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Visual Arts

$35,000 Budgeted For Artist Proposals

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Washington-Centerville Public Library RFP for Artwork Woodbourne Library Renovation & Expansion Project:

 

Art Speaks Volumes

 

Open To: Artists with ties to the Greater Miami Valley

Commission Amount: $35,000 is budgeted for artwork at Woodbourne Library Entry Open Date: May 15, 2017

Entry Deadline: July 7, 2017

Commissions Announced: August 1, 2017

Projection Completion: June 1, 2018

Project Summary: Washington-Centerville Public Library seeks to commission site-specific pieces of artwork for four spaces within the renovated and expanded Woodbourne Library slated to reopen in the Summer of 2018.

Artists are invited to propose newly created artworks, of any medium, that reflect the communities of Centerville/Washington Township and the Modernist tradition of the building. Artists may propose more than one work if they so choose. Proposed artworks should resonate with people of all ages and backgrounds and contribute to the inviting, engaging and stimulating library environment. The committee welcomes, but does not require, submissions that relate to the Washington-Centerville Public Library’s mission to be the community’s connection to diverse opportunities for education, enrichment and entertainment.

From the submissions, a committee of local citizens and Library Trustees will select the winning artists. Winning artists will meet with Library staff, architects and construction representatives to confirm plans for the commission and will be required to sign a Letter of Agreement by September 2017 and complete the work by June 2018.

Centerville/Washington Township Community Background: Centerville/Washington Township is a well-educated suburban community of approximately 53,000 people. Known for its strong school district, parks and library system, it is an attractive community for families with children.

 

Centerville has the largest collection of early stone houses in the state of Ohio. They are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Downtown Centerville, also known as “The Heart of Centerville”, is an Architectural Preservation District that reflects the “Main Street” downtown era that shaped American towns and cities in the early 1900s. Many of the downtown buildings were built prior to World War I and represent diverse architectural styles rich in craftsmanship and detail.

Woodbourne Library Background: Woodbourne Library is an elegant, metal-frame building with perimeter posts supporting a roof overhang that shades set-back glass walls. Originally constructed in 1965 as a bank branch, the building is considered one of the most significant and beautiful Mid-Century Modernist buildings in Southwest Ohio.

The building was designed by Woodford (Woodie) Garber, one of Cincinnati’s most original Modernist architects. Garber designed some of the region’s most innovative buildings but over time his buildings have suffered considerably from neglect and demolition. The Woodbourne Library is now one of his rare buildings that survives intact and in good condition, despite its change in function over time.

Beginning in 2015, the Woodbourne Library began a transformation to take three separate parcels of land, owned by the Library, and make a unified campus that will serve more than 70,000 library cardholders. As part of this master plan, more parking and green spaces will be added; the existing Library will be completely renovated; and a 10,000 sq. foot expansion will be added. When finished, the Library will be approximately 30,000 sq. feet and have active and quiet zones that meet the needs of all library users. New amenities will include conference/meeting spaces in a variety of sizes, larger spaces for teens and children’s collections, and a creativity space.

 

Practical Considerations: The artwork must be durable, safe and easy to maintain. Potential locations for artwork include vaulted ceiling space near front entrance, a wall outside the Children’s Room, a ‘nook’ in the central marketplace and a wall in a quiet reading area. Some locations for artwork will be accessible to Library patrons. Renderings from LWC Architects can be found at the end of this RFP that illustrate these potential locations with their dimensions. Architectural plans are still subject to revision.

Submissions: Proposals will only be accepted electronically, in the form of a single pdf of no more than 10 pages and no more than 10 MB. Proposals for each art submission must include the following and be organized in the order below:

1. A sketch and narrative explanation of the proposed artwork

2. An explanation of the relationship between the proposed art and the community/building

3. Size range and suggested location for each proposed artwork

4. Four- six images of completed artwork, preferably of similar scale and material

5. Budget range for each proposed artwork

6. Brief artist CV or bio (1 page maximum)

Proposals and questions should be emailed to: [email protected]

Additional Information: The Library will hold a pre-proposal meeting for artists on June 6th, 4 PM at Centerville Library, 111 West Spring Valley Road, Centerville OH. LWC architects and Library representatives will be on hand with building plans and to answer questions.

