Art Comes Alive,Via Colori 2013,Rob's Army Toast of the Town,Guerin Wolf Reception

Art Comes Alive-
Art Comes Alive
 Fredericksburg Area Museum started off the amazing weekend of the arts for museum patrons, fellow artists, and our guest visiting artist Holly Schineller https://www.facebook.com/HollyGrounded from Tempe, Arizona. Holly and I met in Houston as roommates for Via Colori 2012, and I was overjoyed to have her visit our local festival this year. She is a thoughtful artist who takes great care in designing and executing each piece. For our 2013 Via Colori festival, she chose Georgia O'Keeffe, her childhood role model, with an original collection of her images. I made sure she had the complete experience, including Hyperion, Carl's, Allman's, Baba Ganoush Grill, Orion, Kybecca, and Ponshop in our four days together.
As Larry Hinkle's band played on the top floor, artists painted to the music, conversation, and treats from Bistro Bethem. I was glad to catch up with fellow artists Ed King, Nicole Hamilton, Collette Caprera, Ellen Killough, Nina Angelini, and Nick Candela.   As the auction took place, Via Colori was well underway as our team leaders Christa Stabler, Dan Goldstein, and Roy Jarnecke led a team of volunteers to create the outlines of more than 120 squares along the streets of Sophia and Charlotte. There are endless details to tend to as team leaders, such as city permits, barricades,sponsor assignments, wine and food vendors, candles and sandbags, Boy Scouts and tents.  A year of hard work paid off  for a committee of eight and countless volunteers who played an essential role for our festival. Thank you, each and every one who helped with this year, especially the artists( and chauffeurs) who worked throughout the weekend catching up from the rain!

Via Colori 2013
On Saturday morning, we started with breakfast and a chance to meet fellow artists. Ages 3-"well up there" participated.  It was a great opportunity to mingle before we all got hard to work and tried to beat the impending rain. Over fifty students, faculty, and family members from my school, Fredericksburg Academy, worked on images or visited the squares. We all worked until the first shower crept near in the early afternoon, and some attempted to save the work with tarps, cardboard, cups, duct tape, and prayers.
Holly and I went on to dinner at Castiglia's with our team of Via Colori directors Christa and Dan and guest artists Chris Carlson and Nick Candela. What a memorable night as the rained poured, we laughed, shared stories ,and binged on tirimisu.
Sunday at 7 a.m., Holly and I discovered the complete disappearance of our drawings from the day before, so "back to square one" took on a whole new meaning. We worked without a break until 5 p.m. and then joined all of the other artists for a group shot and congratulatory moment. We warmly received a wonderful turn-out from our community, all love and support. Thank you for validating our efforts to bring a quality art experience to our town.Scott Wilson Photography of Via Colori 2013

Toast of the Town by Robs Army
Image of Enzo , Robs Army
An hour after the festival ended, a monumental celebration and auction buzzed to life at the Inn at the Olde Silk Mill for our arts patriarch, Rob Grogan. Rob has published the free local magazine The Front Porch for 17 years now and is receiving costly treatments for a rare carcinoid cancer. With $10K/ monthly in out-of-pocket expenses, we came together for one evening as a community to assist with our art, money, and love.  Please see Robs Army website for more information on helping a local hero with his recovery journey.
The event of the decade housed every local artist, patron, and musician wall-to-wall with love and energy. We lined up in procession to hug this amazing man and let him know how much he means to us. The total money raised is still being audited, but the unofficial estimate is over $50,000. My original piece, Enzo, auctioned off  and served as the Arts Along the River event avatar to my surprise. Finally a chance to wear my Botticelli dress for the right occasion:)

Guerin Wolf Solo at Kybecca
Monday evening the 23rd, Holly and I spent our last evening together attending the Guerin Wolf art opening at Kybecca. Guerin is the host of the Arrrrt!  https://www.facebook.com/ArrrrrtFxbg  and quite a lively chap with officially the coolest name in town.   We met while recording a promotional Via Colori show, then as fellow artists at Via Colori.  His current work is executed in oil pastel (Sennelier, no less- my favorite) and represents strong point-of view landscapes and cityscapes. He evokes a bold, big-sky feeling and transports the viewer to either impending thirst, frostbite, or cliff-hanging from city dwellings. And then there's some wild 3-d happening behind the Enomatic machines- LOVE it! Please go see the show up through October.Guerin Wolf Solo Show

Friends, students, and art lovers, be proud of the amazing events that make our little town have a big heart!!

Via Colori:One of Two Downtown Fredericksburg Art Events in September 2013

 

Two Art Events in September- Why they Both Matter

The growing multitude of talented, diverse artists in the Fredericksburg area has spawned not one, but two large-scale events for the public to enjoy and interact with working artists on the streets of our fair city during the month of September.

Both events:

·       are led by a dedicated core of local artists who want to promote fellow artists and interact with the public who might not otherwise witness the artistic process in person.

·       are free to the public and every artist who participates.

·       will bring people to the downtown area to shop, dine, and develop/ continue relationships with artists while they work- which in turn leads to increased art sales and gallery visits.  

·       have a Facebook/ web presence and continuing  opportunities related to the main event.  

·      do not offer awards- there is no competitive element driving either event.

           I am speaking of Art Attack on September 14-15 and the Via Colori Street Painting Festival on September 21-22. There are unlimited reasons to participate and/or support both events, essentially respect for and camaraderie with artists.  An art mentor once said to me “A rising tide lifts all ships”, meaning all artists can support one another to boost morale, and in turn, increase sales of every artist.  These words are especially important when most other events result in a highly competitive atmosphere.  Both Art Attack and Via Colori celebrate the uniqueness of every participant in an inclusive atmosphere.

            There are differences between both events, which is good.       

