The theme of the summer program and the Fall group show for the Plainsboro Artists Group is Local Color. Artists had a free hand to interpret this as literally or as metaphorically as they chose, and to add writing to their show entry.
Note the artists' signatures on the show poster, very cool.
Most entries are for sale, and there's a strong showing, 33 entries in all, with materials ranging from found objects, including racing car parts (!)to glass and tile mosaic, to handmade paper, to photography, to dyed linen using locally sourced dyes by the artist, to classic watercolor, to acrylic, to oils.
Gallery manager Donna Senopoulos, with a watercolor and writing entry in the show, hung this disparate group of works with great understanding of how they echoed and contrasted with one another. She shows yet again that hanging a show is an artform in itself.
Very much worth your while to take a trip here if you're in central NJ any time soon! Gallery is open all the hours the library is open, every day. And even better, since Saturday September 19th from 1-5 p.m. will be the Festival of the Arts, that's a good chance to enjoy all the outdoor and indoor events (look for the embroiderers' guild there, with work in progress and beautiful finished projects), and at the same time catch the gallery show.
The Arts Rule in Plainsboro!
Today was our annual Festival of the Arts, a Plainsboro Public Library event celebrating all the arts and our local artists, too. With events ranging from an abstract art exhibit in the gallery, with art talk, to pastel portraits, to Chinese knotted jewelry, to fine embroidery, to drawing, felting, knitting, sidewalk chalk art, giant Lego play, hula hoop dancing with a dog (!) to weaving on the giant Earthloom, to Chinese calligraphy and watercolor, to mandalas, music all day, ranging from classical strings, to folk to pop, all live, and all kinds of other happenings, well something for everyone!
Happy crowds all day long, and I was at the EGA, Embroiderers' Guild of America display and demo, and we were mobbed all afternoon, it was wonderful! met some lovely new people, hoping we've gained new members, too.
And old friends showed up, great reunions all around. A community Big Win. When you consider how small our town is, just over 20,000 people, to put on such a daylong event, with dozens of willing artists donating time and expertise to happy festival goers, hundreds of people attending over the day, and all with a great air of cheer, well, we're great, that's all there is to it..
I'm showing just a fraction of the work that goes into making this happen. Planning started months ago, but this is the day-of, last minute arrangements happening.
Felting area in preparation
Earthloom set up ready for young weavers
Mandalas set up to give ideas to young mandala makers
Hula hoops waiting for occupants
Art journals at work, to encourage all comers to try their hand at it
Elizabeth here setting up for an afternoon of creating pastel portraits
Paint and little clay lamps ready for Diwali decoration
Greek columns being arranged in place on the light poles.
Then the people start to arrive and it's all go from then on.
Felting getting under way
Chinese calligraphers and watercolor artists
Young builders at work on their Lego area
after they've done with their sidewalk chalk art
You last saw this loom with my Four Sisters tapestry on it in progress before the picture earlier showing it ready for new action. Here young weavers set to work on their hangings.
Just had to include the dog! That's Carol, the Library Director, persuading him to pose for the camera. Other duties as assigned, as they say in the job description!
High school age classical string players
Henna designing at work
Trying her own mandala, with help from artist Julia
One of the calligrapher's works
And indoors, more events, more crowds, more fun
Some of our embroidery on display
Skilled embroiderers Evie and Florence confer, and Florence's cousin, also Florence, gets on with her schwalm (German whitework_
Visitors admiring some of Evie's work
and learning some fine points from Florence
And from Evie
And a sight to gladden the heart, a lady, thank you Simone, signing up for more information about the embroiderers' guild.
An exhibit of abstract art in the gallery, with a talk by the artist
Here seen above by herself, and then in the company of your blogwriter, a friend insisting on taking our pic together. The beautiful one is Tatiana!
And here is Iris Chang, a longtime friend both of the library and its arts programs, and of this writer. We all owe a lot to Iris, hadn't seen her in ages, and there she was in the gallery admiring Tatiana's brilliant work.
Home now, and recovering from all the stimuli of a terrific day.