South Park Painters Work on Display at Ghostlight Coffee

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Mark Echtner, a South Park resident and Professor of Fine Art at Sinclair Community College is this month’s artist featured on the walls of Ghostlight Coffee, located at 1201 Wayne Avenue.
How did you get started painting?
I’ve been painting pretty much my entire life. I come from a family of Artists, designers, and Architects and from a very early age my innate drive toward art was fostered and it was clear I would go into some form of the arts. As I went through high school and college, fine art and painting in particular became my medium of choice and through Grad School I found a love for teaching.
Describe your style:
My work is primarily figurative. This particular body of work uses highly saturated color and embraces the random lines from the initial gesture to incorporate a degree of expressive abstraction. I have always looked to Fauvism (and Matisse) as well as the German Expressionists for inspiration, and with this series I have also been looking to the early work of De Kooning.
What inspires you to paint?
I work from my head and from memory and the imagery I paint is inspired by the people around me and daily life. This series was initially going to be solitary figures broken down into line and shape, but the work evolved into quiet narratives of our daily interactions which brought content to the series. As far as the process goes – I have found that just continuously painting as a daily part of my routine keeps me inspired.
Finish this sentence.  When people see a display of my painting I want people to:
When people see this series I want them to relate to it on a personal level, and perhaps become more aware of the positive, but ordinary daily moments that we often miss.
What else would you like people to know?
My work is currently featured at Ghostlight Coffee now  through the month of June and I will be showing 20 paintings at the Sinclair Community College Burnell Roberts Triangle Gallery from August 14 – September 19

Luminaries of Dayton: The Beehive as a Cemetery Symbol

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The beehive was often used by the Freemasons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. It symbolizes human industry, faith, education and domestic virtues.

Daniel Beckel has one of the most unique monuments at Woodland. We affectionately call it the “Beckel Beehive.”

Who was Daniel Beckel?

Daniel Beckel was born in England on September 14, 1813. In 1829, when Daniel was just sixteen, he was an assistant to his step-father, a civil engineer, who worked on the construction of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. Afterward they became the contractors for, and constructed the great St. Mary’s Reservoir, for the Miami Canal. After the completion of that work, Mr. Beckel came to Dayton building the Beckel Opera House, the Beckel House (Hotel), and other valuable structures. He was also engaged in the manufacture of woolens and of flour, in the lumber trade, and in the construction of railroads and turnpikes. In connection with William Dickey and Joseph Clegg, Beckel established a private bank and was almost the sole owner of the Miami Valley and Dayton Banks. Mr. Beckel additionally served in the following capacities: elected to the Ohio Legislature; Secretary of the Dayton Hydraulic Co. in 1845 and President of the first gas company, The Dayton Gas Light & Coke Co. in 1849. Daniel Beckel was married to Susan Harshman. Mr. Daniel Beckel died on February, 26, 1862. He is located in Section 52 Lot 1167.

In 2016, a group of high school students participated in a Work, Earn and Learn program at Woodland. Eight girls worked 16 hours per week for 10 weeks and did the care and upkeep of several gardens, established a new garden in a highly visible area of the cemetery with a focus on design and plant selection, learned the workings of the cemetery from the front office to grounds maintenance, received several tours learning the history of Woodland, its establishment and the people resting peacefully within and also worked on the restoration of several monuments, including the “Beckel Beehive.”

Woodland Cemetery, founded in 1841, is one of the nation’s oldest rural garden cemeteries and a unique cultural, botanical and educational resource in the heart of Dayton, Ohio. Visit the cemetery and arboretum and take one of the many tours Woodland offers free of charge. Most of Dayton’s aviation heroes, inventors and business barons are buried at Woodland.

Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum is located at 118 Woodland Avenue off of Brown Street near the University of Dayton Campus. The Woodland Office is open Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm and Saturday 8 am to 12 pm. The Cemetery and Arboretum are open daily from 8 am to 6 pm. The Mausoleum is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, call 937-228-3221 or visit the Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum website.

Now You Can Own A Hamilton Dixon Original

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Photo by Bill Franz

Metal sculptor Hamilton Dixon has created some very impressive sculptures in town like the railings in the Dayton Art Institute Rotunda, at the Boston Stoker at the airport, the University of Dayton Serenity Pines, and many other public and private installations around the region and the country.

