstall the Painted/Stacked Cinderblock sculptures from the Westport Public Library and our deck. All before lunchtime. We love you guys!

Thank you to Jack Dingas, our super-human art shipper who always finds a solution to every shipping crisis, and his partner, Henry.

And thanks to all the usual suspects…Joyce Thompson, who helped with both the COLOR in 3D de-install and SOLOS installation, Liz Dexheimer and Karen Vogel, who continue to work tirelessly on the 2008 Members Shows, Elizabeth Strick, Julie Chandler, and Tom O’Connor.

Summer Time !!!

The summer has gotten off to a glorious, art-filled start.  This weekend, the SOLOS Show closes---you have until Sunday at 4pm to see the show.  The work of Serge Clement/Marina Kamena, Margaret Roleke, Peter Kinseley, Willard Lustenade, and Constance Old has been enjoyed by many visitors and campers---and by the staff and our many volunteers each and every day.  More than 90 member artists applied for this popular show.  We thank all who entered, congratulate the six in the show, and encourage all artists to take advantage of these other opportunities.

The excitement continues when the first Group Show opens on Friday, July 25, for those with last names ending in A-K.  The second Group Show (L-Z) opens on August 22.  The two shows, combined, will show the work of more than 200 artist members, including a healthy number of brand new members, and a few brand new artists.  This year's members show, all three parts--solos, and both group shows-- has been chaired by Karen Vogel and Liz Dexheimer, who have put in countless hours with good humor, judgment, and teamwork.  We are so grateful to them, and look forward to sharing with you each installment of the members show this summer.

Look for us this weekend (July 19 & 20) at the Downtown Merchants Association Fine Arts Festival.  We'll have a booth down near Gorham Island (remember the festival is moving from Main Street to the river this year!).  In addition to a terrific children's activity involving iconic Westport sites, we'll be there talking to visitors about the Westport Arts Center, handing out a small gift (you'll be delighted when you see it!), and selling tickets for the Biava Quartet on Saturday night and for our upcoming concert on Sept. 20 with R+B Diva Mavis Staples (get'em while they last!.)  This year the festival, in addition to the 240 artists booths, will have more music, more food, and, we think, more shade...not to mention a river view.  Please stop by and say hello---most of the staff will be there and a good number of volunteers .  Come on down!

And don't forget to join us for the opening of the Members Group show on Friday, July 25 from 6:30 - 8:30 pm.  

Calls For Entry :

The onething Campaign and the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism are seeking visual and performing artists for the onething Conservation Expo, aa three-day educational experience highlighting the endless “OneThings” you can do to save energy and protect the environment, running October 10-12.  The onething Campaign and onething Conservation Expo is part of Governor Rell’s Energy Vision for a Cleaner and Greener State.  For more info visit www.onethingct.com

Artwalk, a juried exhibition displayed in the storefront windows of West Hartford. Entries due by Friday, August 22nd. For a registration form and more info, visit www.whal.org

Ridgefield Guild of Artists 31st Juried Exhibition, with Benhamin Genocchio as judge; prospectus and more information available at rgoa.org

Art Space’s 11th Annual City-Wide Open Studios, October 2-5, seeks working artists.  For full event details and registration visit www.cwos.org

USA National Craft Triennial, which will run from November 15-December 23 at the Silvermine Guild Art Center.  Entry deadline: August 15, 2008. Entry form at www.silvermineart.org.

Exhibitions and Artist News :

WAC artist member Dyan Rosenberg exhibits a series of digital prints in a solo show, “Ancestral Miniatures,” at the WPA Gallery at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation through July 27.  www.dyanrosenberg.com

WAC artist member Binnie Birstein exhibits encaustic paintings and monotypes in a solo show, “Just Binnie,” at the Fairfield Arts Council through August 14. Brown bag lunch discussion with Birstein on July 24 from 12:30-1:30.  www.fairfieldartscouncil.org

Those wishing to join Binnie in an artist group called New England Wax, a professional group of artists in the six New England states who use encaustic and share a commitment to exchanging ideas and organizing exhibits, please visit www.newenglandwax.org to find out more.

