2009- 2010  Essex Art League Meeting Schedule and Guest Artists

Donations to the food bank at the church are greatly appreciated!

September 3rd  "Grant Opportunities for Artists"
Gillian Franks, Micro Business Development Program: Gillian will tell us about opportunities available right now to artists and other small business owners in Chittenden County, through the IDA (Individual Development Account) Program, which offers matching grants
over a 2 year span. She will also talk about the importance of developing business plans as artists.

October 1st    "Painting the Landscape, Outside & in the Studio"
Jane Neroni (Artist and Instructor): EAL member Jane Neroni will share the equipment, and the method, she uses to create a Plein Air painting, and what is involved in using that painting as a basis for a larger work in the studio. She will bring in several plein air oil paintings, as well as some of the larger paintings that they inspired, using them as examples to talk about the challenges of resizing a small image to a larger canvas.

November 5th   "Techniques of Pastel Painting"
Shirley Reid Thompson (Artist and Instructor from North Ferrisburgh, Vt): Shirley has taught pastel workshops for 7 years, exhibiting at the Southern VT Art Center and receiving an award from the governor as well as the “Best of Peoples Pick” award for the VT Pastel Society show. She will talk about materials and paper while demonstrating her techniques for working in pastels.

December 3rd    Annual EAL Christmas Party & Gift Exchange
Join us for our annual celebration and lunch. Bring along a dish to share
and a wrapped gift to exchange, along with 3 handmade cards inscribed for Meals-on-Wheels to distribute to folks unable to be with family for the holidays.

January 7th    "Getting to Know You"
EAL members’ soft critique. Bring along unfinished artwork of yours in progress and we'll all share what we've been working on lately, as well as getting ideas on composition, etc. if you are stumped. Fun and informal.

February 4th        "Collage Demo"
Jane Davies (Artist and Instructor from Rupert, VT): Jane will share her collage techniques “using color with passion and panache” in bold, strong combinations to inspire us to get into mixed media. She teaches many workshops and has written several books on collage. Her most recent book is “Collage Journeys: A Practical Guide to Creating Personal Artwork”, 2008.

March 4th      "Embossing on Tin"
Marie Cowan (Artist): EAL member Marie Cowan will share with us her techniques for embossing on tin and then adding acid over the tin for surprising results. She learned these from her travels to Moracco, done in the Mexican style.

April 1st      "Watercolor Demo"
Lisa Forester Beach (Artist and Instructor from Stowe, VT): Lisa has been an accomplished artist and teacher for many years, with EAL members driving regularly to Stowe to take her classes. She will do a watercolor demo, tossing out tips and answering questions as she works.

May 6th    "Reproducing and Marketing Your Artwork"
Teri Geney, of WordCraft Marketing Communications: So everyone loves your latest creation, but you only have the original. Find out how to create quality prints, cards, calendars and more, for gifts or resale. Teri will even cover a few marketing tips to get you started.

June 3rd  Annual EAL Picnic and (new this year!) gallery tours
Join us in Jeffersonville for a tour of the Bryan Gallery, led by curator Jim from 10-10:45 am, then on to Visions of Vermont Gallery for a tour by Jane Georges from 10:45 - 11:30 am. Jane is a popular speaker with much experience judging shows and will answer your questions about showing work and entering juried shows. From the galleries, we will head to Lynn Magie's home in East Fairfield for our annual EAL members picnic at noon. Bring a dish to share.