 

He began working with metal on an off-shore oil rig in the 1980’s. He decided he liked working with metal but he didn’t like life on an oil rig, so he went to forging school in New Mexico .He attended Turley Forge School in Santa Fe, where he learned basic techniques in forging steel.  In 1991 Dixon established himself her in Datyon and has thrived here as a full-time artist ever since.

Dayton Art Institute Rotunda, photo by Bill Franz.

Hamilton has chosen metal as his medium because of its weight, texture and permanence. While Hamilton’s process may be similar to that of an old-world blacksmith, his style is decidedly contemporary.

Hamilton says, “my greatest joy comes at the beginning of the project – the design step.  I love deciding how to make pieces of steel look like a flowing, organic thing.”

Dixon has also made some pretty incredible jewelry, I actually have one of his forged Sterling Silver bracelets which I adore.  And now you, too can own a piece of his jewelry. He will be making a round of bracelets for the next 2 months before starting on his next commission. You can stop by his shop to order directly from him, or you can order from his Etsy Page , (stopping by his shop includes a shop tour)  in case you’d like to get one of these Dayton Originals.  Currently available he has about 7 bracelet designs and 3 pendants ranging in price from $180 to $400.  Or you can always commission your very own piece.
To see more of Hamilton’s work, stop into his studio at 811 E. Third Street Dayton, Ohio 45402.

Yellow Springs Brewery Hosts Photographer Wayne Heinfeld

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The Yellow Springs Brewery will be hosting the latest works from photographer Wayne Heinfeld from May 1 – 29 with an Art Party on Sunday, May 7 from 2 – 4 pm. The exhibit is part of an ongoing monthly series hosted by the Yellow Springs Brewery entitled, Art + Ale, featuring the latest work from local artists in the brewery taproom.

Wayne Heinfeld is a photographer based in Enon. His Art + Ale exhibit will feature a series of color photos focused on elements of nature he has found in his many travels through the Smokey Mountains, in New England, out west, and in Glen Helen. Heinfeld worked with professional slide film for many years and prefers that to the prevalent use of digital photography today.

Heinfeld was a mail carrier in Dayton for 33 years before retiring a few years ago. He is self-taught and always considered photography a hobby until people started asking to buy his prints. He now sells many of his images on notecards which are available at Glen Garden Gifts in Yellow Springs.

For information on Wayne Heinfeld or the Yellow Springs Brewery, visit yellowspringsbrewery.com.

Luminaries of Dayton: Paul Laurence Dunbar Window

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Dunbar’s Willow Window

This window depicts the words written in the Negro dialect associated with the antebellum South by Dayton poet and author, Paul Laurence Dunbar, in the poem A Death Song published in 1913. You can also find the poem on the bronze plaque at his grave site in Section 101.

Lay me nigh to whah ’hit makes a little pool
 An’ de watah stans’ so quiet ‘lak un’ cool
 An’ de little birdies in de’ spring
 Ust come an’ drink an’ sing
 An’ de chillun waded on dey way tu’ school

You are invited to visit the Mausoleum to view all of the beautiful stained glass windows within at your leisure or join us for a guided tour on Thursday’s June 8, July 13, August 10, September 7 or October 5 at 9:00 a.m. Please RSVP to 937-228-3221.

The Mausoleum is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Woodland Cemetery, founded in 1841, is one of the nation’s five oldest rural garden cemeteries and a unique cultural, botanical and educational resource in the heart of Dayton, Ohio as you will see as you read through this new MostMetro.com series. Visit the cemetery and arboretum and take one of the many tours Woodland offers free of charge. Most of Dayton’s aviation heroes, inventors and business barons are buried at Woodland.

Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum is located at 118 Woodland Avenue off of Brown Street near the UD Campus. The Woodland Office is open Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm and Saturday 8 am to 12 pm. The Cemetery and Arboretum are open daily from 8 am to 6 pm. The Mausoleum is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, call 937-228-3221 or visit the Woodland website.

