Stonetown Arts Art Show and Sale returns for 13th year

Organizers Cathy Atwell and Bonnie Innes and are excitedly preparing for the 13th annual Stonetown Arts Art Show and Sale at Riverwalk Commons, which runs Nov. 22-24, Nov. 29 and 30, and Dec. 1.

By Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Roughly 25 St. Marys and area artists will have the chance to display their latest, never-before-shown work at Riverwalk Commons later this month during the 13th annual Stonetown Arts Art Show and Sale.

For the first time in its 13-year history, the show is being organized by a dedicated, volunteer committee of Stonetown Arts instead of the group’s board of directors. Chaired by former Stonetown Arts co-chair and treasurer Cathy Atwell, the committee also includes volunteers Rob Anderson, Julia Armstrong, Kathy Blake, Sandy Craig, Bonnie Innes, Donal O'Connor and Paula Wilcox.

“This year, the board has not been involved in the lead up and execution of the plans, nor in the decision-making process, in order to get the show up and running,” Atwell said. “ … This group deserves recognition. They had no idea what was involved in putting on the show, or what they might be getting themselves in for in volunteering to be on the committee, but they have worked hard and have worked together as a great team.”

In addition to the work of all kinds created over the past year by the local artists and members of Stonetown Arts, the show organizers once again issued a Members’ Challenge – an annual callout to member artists to create a piece of art that adheres to specific criteria.

“This year it is all four-by-six pieces on birch panels,” Atwell said. “ … Most of our Members’ Challenges in the past have been on birch panels – sometimes on canvas or birch panels – and this year, the artists were challenged with doing anything they wanted, but it had to include some kind of a living thing.”

As each year’s Members’ Challenge pieces tend to be smaller in size than the other pieces on display, Atwell said they’re a great way to make art more accessible and affordable for people who want to take a piece of local art home with them. Some patrons, she said, come back to the show year after year to collect a Member’s Challenge piece from each show.

Both Atwell and Innes, who also serves as Stonetown Arts’ current treasurer, said the show is a culmination of an entire year of member artists working on their own, learning from each other during their members meetings and outings, and experimenting with techniques and mediums they aren’t as familiar with.

“Except for maybe less than a handful of our members, they don’t get the opportunity to show their work in a show like this,” Atwell said. “It gives them the opportunity to show their new work they’ve been working on for the past year, hiding it in their closet. It gets their art out into the world, so to speak. That’s really important for them to be able to do because otherwise, they’re doing all of this beautiful artwork and nobody except them and their family is seeing it. That’s just not right.”

Innes, who will display her art in the upcoming show, said she did a little experimenting herself this year based on some advice she received from one of her fellow Stonetown Arts members.

“I kind of chose a sky, lake and sand theme,” Innes said. “Everything is sort of in blues and taupe and browns and whatnot. I just sort of got on a roll; it’s just something I tried. There’s texture – some sand texture – so there’s a little bit of new stuff, too. It’s acrylics, but I went bigger. Usually I do smaller sizes, and another artist looked at my work and she said, ‘Go bigger.’ So go big or go home. I don’t get into abstracts at all, but I keep thinking I might try it some day.”

Stonetown Arts will host the opening reception for the art show and sale on Friday, Nov. 22 from 6-9 p.m. The art show will then run on Saturday, Nov. 23 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday, Nov. 24 from noon to 4 p.m. It will return to Riverwalk Commons for a second weekend on Friday, Nov. 29 and Saturday, Nov. 30 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Sunday, Dec. 1 from noon to 4 p.m.

The first weekend of the art show and sale will be held in conjunction with the annual St. Marys Merchants Open House Nov. 23 and 24, which will feature horse-and-wagon rides and, of course, a visit from Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

Stonetown Arts members will be on hand at the show to meet with local art lovers, discuss their work and that of their fellow members, and answer any questions from the public.