The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Stella’s Art Gallery spotlights ‘Art Inspired by Northeast Ohio’
We have had some wonderful outdoor festivals this summer.
I hope you had the opportunity to indulge your appreciation of the finer arts and get started on Christmas shopping. (It’s a mere 18 weekends away, but that’s plenty of time to create your own gifts.)
The kids are heading back to school or off to college, and that should mean more free time for many of you. Those “I’ll do something for myself later” plans are coming due. Get thee to a class or workshop. Art galleries, community and senior centers, libraries, nature centers and more offer classes. Check them out.
Schedule “Me Time” so you can break out the paints and make your own mess for a change. Block out a few hours to immerse yourself in your art of choice. Hike and sketch, photograph, watercolor at the beach, knit, sew, sculpt — just do something that makes you happy.
Expressing yourself through art is very therapeutic. If you are stressed, depressed or overjoyed, let it out. It is amazing how good you can feel when you let those pent-up feelings flow. The artistic result is not the primary goal — the process is. However, sometimes the result exceeds all expectations.
Read on for places to show off your best work.
Emotionally created artwork can be quite profound. Imagine, if you will, what artwork created by an art therapist might look like. These special healers use art to help their clients find a voice when words fail. This is the inspiration for an upcoming show at Stella’s Art Gallery in Willoughby. The owner, Dani Klein, also is an art therapist.
“Do they take the life stories shared with them during therapy and use it as response art? Do they use their own art as an escape from it all? can they keep it out of their own expression, or does it intuitively show through?” Klein pondered. “Whether it is a direct influence or not, these powerful works of art share with the viewer the passion and voice of each artist.”
Now imagine six art therapists, each using a different medium, at various stages of their careers, displayed together in this unusual show examining how each allows the work to influence his or her personal artwork. Keep reading for details.
Gallery at Lakeland
“Watercolor Ohio 2021: 44th Annual Juried Exhibition” may be viewed through Sept. 10 in the Gallery at Lakeland. The show highlights 80 paintings that were created with various water media techniques.
For more information, contact the gallery coordinator, Mary Urbas, at 440525-7029 or murbas@lakelandcc.edu.
78th Street Studios
The Third Friday Art Walk at 78th Street Studios, 1300 W. 78th St., Cleveland, will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 20. This gathering of visual, performing and culinary artists calls the enormous two-city-block industrial building home. Many studios will be open, with demonstrations ongoing, during the event.
This is a ticketed event, at $5 per person and free for those under 16 years. Masks are recommended. Learn more at 78thstreetstudios.com.
Fairmount Center for the Arts
The Fairmount Center for the Arts, 8400 Fairmount Road, Russell Township, will host a closing reception for its 45th annual Arts Exhibition from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Aug. 26.
The Fairmount 500 Raffle, a fundraiser with a $15,000 prize, was launched earlier this year to celebrate Fairmount’s 50th anniversary, and it will close with this exhibit. Only 500 tickets are being sold, with sales ending Aug. 25 or when the tickets are gone. The drawing will be held during the reception and livestreamed.
Learn more about this show and Fairmount’s programs or buy raffle tickets at 440-338-3171 or fairmountcenter.org.
Stella’s Art Gallery
The new show, “Art Inspired by Northeast Ohio,” at Stella’s Art Gallery, 38033 Euclid Ave., Willoughby, has been judged and will be up for viewing through Sept. 4.
The winners in Parks and Recreation are Jeames Leslie, first place; Burnadette Russ, second place; and Sharlene Greene, third place. The winners in Northeast Ohio Event are Jay Henderson, first place; Bob Becker, second place; and Jeff Sivyer, third place. The winners in Flora and Fauna are Ginny Mancini, first place; Anna Weisend and Sam Weisend, second place; and Julie Cook, third place.
Honorable mentions went to Cynthia Reville, Luanne Bole Becker and Tonya Hough
The September show, “Photography Only,” calls for art using any photographic technique. The categories are Landscape, Cityscape, Seascape, Portraiture (humans or animals) and Macro.
Entries may be dropped off between 11:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Sept. 1 or from 12:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sept. 2 and 3. Northeast Ohio photographer Laura D’Alessandro will jury the show. An awards reception will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Sept. 10.
Allow time to explore Stella’s Annex Gallery.
The art therapist exhibit, “Artist Art Therapist Artist,” opens Sept. 1. The show was curated by Diane Fleisch Hughes, artist therapist from Stella’s, whose work also is on display. Other art therapists/ artists included are Amber McElreath, Gwendolyn Kundtz, Barbara TraugerQuerry, Heather Denning and the aforementioned Klein.
There will be a meetand-greet artists’ reception from 5 to 8 p.m. Sept. 11.
For more information, call 440- 266-9111 or visit stellasartgallery.com.
Lake Metroparks
“Wild About Nature” at Penitentiary Glen Nature Center, 8668 KirtlandChardon Road, Kirtland, opens with a reception from noon to 4 p.m. Aug. 28. Meet and talk with the artists and enjoy animal guests from the Kevin P. Clinton Wildlife Center.
Experience the art of wildlife in every shape, size and species in this multimedia show featuring talented local artists Bill Fleming, Tracy Zakraysek, Barbara Martin,
Mark Gifford, Cath Smith, Julie Cook, Dwight Boyer, Patti Meyer, Garrett Knisely, Matt Hanusosky, Tom Bradbury, Robert Schroeder, Beth Lynne, Nancy Nelson-Brotz, Lisa Ruschman, Delinda Mariani, Sandra Judnick, Michelle Farnworth and Michele Longstreet.
Artwork is available for purchase and includes acrylic and watercolor paintings, jewelry, sculpture, digital art and much more.
For more information, call 440-256-1404.
Valley Art Center
Valley Art Center, 155 Bell St., Chagrin Falls, is seeking artists to participate in the 50th annual Juried Art Exhibit. This prestigious show offers more than $1,000 in prize money and typically receives 300 to 400 pieces, including 2-D and 3-D, needing to be juried down to about 60 artworks.
The call for art closes Oct. 15. That may seem like a long way off, but, as always, deadlines seem to sneak up on us, and that one will be here before you know it. Get your work ready now.
This year’s jurors are Kendall Christian, director of the Galleries at Cleveland State University; Zack Hoon, photographer and owner of GalleryPlus; and Antwoine Washington, artist.
The second phase of the 37th annual Art by the Falls is running through Sept. 1 in the VAC main gallery. Be sure to visit the gift shop and check out the class schedule when visiting in person or online.