Wear a Work of Art From Local Artist Mb Hopkins

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Dayton artist Mb Hopkins created this painting entitled “Huddled Masses,” and was giving prints to people in exchange for their contribution to the local Unitarian Fellowship for World Peace. This organization provides no-fee mental health services in several languages to refugees and immigrants.

 “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
                                                              — Emma Lazarus
You can now sport this message on your chest and proceeds will also go to the Dayton nonprofit, Unitarian Fellowship for World Peace.  Order your t-shirt online.
The original painting, which is 2-ft by 4-ft, will be sold to the highest bidder at the DVAC Annual Auction on April 28, 2017, with all proceeds from that sale going directly to DVAC, to help offset their operating expenses.  If you would like to own your own print, you can find them at Eclectic Essentials and CLASH in the Oregon District and at Sam And Eddies Open Books in Yellow Springs!

Artists Call for Bicycle Themed Art

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BALANCE is a juried show of bicycle-based or themed 2D and 3D work—held in conjunction with Troy, Ohio’s 2017 Sculptures on the Square public art exhibit of Mexican artist Gilberto Aceves Navarro’s Las Bicicletas—and will be on display in the Mayflower Arts Center’s Lobby Gallery, May 1-June 24, 2017.

Participation in BALANCE is open to all artists over the age of 16. Artists making 2D and 3D art based loosely or directly on bicycles, bicycle history, and bicycle culture are encouraged to submit their work.

All submissions will be juried by the Mayflower Arts Center’s exhibition committee. Along with three jury awards, there will also be a People’s Choice Award based on popular votes cast by visitors during the exhibition. The exhibition will be on display during the 2017 Troy Strawberry Festival (June 3-6, 2017), one of Ohio’s premiere and highest attended festivals.

While BALANCE is being held in conjunction with the Sculptures on the Square public display, work submitted to Balance does not have to be related to Navarro’s work, style, context, or concept.

 


SUBMISSION DETAILS


– All 2D and 3D media accepted (no audio or video files will be accepted). 3D works must be free-standing. 2D works must be framed or have finished edges and be delivered ready to install. Any work not properly prepared will not be included in the exhibit.
– The Mayflower Arts Center is a family-friendly arts center. Work depicting gratuitous nudity, profanity, or obscenities cannot be accepted. If you have a question about the acceptability of your art, please contact us before submitting.
– All entries will be submitted via the exhibition submission form on the Mayflower Arts Center’s website.
– Artists/designers may submit up to 5 works for a $40 non-refundable entry fee. Artwork submitted without payment will not be considered.
– For 3D work, submit images depicting the work as best you feel are needed. We prefer at least 2 images per work (full view and detail), but if you have 5 works you are submitting, then make sure the single image of each work shows the best angle and details of the work possible.
– For safety reasons, extremely large works may not be accepted. If you have any questions about the size of your work fitting in our gallery, please contact us before submitting.
– All artwork must be original and be accompanied by title, medium, dimensions, year of completion, and retail value.
– Entries will be judged from digital files. Images should be JPEG or PNG format, 72dpi, 800 pixels at their longest side, including your name in the digital file name.
– Artwork will be juried based on artistic vision, originality, technical execution, and adherence to the theme.
– Accepted artists/designers will be required to submit a high-resolution photograph of the accepted artwork for use with online and print media for marketing purposes. The artist’s name, website, and information about the work will be displayed alongside the work.
– All artwork must be for sale. The MAYFLOWER ARTS CENTER will take a 30% commission (plus 7% sales tax) from artwork sold during the exhibition.
– You will be notified of the jurors’ decisions by email and website posting on Saturday, April 15.
– Exhibiting artists will be required to deliver artwork to the Mayflower Arts Center by no later than April 24. Work shipped must include return postage. No packing peanuts please. Any artwork received after 5:00pm on April 24 may not be included in the exhibit.
– By submitting artwork to Balance you grant the Mayflower Arts Center and the Sculptures on the Square organizations the right to use and publish images of your artwork for promotional purposes. Artist retains all other rights to the artwork.
– If you have a question about the acceptability of your art, please contact us at MayflowerArtsCenter@gmail.com before submitting.
– Recognition will be awarded to the top three works as selected by the Mayflower Arts Center Exhibition Committee.
– Recognition will be awarded for a People’s Choice Award based on votes received by exhibition visitors.
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LAS BICICLETAS BACKGROUND:
Las Bicicletas (http://lasbicicletas.org/) is an urban art exhibit created by Mexican artist Gilberto Aceves Navarro. It comprises 250 bicycle sculptures in black, white, red and orange; colors that were used by the Mayan culture to symbolize the four cardinal points. Over 30 sculptures will be on display throughout downtown Troy for the public to view. One of the sculptures will be on display in the Lobby Gallery of the Mayflower Arts Center.

