Newsletter editing and design courtesy of the Dixie Art Colony Foundation.
The ELMORE COUNTY ART GUILD has been promoting the arts in Elmore County SINCE 1985. This newsletter is published quarterly. Email information to be considered for publication in future newsletters to ShirleyEsco1945@gmail.com.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Shirley Esco, President
Dorothy Littleton, Vice President
Trish Gober, Treasurer
Ildiko Andrews, Secretary
Mark Harris, Publicity Chair
Robert Bowden, Member at Large
Danae Morgan, Member at Large
Clayton Edgar, Member at Large
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
At the September ECAG Membership meeting, the program focused on a discussion about preparing your artwork for submission and exhibition.
Our board member, Danae Morgan, former director of the Montgomery Cultural Arts Center (Armory Learning Arts Center), is now employed by the City of Millbrook as their event coordinator and the director of the future Arts Center in Millbrook. The ECAG has been invited to participate by hanging exhibitions at the center, including juried shows and regular exhibits. The new Arts Center will feature both meeting and gallery spaces. Art classes will also be taught at the center.
The next ECAG Membership Meeting will be held on October 12, 2022, at the Lake Martin home of Ildi Andrews. During this outdoor event, we will gather in Ildi's muscadine/scuppernong vineyard. You are invited to bring a picnic lunch and your Plein air painting supplies. More details will follow at a later date.
Should you have any questions, please call 334.399.5115.
Shirley Esco, ECAG President
SPECIAL NOTE:
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN BEING A FEATURED SPEAKER? If you are interested in being the featured speaker at one of the Elmore County Art Guild's monthly meetings, please contact Shirley Esco at 334-399-5115.
SAC'S Waterfront Show:
The show located at 529 South Perry Street will close on October 11, 2022. For more information call 334-256-9931.
GUILD MEMBERSHIP
Join the Elmore County Art Guild and show your support for the arts. Membership in the Elmore County Art Guild is open to anyone over the age of 18 that is an artist or is interested in supporting and promoting the arts. All memberships are based on an annual calendar year. Join the ECAG.
TALLAPOOSA SCHOOL OF ART Fall Series
This year's Fall Workshop Series titled Florals in Oils: Studio to Garden features artist Jeanette Herron. Herron grew up in a family of professional artists and honed her skills under the expertise of her mother, aunt, and grandfather. While living in Italy, Jeanette studied art extensively under several schools and teachers, including the Florence Academy of Art. She teaches her students to paint using divergent relationships. Vibrant, clean colors sit next to muted grays; petals and organic forms turn under choreographed use of warm and cool colors, and bursting floral arrangements come together harmoniously using planned compositions.
During this three-day workshop, students will watch demos and learn to paint from live roses and other locally available florals. Jeanette paints and demonstrates solely in oil; however, students experienced in acrylics or water-mixable oils will also benefit from this class.
The Tallapoosa School of Art is located on beautiful Lake Martin near Dadeville, Alabama.
For more information about their workshops and retreats, call 334.332.8457 or visit their website: TallapoosaWorkshops.com
GUIDELINES FOR EXHIBITS AND JURIED SHOWS
- Submitted work must be framed and ready to hang. Frames must be sturdy and well put together. No metal or plastic poster frames.
- Stretched canvases do not have to be framed if they are gallery-wrapped canvases and all sides are painted.
- A screw-eye or d-ring with wire must be in place on all works. No sawtooth hangers. The wire should be at least two inches from the top of the painting/frame so that it doesn't show when hung on the hanging system. On large pieces of work, the wire should be long enough to attach with two hangers.
- Each piece of work should be identified with a label affixed securely to the back. The label should include the artist's name, address, telephone number, the work's title, medium, and price or NFS.
CURRENT EXHIBITS
MILLBROOK SENIOR CENTER
Exhibiting Artists
• Winona Clark-Colvard
• Shirley Esco
• Angela Kimak
• Svetlana Nelson
• Donna Pate
MILLBROOK CITY HALL
Exhibiting Artists
• Amy Brown
• Libby Christensen
• Shirley Esco
• Donna Pate
WETUMPKA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Exhibiting Artists
• Kathy Atchison
• Georgia Banks-Martin
• Libby Christensen
• Shirley Esco
• Carol Hickman
• Svetlana Nelson
WETUMPKA DEPOT THEATER
Exhibiting Artists
• Libby Christensen
• Judy Lea
• Shirley Esco
• Sharon Katona
• Marty Woodall
• Donna Pate
• Trish Gober
• Paula Susen
• Bobby Carr
• Doris Bell
• Manju Kumar
FEATURED ECAG MEMBER ARTIST: Doris Bell
Doris Bell says her interest in art was sparked when she was a child. "My mother had a framed landscape print that I would stare at for hours, trying to figure out how it was painted. Then, with paper and crayons, I would try to duplicate it. Throughout grammar and high school, my art talent was recognized by my teachers. Finally, in high school, I started sketching portraits of my classmates," said Doris.