            Art Attack is a grass-roots, volunteer-led effort to celebrate and expose the talents of the local art community.  Artists supply their own materials, eliminating the need for a budget, and choose their subject and medium.  They are offered the chance to show and sell the resulting art in a professional gallery setting, LibertyTown Arts Workshop, which is the largest venue of its kind in the area.  Art Attack offers an innovative, interactive, and valuable event opportunity for an unlimited number of artists and visitors.

            Via Colori is a licensed event and currently a fundraiser for the Fredericksburg Area Museum by offering sponsorship opportunities to local businesses. The event’s financial supporters, volunteers, and directors lend assistance in a variety of ways. Their support enables a tremendous amount of advertising, workshops and instruction from talented local and international street artists, and all art supplies will be provided.  Artists choose an image prior to the festival that is respectful of all ages attending and then recreate it on the pavement as a temporary large pastel painting.  Drawing and painting skills, creating while talking with many people, and working outdoors on the pavement are the main requirements for this centuries-old European art style, which is making a huge comeback in the form of large festivals.  There are stages with local musicians performing alongside the artists. A children’s area will have chalks provided for spontaneous creations, and local food vendors will offer treats.  Over 5,000 people daily have attended the past three years of the festival. The artwork is ephemeral, yet the photographs and impressions last forever for all involved, and each artist feels appreciated and supported by many. A new bonus this year: several local featured artists will be hired for their appearances and creations.

            The eternal optimist, I am confident that artists have more options than ever to be a part of downtown public events and will drum up an increasing awareness of what many of us do for a living.  I hope to see you at both events!

Mirinda Reynolds

Local artist

Via Colori Representative

Sail Away Art Camp July 2013 at Fredericksburg Academy

Sail Away Art Camp students with our final street painting:

July 2013 Summer Art Camp: Sail Away at Fredericksburg Academy was a great experience for all  kids, ages 5 and up.  Littlest artist Bella created canvas sails, origami boats, pastels, watercolors, and a collage with all of us, not missing a beat! An unexpected delight: pictured in the middle, Chinese exchange student Curtis (not his real name, he wanted an American nickname while he was here) joined the fun and used an Iphone app- Isay  each day!   By talking into it, I pressed the translate button and it blurted out some pretty fancy Chinese words- and worked almost every time. He was also able to talk with me, what an amazing way to communicate. By the end of the week, he was teaching and demonstrating for the younger kids on his own!  My son Barrett, hiding here in front of me, taught Curtis the running game "Infection" and water gun mania.  Also pictured, Kyle and Sarah with some very impressive sails.  All of the artwork on the wall behind us was created during the week, and each day we went outside to work on a recreation of Van Gogh's Boats by the Water in pastels.
Thank you, students, for making this such a fun and memorable experience! We will all miss you, Curtis!

On our final day together, the wonderfully talented Carol Iglesias joined us for a personal demonstration and material experimentation. Thank you, Carol!
You are an amazing color specialist who the students will always remember-Sail on, campers:)

Roanoke College Coral Reef Project

January-March  2013
Roanoke College Coral Reef Project Opens in the Olin Gallery
Salem, Virginia


This community effort including over 200 artists branched out from the Smithsonian
Hyperbolic Coral Reef Project in my previous January 2011 blog,
and joined hundreds of thousands of fiber artists around the world with this cumulative project.
 All pieces will be collected and archived at the end of the show in March 2013.

Barrett and his Grandma

Mom's fabulous sea snake

They found Nemo,, with mom's blue coral underneath

Mom's tendrils

Dixie cups become coral blooms in the Recycled Reef

Crochet jellyfish = repurposed trash

Bleached coral reef, stunning yet sobering

My turquoise felt coral with fringe

The most special part of this adventure: my mother and I were featured artists together for the first time in,well, ever!  Her debut show featured crocheted brain corals, tube corals, snakes, and jellyfish in a series of 15 reefs. We had so much fun finding each one, as the reefs were installed by other artists. I am proud of my mom for her very first art opening, and am so glad that I was able to drive four hours after work to make the last 30 minutes of the show!

FA at the Creative Side on First Friday

Emma's Rainforest 5th

Bella's Matisse collage- KG

Balsa and prints, Lucy's Lilies- 5th

Ben's Matisse collage-KG

Glazed mug-6th

Grace's oil on canvas landscape-4th

Balsa carving, Harrison's Gargoyle-5th

Olivia's Macchia Chihuly Bowl-3rd

Rachel-KG

Megan's mixed media cupcake-6th

Cupcake Wars Winners-6th

Finn's Puffin-3rd

Claire with Rainforest panels-5th

Parker's Puffin-3rd

Megan's 3-d works, 6th grade

Noah's balsa baseball carving-5th

3rd and 4th grade artists wait for face- painting

The Mozena family celebrates two artists on display

Finn, the puffin artist, 3rd grade

5th graders demonstrate techniques

face painting

kirigami and origami demonstrations

A HUGE thank you to all of the families, friends, and teachers who stopped by The Creative Side  on First Friday March 1st 2013! We enjoyed a wonderful evening of art, face-painting, food, demonstrations, and great company. The winner of the drawing for an original oil painting is our Head of Lower School, Patty Estes.
Fifty-five children ages 3-13 are featured in the gallery, with a large 3-d display of Chihuly-inspired reeds and macchia bowls, and a variety of 2-d works on paper, canvas, and panels.... silk hoops too!
Parents who would like to have their photos uploaded and shared on this blog can email them to me at mreynolds@fredericksburgacademy.org
 If you missed the opening, feel free to stop by any Thursday afternoon, 2-8 pm to see the show, or give The Creative Side a call at 540-846-8920. FA will be having an even larger show on April 19th on campus in the Upper School for the entire student body.  See you then, Mrs. Reynolds