The mission of Las Bicicletas is to promote through art, the use of bicycles as an alternative mode of transportation and to procure better living conditions for all people in friendlier cities. Las Bicicletas’ objective is that bicycles are universally recognized as vehicles of happiness and health.

THE MAYFLOWER ARTS CENTER
The Mayflower Arts Center provides a community-friendly environment to create art, and enlighten and inspire a deeper appreciation of art among artists and patrons. Located prominently on the vibrant downtown square of Troy, Ohio—in the historic 1928 Mayflower Theater building—the Mayflower Arts Center offers gallery and exhibit spaces, classes and workshops, indie/art films, fine art retail, art lectures, performances and concerts. The Lobby Gallery presents work from local, regional, and national artists throughout the year.

ENTRY DEADLINE: April 10 (11:59pm EST)
Entry Fee: $40.00 (non-refundable)

Mayflower Arts Center Lobby Gallery
9 West Main Street
Troy, Ohio, 45373
Artist Reception: May 6 (6:00-8:00pm)

IMPORTANT DATES (all times reflect EST)
April 10 (11:59pm): Submission Deadline
April 15: Jurying Announcement (entrants notified by email / website)
April 24 (5:00pm): Drop-off/Delivery Deadline
April 24 – 30: Curation/Installation
May 1 – June 24: Exhibition Dates*
May 6 (6:00-8:00pm): Artist Reception
May 1 – June 4: Public Voting*
June 4 (5:00pm): Voting Closes
June 9 (7:00pm): People’s Choice Award Announcement
June 24 – July 1: Art Pick-up/Delivery*

COMPLETE SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS and ENTRY FORM are available at http://www.mayflowerartscenter.com/balance-exhibit.html.

Dayton Artists At Work: Stephanie McGuinness – Painter

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I first saw the paintings of Stephanie McGuinness at the Dayton Visual Arts Center.  Stephanie was one of three artists featured in an exhibit called “The Secrets We Keep.”  The other two were Ashley Jonas and Zoe Hawk.

Three of Stephanie’s works from that show appear below.

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I wanted to arrange a visit to Stephanie’s studio for two reasons – I liked her work and I was fascinated by what DVAC’s Executive Director Eva Buttacavoli told me about how Stephanie uses discarded notes to fuel her painting process.
When I called Stephanie I learned that she said she lived and worked in this home in Englewood.

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When Stephanie met me at the door I could see she was really painting.  Sometimes when I arrive artists are dressed for a photo shoot and then pretend to paint as I photograph them.   But Stephanie has young kids.  Her painting time is precious, and she wasn’t going to waste it.

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I asked Stephanie about her process and learned that since her college days she has been collecting discarded notes and lists she finds in public spaces.  She found many of the notes in the parking lots of stores.

I asked if I could see some of the notes and she got out a large plastic container filled with scraps of paper.  Some of the notes were short mundane – things like shopping lists – but some were very long and very personal.  They could have been rough drafts of important letters, or maybe personal letters that were discarded by the recipient.

 

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Stephanie reads these notes and thinks about the people who wrote them.  Then she journals about the lives she imagines for those people.

Stephanie has been collecting these discarded notes since her college days.  At first she painted collections of the notes, and her professors challenged her.

“They wondered what was so interesting about these notes,” Stephanie said.  “Well I found them interesting.  But eventually I agreed that the notes, in themselves, were not enough.”

Her current paintings come from what her found notes have led her to imagine about a family of six (three children two parents and a maternal grandmother) who share a home. Stephanie journals about their life events, thinks about how those events would impact their living space, and then creates paintings of that living space.

“A lot of my journaling about this family focuses on the relationship between the grandmother and her daughter” Stephanie said.