In her senior year of high school, she won a scholarship to the Art Institute of Atlanta but could not attend because of the extra expenses her parents could not afford. However, her dream of studying art and becoming an artist never died.
Doris Bell, Autumn Mist | Acrylic on Canvas
After Doris married, her husband encouraged her and ensured that she got an art education. She took classes at the University of Alabama Extension in Montgomery on Bell Street, which later became Auburn University at Montgomery. And then, she took art from several local art instructors. But Doris said the real turning point came when she took classes from Bobby Carr. "Bobby encouraged me and suggested the idea of teaching art," said Doris. She continued taking art from Carr and other art instructors, including Dixie Art Colonist Walter Keith at the Montgomery School of Fine Art (Huntingdon College).
Doris Bell, Dairy Farm | Oil on Canvas
In 1974 Doris decided to teach a few art classes at her home. After enrolling her children in Alabama Christian Academy, she was asked to teach art there, which I did for a few years. She also kept teaching art in her new home studio. In 1987 as the classes grew, Doris and ECAG member Judy Lea, opened an art studio in Wetumpka, naming it the Jasmine Hill Art Gallery and Studio. After a few years, Judy resigned due to her mother's declining health. Doris continued to teach until 2004, when she sold her studio to Stephanie Harrison.
Doris Bell, Day Dream'n | Pastel on Paper
With the support of the Elmore County Art Guild, Doris conceived the idea of a county-wide youth art competition, which became known as "Sparking the Arts."
Doris is proud to say that she is a founding member of the ECAG along with former Wetumpka mayor Jo Glenn. The ECAG was founded in 1985. Doris has served as ECAG president, vice president, board member, newsletter editor, and on numerous committees.
During her late husband's illness, Doris did not have time to paint as much as she wanted. But, she is now painting again and still enjoys participating in the activities and shows.
Join the Dixie Art Colony Foundation in Andalusia, Alabama
Beginning on SEPTEMBER 29 and continuing through OCTOBER 28, 2022, the Dixie Art Colony Foundation will partner with the City of Andalusia, Covington County Historical Society, and ReAct Theatre & Arts to present a series of events in downtown Andalusia.
Moonlight on Pickle Hill | Carlos Alpha "Shiney" Moon, c. 1945 | CAM-2022.AW.0001 | Oil On Canvas, 29.75 x 23.75 inches | Gift of Mobile Museum of Art
This dreamlike example of Moon’s work demonstrates his signature style of distorted realism. This painting was included in the 2004 traveling exhibition titled “Tales from the Easel: American Narrative Paintings from Southeastern Museums, circa 1800–1959.” In this exhibition, Moon’s painting hung alongside works of well-known American painters such as Thomas Hart Benton, Francis William Edmonds, William Glackens, Robert Gwathmey, Childe Hassam, Edward Hicks, Winslow Homer, Jack Levine, Reginald Marsh, and Andrew Wyeth.
The exhibition, titled "A Retrospective of the Works of Carlos Alpha "Shiney" Moon," will open with a 2:00 pm reception on October 2, 2022, at the Andalusia City Hall located at 505 East Three Notch Street. The exhibition will continue through October 28, 2022. The first in a series of programs titled "All About Shiney Moon" will take place at 6:30 pm on September 29, 2022, in the Andalusia City Hall Auditorium.
A presentation titled "Dixie Art Colony: A Look at its Lasting Legacy" will take place at 2:00 pm on October 9, 2022, in the Andalusia City Hall Auditorium. "Andalusia's Murals: A Walking Tour" will begin at 10:00 am on October 15, 2022, at 200 South Three Notch Street.
For more photographs and information visit DixieArtColony.org/Andalusia. Check this page each week during October 2022 for updates.
For more information, call 334.513.1086.
The Elmore County Art Guild maintains a strict policy against PLAGIARISM and COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT.
Should you have any questions regarding your artwork at any of these location, please call Shirley Esco at 334.399.5115.