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Celebrate God’s love though art

by entering an artwork in the First Presbyterian Church Art Exhibit.

Rules:

Art must be delivered to the church office, 1100 Austin Avenue (back door), between 9 am and 11 am Sunday,  February 1, or between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday, February 2-5. The entry form (see below) must be completed.

One entry per artist.

Artists need not be church members.

Any medium may be used, including fabrics and photography.

Width and height limits are 48 inches and 72 inches respectively, as display space is limited. Some exceptions might be made if room remains at the end. Check with Bill or Judy Franklin.

A two-dimensional work must be framed or have decorated edges and be supplied with a hanging wire. The artist’s name must be attached to the back of the work.

A three-dimensional work must be provided with a protective cover, if needed. The artists name must be attached to the bottom of the work.

There is no entry fee nor commission, but also no prizes.

Any sales will be between the artist and the buyer, without any involvement by the church. Donation of a part of the sale price would be welcome, of course, but is not required.

The exhibit will be mounted Friday, February 6.

Please direct any questions to Bill or Judy Franklin, 741-0960 or 230-3539, or physicsnerd@yahoo.com.

Exhibit hours will be:

Sundays, February 8, 15 & 22, 8:30 a.m. - noon.

Monday-Friday, February 9-20, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Weekdays, visitors should enter through the back door and report to the office.

An artists’ reception will be held on Sunday, February 22, 11:30 a.m. - noon. Artists are encouraged, but not required, to attend.

Artists may reclaim their works following the February 22 reception, or may pick them up the following

Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Use the form below or fill one out at the church when you deliver the art.

Please detach the form below and attach it to the art, but keep the rules and schedule information above.

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Artwork Entry Form for the 2015 First Presbyterian Church Festival of the Arts

Name of artist (please print) ____________________________________________________________

Title of work ________________________________________________________________________

Media ________________________________________________ Size _________________________

Email ________________________________________________________ Phone ________________

Price (if for sale) __________ In brochure, use c email only c phone only c both c neither

Artist release: Acknowledging that due care will be taken in hanging the exhibit and protecting it, I will not hold the church or its representatives responsible for loss or damage during the show. I agree to pick up my artwork at the times specified above, or arrange for someone else to do so.

 

signed _______________________________________________ date ______________

 

Stuck in a rut? How about some activities to stimulate your creative side? Come prepared to play!

Karen's program centered on discovering the creativity that is within all of us as children. It is often discouraged by well meaning but misinformed adults. She challenged us to play with our creative ideas and encourage young people to nurture theirs.

She began by asking us to define creativity. There was a discussion of what teachers and influential adults can do help loosen up and ease feelings of inadequacy and fear of failure. Helpful suggestions were painting on wet paper (top photo), painting to music, writing in cursive, meditation, daydreaming, preassociating, viewing the colors blue and green for relaxation, thinking of something far away, having a glass of wine, freewriting, using hands when talking or singing (bottom photo), thinking outside the box, playing, changing positions, rethinking labels, breaking a whole into parts, laughing, and exercising the eyes. Online sources to visit: DrEricgreen.com:soulplay, greatest.com, and happiness.com.

Karen encouraged us to learn from mistakes, challenge our assumptions, reframe problems, and connect ideas. She gave us Tina Seelig's six aspects of performing a creative task to keep in mind:

1. Knowledge

2. Physical space/habitat

3. Resources

4. Culture

5. Attitude

6. Imagination

Then she gave us a series of tasks to be performed quickly, emphasizing that there were no right or wrong answers. They were just to unleash our thinking and our creative impulses. Some of the activities were as follows:

1. Free associate – see connections among seemingly unrelated words

2. Riddles

3. Drawing puzzles – connecting dots using 4 lines without lifting pencil

4. How many uses for a paperclip

5. Completing shapes

6. Scribbling and finding a composition within the scribbles

7. Arranging blocks and stickers in a completely new way (top photo)

8. Coloring a cow's face in an unusual way (middle photo)

9. Creating a collage with torn bits of construction paper (bottom photo)

10. Drawing lines with the right and left hands simultaneously

Karen showed us examples of Japanese and Chinese art where simplicity and economy of brush strokes were paramount.