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“Although I have been painting the interior of the home, I do have a definite idea about what the exterior looks like,” Stephanie said.  “It looks like some of the old frame houses in Eaton, where I lived as I was completing my MFA at Miami University.”

Stephanie paints in her home’s dining room, which works well as long as she remembers to dodge the chandelier. With a baby and a toddler at home, Stephanie’s painting time is limited. But having her work-in-process up in the dining room helps her think about the piece even when she’s not painting.

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“I used to have two or three paintings going at a time, but when my second baby came that stopped.  Now I have one piece going and it typically takes me a couple of weeks to finish.”


“My two kids have one nap that overlaps, and that’s usually when I paint.  Also, my Mother-in-law and my Dad are retired.  They take the kids sometimes which gives me more time to paint.”

“This fence keeps my paintings and art materials safe from the two kids and the dog.  The dog’s name is Keiko.  I’m a big Star Trek fan, and the dog is named after Keiko O’Brien, a botanist on the U.S. Starship Enterprise.”

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Love In Lights

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Let your love light shine with a special Valentines Day photo shoot! Knack Creative is illuminating your love with the help of Event Lites.

Nicole and Richard at Knack Creative with Event Lites

From February 12 through February 14, you can make an appointment to stop by Knack Creative’s newly-opened studio space for a mini shoot with your mini humans or your special someone. Event Lites are providing their brand new life sized marquee lights that spell out L-O-V-E for the perfect backdrop.

All the details:
– sessions available the 12th, 13th and 14th
– $85 for a 20-minute portait session
– at least 6 final, edited digital files included (delivered within two days of the session)
– online gallery for viewing and sharing your images and ordering prints, if you’d like!

You can find all of the information on the event page here or just go ahead and schedule your session here.

 

 

First of Five Colorful Artworks to Enliven the City Created

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The Downtown Dayton Partnership (DDP) and its partners at the Dayton Visual Arts Center (DVAC), the K12 Gallery for Young People & TEJAS, and an independent, volunteer review panel have selected the winning local artists for the first-ever Urban Art Intersections (UAI) program.

The open call for artists last fall encouraged artists 18 & up who live in a 40-mile radius of downtown Dayton to submit their designs to enliven our downtown streetscapes with public art.  Winning selections were awarded a $750 stipend.

The first design, created by Morris Howard, has been  installed at the Transportation Center Garage, across the street from The Neon Movie Theater and near the Oregon District. K12’s mural team oversaw  the installation.  Photographer Bill Franz, caught this shot of K12’s Amanda Westbeld and BK Elias as they were working on the first mural in this project.

The DDP currently is working with property owners and K12 to secure locations for the next four designs. Those will be announced as they are finalized. All pieces will be completed by July 2017. Following Howard’s design, the other winning artists include Tricia Calvert, Laura Huff, Tracy Jayne, and Christopher Weyrich & Tiffany Allyn.

     

     

UAI will use public art as a way to connect local artists with the community and engage downtown Dayton residents, workers, and visitors with their city in a unique way, while enliveing downtown’s streetscapes.

Urban Art Intersections is a partnership between the DDP, DVAC, and K12 with support from the Ohio Arts Council.

DAI Announces Special Exhibitions for 2017

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The Dayton Art Institute has announced its 2017 special exhibitions, featuring a major retrospective of Native American artist Kay WalkingStick, a newly organized tour of the African beadwork of the Ubuhle women, and decadent Art Nouveau lithographs by Alphonse Mucha.

“The Dayton Art Institute strives to present a range of special exhibitions complementing the museum’s encyclopedic collection,” said Katherine Ryckman Siegwarth, Kettering Exhibition Coordinator and Curatorial Associate, and in-house curator. “We are thrilled to host these three traveling exhibitions and are certain our guests will find meaningful experiences with the varied artworks.”

Kay WalkingStick: An American Artist
February 11–May 7, 2017

The special exhibition season begins with Kay WalkingStick: An American Artist, the first major retrospective of one of today’s most accomplished Native American artists and a leading practitioner of contemporary landscape painting. Featuring more than 60 of her most notable paintings, drawings, sculptures, and notebooks, this exhibition explores the artist’s search for the spiritual truth of her complex cultural identity, against the backdrop of key art historical movements. Arranged chronologically around themes which mark her artistic journey, Kay WalkingStick: An American Artist follows the artist along a journey of self-discovery, invention, innovation and evolution through visually brilliant and evocative works of art.