Don Garbera, a WAC artist member, exhibits in a solo show, “New York the 60's in Black & White: The exhibit,” at the Ossining Public Library through July 30, 2008.  www.ossininglibrary.org

WAC artist member Noelle Carr exhibits at Gallery Chocopologie through July. noellecarr.com.

WAC artist member Judith Orseck Katz presents a solo exhibition, "The Pond Project, Images of Old Mill Pond, and Vessels," at the Nylen Gallery at Picture This in Westport, through August 23.  For more information, call (203) 227-6861.

"Summer on the Island - Paintings of France," an exhibition featuring the work of WAC artist member Carey Parks Schwartz, can be seen at Rockwell Art and Framing in Wilton through July 21st. For more info, call (203) 762-8311.

WAC artist member Susan Sharp and Andrea Bonflis join 2 other artists in the exhibition, "Uncommon Ground," at the Anelle Gandelman Gallery. www.anellegandelman.com

WAC artist member Yenoin Guibbory had a painting accepted into the Art of the Northeast exhibit at the Silvermine Guild Art Center this past May.  Congratulations Yenoin!

WAC artist member Barbara Bashlow Gross’ work is currently exhibited in the show "Blaze: A Summer Show," along with 19 other artists at the Susan Eley Fine Art Gallery now through September 12, 2008. www.susaneleyfineart.com.

Recent Paintings by WAC artist member Betty Ball are on exhibit at The Spa at National Hall, 20 Wilton Road in Westport.  All are welcome to meet the artist and tour the new spa at a wine and cheese reception on Wednesday, July 16 from 5:30 – 7:30.  For more information call (203) 293-4321.

WAC artist member Tom Kretsch’s exhibits in a solo show, "A Town’s Treasures: Spaces and Places, Seen and Unseen," at the Westport Historical Society, through the end of the summer.  www.westporthistory.org

Deborah Weiss, WAC artist member, recently partcipated in a 3-person exhibition at the Washington Art Association. www.deborahink.com.

Coming Next :

2008 Solos Show :

through July 20
Westport Arts Center Gallery

Artists: Serge Clement & Marina Kamena, Elisa Keogh, Peter Kinseley, Willard Lustenader, Constance Old, Margaret Roleke.

Come visit us at the Fine Arts Festival this weekend to receive a special Solos-themed giveaway!

Cover Story :

June 20 - July 20
Westport Arts Center Studio Gallery

Running concurrently with Solos Shows, Cover Story is an exhibition of contemporary book jacket design by local artist/designers to celebrate the library’s 100th birthday.

Artists: Leonard Everett Fisher, Ana Rodgers, Karen Salsgiver Coveney, Eric von Schmidt, Charlotte Strick.

Group Shows I and II:

The Westport Arts Center is dedicated to creating arts experiences that contribute to individual growth and enrich the community.  During the summer we celebrate our communities’ artistic diversity and abundance through its “Members Show.”  The shows are divided into 2 parts. Part I and Part II will feature member artists with last names beginning with A-K and L-Z, respectively.

Opening Receptions

Group Show I: Friday, July 25 from 6:30-8:30pm, awards at 7pm.
Group Show II: Friday, August 22 from 6:30-8:30pm, awards at 7pm.

Howard Munce : Drawings From a Sketch Class :

July 25 - August 17, 2008
In the Studio Gallery

Come see original sketches by Westport artist Howard Munce. Howard has been a bright light on the Westport arts scene for more than 50 years, and is known for drawings full of humor, whimsy and poignancy.

Opening reception: Friday, July 25 from 6:30-8:30 pm

David Kalman: Bodie :

August 22 - September 14, 2008
In the Studio Gallery

Always on the cutting edge of photo technology, David Kalman has been pursuing his passion for creative landscape and portrait photography, often taking the viewer to exotic destinations around the world.

Opening reception: Friday, August 22 from 6:30-8:30 pm.