We all enjoyed Karen's presentation. It was fun to be challenged and to see how other participants interpreted the assignments. Many thanks to Karen, and also to those who brought refreshments and/or art for Show & Tell, examples of which are below.

Show and Tell

                             

 Pat Blackwell             Bill Franklin                Judy Franklin               Tim Lowe

                             

Christine Niekamp     Sandra Scott             Jammie Smith               Kit Travis

We had a great turnout for the Arboretum exhibit. The 43 works by 17 members are a real feast for the eyes. The exhibit has been hung very attractively by CBA's Holly Liles. Do go by and see it. The building is open 9-5 weekdays and 10-2 Saturday. Since there are many meetings there, it is best to call the office at 254-399-9204 to make sure it is available before driving over.  Also, be sure to attend the Reception 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 22.

Photos of the exhibit are below. They begin behind the front door and proceed around to the right. The numbers are top to bottom of each column in the progression to the right.

1-2 Harley Johnson, 3 Bill Franklin, 4 Nancy Cagle

5 Mary Behrens, 6 Bill Franklin, 7 Charleen Isbell

8 Bill Franklin, 9 Christine Niekamp, 10 Ellen Foster

 

 

11 Mary Behrens, 12 Kit Travis

13-15 Pat Blackwell, 16 Larry Garza

17 Karen Groman, 18, 19 & 22 Judy Franklin, 20 Ellen Foster, 21 Harley Johnson

23 Christine Niekamp, 24 Kay Lamb Shannon

25-26 Kay Lamb Shannon

27-28 Gloria Meadows

 

29 & 32 Larry Garza, 30-31 Sue Young

33 Sue Young, 34 Christine Niekamp, 35-36 Sandra Scott

37 Mary Behrens, 38 Sandra Scott, 39 Ellen Foster, 40 Charleen Isbell

 

41 Gloria Meadows, 42-43 Jammie Smith

Turnout was a bit low for the reception, probably due to the weather, but those who came enjoyed it. Shown at the right are a few of the attendees: Myrl Luper with Kay Lamb Shannon, and Jammie Smith with her sons, Landon and Riker. We were fortunate to have David Smith, Baylor professor and Trib art columnist, to critique our Arboretum show. He is shown at left, studying the art. He always looks for things to like in every work he sees. Often, he sees things that even the artist didn't notice before. Sometime we just do something because it feels right, without analyzing why it works. David is extremely good at finding and articulating what it is that adds the spark enlivening a painting. If you missed the reception, we'll try to pass along his comments on your art at the next meeting.

David also picked out six of his favorites for merit awards. Please understand that such selections are personal attractions to the work, and would be different for a different viewer. Still, if he chose one of yours, it spoke to him, and it might speak to others as well. Listed in alphabetical order by artists' last names, the merit award winners are

Cityscape by Mary Behrens

Eye, Behold! by Bill Franklin

Foraging by Larry Garza

Sunset & Egrets by Charleen Isbell

Clematis on Cherry Ridge Drive by Sandra Scott

Sunnyside Orchard by Kay Lamb Shannon.

Congratulations to all of these, and thanks to all who provided works for what was a great show!

The February 26 Waco Trib has lots of art news.

The Waco Today insert has a great article about Kay Lamb Shannon and her puzzle paintings. Be sure to read it. If you don't take the Trib, you can find all of these articles on their web site www.wacotrib.com, and you might also find a Waco Today on stands in various businesses.

David Smith's column this week mentions his critique of the Art Guild exhibit. See what he says. Also the front page of the Access Waco section has an article about the Holt Getterman exhibit at the Art Center. The Franklins attended the opening reception on the 25th, and were amazed by the variety of media and how well he did did them. There was a mixture of sculpture, models, and paintings ranging from oils and acrylics to melted crayon and glued paper strips. The silvery Christmas tree looking thing is an aluminum casting made by pouring molten aluminum into a red ant nest.  We highly recommend that you view the exhibit. We also loved the fancy refreshments and the conversations with people in attendance, including Holt. To late for that, but you'll enjoy the exhibit anyway. Some photos of the exhibit are below. At the right is a photo of Holt and one of the food tables.