The exhibition and tour are co-organized by the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian and the American Federation of Arts. The exhibition is accompanied by a substantial catalogue featuring essays by numerous authors, including the artist herself.

Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence
June 24–September 10, 2017

The DAI’s summer exhibition, Ubuhle Women: Beadwork and the Art of Independence, showcases a new form of bead art, the ndwango (“cloth”), developed by a community of women living and working together in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The black fabric on which the Ubuhle women work is reminiscent of the Xhosa headscarves and skirts which many of them grew up wearing. Using skills handed down through generations, and working in their own unique style—“directly from the soul,” according to artist Ntombephi Ntobela—the women create abstract as well as figurative subjects for their ndwangos. Ubuhle means “beauty” in the Xhosa and Zulu languages, and it describes the shimmering quality of light on glass that has a particular spiritual significance for the Xhosa people.

The exhibition was developed by the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Washington, D.C., in cooperation with Curators Bev Gibson, Ubuhle Beads, and James Green, and it is organized for tour by International Arts & Artists. The Dayton Art Institute will be the first venue for this new tour.

Alphonse Mucha: Master of Art Nouveau
September 16–December 31, 2017

The 2017 special exhibition season concludes with the Art Nouveau designs of Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939). Drawn from one of the finest private collections of Mucha’s work in the United States, this exhibition features 75 works by the celebrated Czech master, whose varied, expressive, and seductive imagery helped form and later shape the aesthetics of French Art Nouveau at the turn of the 20th century. Taking inspiration from the unruly aspects of the natural world, Art Nouveau influenced art and architecture, especially in graphic work and illustration, with its sinuous lines and whiplash curves. Through rare, original lithographs and proofs, paintings, drawings, and ephemera, this exhibition examines the broad range of Mucha’s work, largely created during the 1890s, at a time when the emphasis was on creating a new art fit for the new century.

The exhibition and tour are organized by Landau Traveling Exhibitions, the exhibition is accompanied by an illustrated catalogue with essays from the Mucha Foundation and art historian Gabriel Weisberg.

“Our curatorial team has put together a diverse lineup of special exhibitions that offers guests a window into varied cultures and time periods from around the world,” says The Dayton Art Institute’s Director and CEO Michael R. Roediger. “The 2017 season offers something for arts lovers of all ages and interests. We hope you’ll join us at the museum and consider becoming a member of The Dayton Art Institute.”

The beginning of the new year is the perfect time to become a member of The Dayton Art Institute. Memberships start at just $40 and provide free admission to all three special exhibitions, unlimited visits to the museum’s permanent collection, free admission to Bob Ross Auto Group Jazz & Beyond concerts, discounts for many other museum events, programs and workshops, discounts at The Museum Store and Leo Bistro,  and reciprocal access to 14 other Ohio art museums.

For more information about the 2017 special exhibitions and museum membership, please visit www.daytonartinstitute.org or call the museum at 937-223-4ART (4278).

Call for Entries: Rosewood Gallery “Works on Paper” 2017

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Downtown Dayton Seeks Artists to Help Enhance Cityscape

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call-for-artistsA new program will use public art as a way to connect local artists with the community and engage downtown Dayton residents, workers, and visitors with their city in a unique way. This new civic engagement project, Urban Art Intersections, will enliven downtown’s streetscapes and build upon the success of other recently completed public art projects.
Local artists are invited to submit their ideas to activate blank or otherwise inactive outdoor wall space downtown. The project scope includes identifying potential mural sites and color scheme. These locations could include downtown buildings, bridge underpasses, or other “blank” surfaces.

“Urban Art Intersections supports initiatives identified by the community in the Greater Downtown Dayton Plan,” said Downtown Dayton Partnership (DDP) President Sandra Gudorf. “Urban vibrancy has long been a part of our city’s strategic plan for attracting investment and create a thriving downtown.”
mural
Urban Art Intersections is a joint program with the DDP, the Dayton Visual Arts Center (DVAC), and K12 Gallery and TEJAS. Similar to another successful public art project featuring the River Run Mural at RiverScape MetroPark, DVAC is coordinating the artist submission process, using the Call for Entries website. K12 Gallery and TEJAS will execute the application of the selected design(s).

