The one of the biggest and best displays of art in Chester County
By Lele Galer, Columnist, The Times
Most of you are undoubtedly familiar with the wonderful adult and children’s classes offered by the Chester County Art Association, but you might not know that every month their galleries have interesting new exhibits that highlight different themes, and that they have auxiliary Art Show sites all over Chester County.
This Thursday, February 26th from 5-8pm CCAA will host the Annual Member’s Show reception with wine and food.
Executive Director Karen Delaney told the members to, “Bring in your most inspired piece to show off your talent” and they did! With 145 artworks on display for the Member’s Show this is largest collection of artwork that Ms. Delaney has ever hung in this space.
“I think it is awesome!” Delaney exclaims, “I am really proud of our membership. There is so much talent here at Chester County Art Association, and this exhibit is a great testament to that.”
145 works of art are on display at the Chester County Art Association’s Members Show.
CCAA boasts over 900 members, and as a special thank you and membership incentive, CCAA is taking 20% off the price of art at the Member’s show, if you are an active Member. So, come to the show, enjoy exemplary art, complimentary wine and food, and as a CCAA member feel free to purchase art at a 20% thank-you-discount. If you are not a member, join up!
Sign-ups for Spring CCAA classes are about to go online and in print, and you should check it out because you never know what they will offer and what new interesting artist has decided to teach a workshop. A couple years ago I wanted to learn encaustics (painting with hot-wax) and was surprised to see that renown encaustic artist Jeff Schaller was teaching a CCAA mini-workshop. That was a blast! And, I learned how to use the encaustic medium; so much fun to work with bright colors and a blow torch.
Speaking of Jeff Schaller (who is also head of the amazing Chester County Studio tour in the Spring), Jeff and artist David Oleski will be teaching their “Artists’ Survival Training Workshop” on March 4th at CCAA from 6:30-9pm. These successful artists share their marketing and pricing secrets with the rest of us, and it is very informative, and the $50 fee pays for itself very quickly. This particular lecture will concentrate on art pricing and presentation. It is very difficult for most artists to price their work, and this will give artists some guidelines to make the process simple and painless.
If you want to check out some other places where local artists are exhibiting their work through CCAA, look next to the Members’ Show, where the Time Light Art Group will be exhibiting photography in the Huston Gallery for the “Four Seasons” show, which also opens on February 26th. This photography collective is part of a cultural exchange program where the participating artists are Chinese, as is their website (so I do not have more information because I do not understand it), and their images are thematic rather than country specific.
At West Chester downtown Starbucks this month, artist Michael Stancato is showing his Chester County landscapes alongside his fictional scenes, which should make an interesting show. At the Bryn Mawr Trust building in West Chester, I (Lele Galer) am showing an assemblage of abstract tree studies, and in the newly renovated Exton Gallery, versatile artist Cary Galbraith will be opening on Saturday March 21st. Award winning artist and also CCAA teacher, Annette Alessi is now showing in the Penn State Great Valley Gallery, which is curated by CCAA. The Alessi show will run from February 3-April 16th and the opening reception will be March 3rd from 6-8pm. Any of these Chester County venues are open to CCAA artists every month, so let CCAA know if you are interested.
While most galleries hold off having their opening receptions until the infamous “First Friday” of the month, The Church Street Gallery in West Chester does its own thing, (which seems to be working very well by the way!). The newest opening for Church Street is this Friday February 27th from 5-9pm. The show will feature the work of two contemporary photographers, John Hilarides and Paul Reitano. Hilarides is featuring his “Pavement” series which are very cool visually abstract images of details in cement pavements. While Hillades’s work tells us to look down, Reitano tell us to look up and around in his series entitled “The West Chester Project.” Both artists take a new view at what we walk through every day, and I can’t wait to see the show this month.
http://www.chestercountyarts.org
http://www.chestercountystudiotour.com
http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/michael-stancato.html
http://www.alessicreations.com
http://www.churchstreetgallerywc.com
Lele Galer is an artist who has chaired numerous art shows, taught art history and studio art, public art and has chaired, written and taught the Art in Action Art Appreciation series for the UCFD schools for the past 12 years. She worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and wrote for the Asociated Press in Rome. She has been dedicated to Art History and art education for most of her adult life. Lele and her husband Brad own Galer Estate Winery in Kennett Square and she is on the Board of CCAA, RCWA and DVAL.
According to the CCAA website, that “Artist Survival” workshop is March 11, not the 4th.