An information meeting has been scheduled for 11 am to 12 pm on Saturday, Sept. 17, at DVAC, 118 N. Jefferson St. in downtown Dayton. Anyone who has questions about the project, how to apply, or any other inquiries about the program may attend the free session.

Submissions are due by 11:59 pm. EST on Tuesday, Oct. 4. Here’s the link to submit.

For details on the proposal requirements, eligibility, site selection, guidelines and evaluation criteria, and other specifics about Urban Art Intersections, visit the Call for Entries site. Urban Art Intersections was made possible with support from a grant from the Ohio Arts Council as well as support from project partners DVAC, K12 Gallery & TEJAS, and the DDP.

Call for Artists: DVAC 2016 Holiday Gift Gallery

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Applications no13731045_1222258107793242_5442002554824650548_ow open to participate in DVAC’s Holiday Gift Gallery, Nov 17-Dec 24, 2016.

Now in it’s 13th year, the Dayton Visual Art Center’s (DVAC) Holiday Gift Gallery is the premier fine art and fine craft professional gallery show and sale in the region.

Opening with a ticketed preview party, Holiday on Ice (November 17) and running through Christmas Eve, it includes targeted marketing for the biggest shopping weekend of the year—Black Friday (November 25), Small Business Saturday (November 26) and Cyber Monday (November 28) —and attracts thousands of visitors from throughout Southwest Ohio.

DEADLINE: September 1, 2016, 12 midnight

JURORS:
Tom Heaphey and Vicki Rulli, owners/artists at Itinerant Studio, Springfield, OH

Loretta Puncer, artist and gallery owner, Gallery 510 Fine Art, Dayton

Shari Rethman, Dean, Liberal Arts, Communication and Social Sciences, Sinclair Community College

APPLICATION: http://daytonvisualarts.org/for-artists/apply-for-exhibition/

APPLICATION FEE: Free for DVAC Members; $10 for Non-Members. DVAC Members call 937/224.3822 for promo code at check out.

Rosewood Gallery Extends Deadline For HWD Juried Sculpture Exhibition

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Gallery_HWD_2-1024x725Rosewood Gallery in Kettering, Ohio announces an extension in the deadline for its call for entries for the 10th annual HWD, a juried exhibition for sculpture artists in Ohio and surrounding states. HWD (Height x Width x Depth) is the area’s only gallery exhibition devoted exclusively to sculpture.
Entries must be original works completed within the last four years. Artworks must fit through the 79 x 34-inch gallery entryway. Artists must be residents of Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, or West Virginia. Work previously exhibited at Rosewood Gallery is not eligible.
Completed entries (images, entry form and non-refundable entry fee of $20.00 for up to 3 works), will be accepted through July 22, 2016. The exhibition runs from August 29 through October 7, 2016. There will be an artist reception on Thursday, September 1, 6 – 8pm with United Art and Education awards presentation at 7pm. Both the exhibition and reception are free and open to the public. The prospectus can be found on our website: playkettering.org/gallery.

 

This year’s juror, Geoff Riggle, received a Bachelor of Science in Art Education from Ball State University and a Master of Fine Arts in metalsmithing and jewelry design from Miami University. With a firm foundation in traditional metalsmithing techniques and jewelry design practice, his current body of work spans the mediums of metals and jewelry, sculpture, and photography, and forges ground into digital design and practice. Riggle has exhibited nationally and internationally and has been featured in a number of publications, including Showcase 500 Rings: New Directions in Art Jewelry 2012) by Marthe Le Van. Currently, Riggle is Head of Jewelry Design and Metalsmithing in the Department of Art at Miami University.
Hours for the exhibition are Monday through Thursday, 9am – 9pm; Friday, 9am – 6pm; and Saturday, 9am – 3pm. Rosewood Gallery is sponsored by the City of Kettering Parks, Recreation and Cultural Arts Department, with support from the Kettering Arts Council and the Ohio Arts Council. The Gallery is located in the Rosewood Arts Centre, 2655 Olson Drive in Kettering. For more information, call (937) 296-0294.