HCAC Fall Newsletter

Since fall is now upon us it seems like the perfect time to reflect on some of the happenings over the past year and look ahead to what is next for the HCAC.

We kicked off the year by delivering our revamped Arts Digest directly to 17 000 homes in Hants County. Expanding the distribution of our arts digest proved to be a risk well worth taking and we quickly saw the results through our continually growing membership and increased community support.

Last spring we were approached by Joan Mckenzie of the Bread Gallery in Brooklyn, and this past March we hosted our first of hopefully many annual spring group shows. Joan truly appreciates the creative talent that resides here in Hants County and we are looking forward to working with her as we continue to promote and support our local artists.

In June we participated in the first annual Avondale Art Fair which drew an incredibly large crowd to the normally quiet historic seaside hamlet. Our board of directors were very impressed with the organization put into the event by Kathy Munroe and we look forward to taking part again next year!

Over the summer we have been busy planning our own annual arts festival which we have rescheduled to coincide with the annual Pumpkin Festival. Now in it’s 6th year the Harvest Festival of Art opens with a reception running from 7-9pm this Friday, October the 12th at the Vaughan Shand Centre in Windsor .

Taking over both the upper and lower floor of the centre, there will be approximately 150 original pieces on display. Throughout the weekend several artists will be on hand providing demonstrations in oils, acrylics, pastels as well as rug hooking and felt work.

We will even have a little something special for the kids on Sunday in the form of face painting and balloon animals!

We are still accepting nominations for this year's Hall of Fame
recipient. We ask that you all take a few minutes to fill out our
brief survey and nominate one person who stands out as a
representative of our local arts community by either their work as an
artist or their commitment to the growth and support of our local arts
and culture http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/B2SNKLB

We are really happy to be back at the Vaughan Shand Centre again this year and we are overwhelmed by the support we have received from local businesses to help make the event truly special. We send a huge thank you to Tan Coffee, The Spitfire Arms Pub, Blossom Shop, Daniels Flower Shop, The Bread Gallery, Flying Cloud Boutique, Sobeys, Gaspereau Winery, What’s Going On and Platypus Medical Exercise Therapy for all of their generous donations.

 

I’m sure this years event is going to be one to remember!

Even though fall has only just begun we are already looking towards 2013 and the continual growth of the HCAC. Recently our president Tacha Reed met with Susan Jeffries and Meghan Hallet from the Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage to discuss future plans for the HCAC and the other arts councils and associations across the province. They are very interested in providing as much support as possible to help us in taking that next step towards becoming an even stronger support system that truly represents the creative community here in Hants County. Over the next few months they plan to develop a series of workshops aimed towards our particular needs so that over time we will be able to see all of our dreams for the HCAC come through to fruition.

For the HCAC our year started with the publication of our most recent Arts Digest and it will end with the production of the next edition! We are now actively looking for support from members and advertisers alike to help make this a reality. With such a large distribution our arts digest is a very affordable form of advertising that boldly states your dedication to strengthening our local arts community. Your ongoing support continually propels us forward, and for that we are thankful!

We look forward to seeing you all this Friday evening as we celebrate our fellow artists.

Save the date!

Greeting fellow artists and members of the HCAC!

There are many wonderful art related events happening over the next few months and we wanted to make sure that you were all aware.


First on our list is the Avondale Art Fair held on June 16th in Newport Landing. As you all know the HCAC will have a booth at this event and will be displaying a limited amount of work from our members.


If any one would like to have their business cards or any other promotional material on display during the event, then please drop off said material by Friday June 15th to Tacha Reed at Flying Cloud Boutique, 6075 Highway #1 in Ellershouse.



For more info on the Avondale Art Fair please visit: www.avondaleartfair.com








The Method in Selma

The next item of interest on our list is a Fine Art and Craft Workshop led by the department of Communities, Culture and Heritage, scheduled for June 28. The location is ‘The Method’ which is a repurposed church that is now offered to the community as a space to host and hold events. The address is: 8096 Hwy 215, Selma Nova Scotia.





Overall the workshop will present on program development and resources and product trends and areas of market development for producers in the region.

Is has been suggested for participants to bring samples of their work, portfolios, packaging, promotional materials, price lists, etc. for a table top trade show. That way, during the break, and lunch, presenters can take a look and give suggestions and specific answers to questions.

There will be 5 presenters:

Bernard Burton
Executive Director, Craft Alliance
President, Nova Scotia Designer Crafts Council

Susan Hanrahan
Executive Director, Nova Scotia Designer Crafts Council

Peter Kirby
NS Communities, Culture, & Heritage

Karen Williams
NS Communities, Culture and Heritage

Jennifer Dunbar
Nova Scotia Business Inc

There will be refreshments and lunch provided. The registration fee for this workshop is $15 which can be paid during registration in the morning.

If you have any other questions please don’t hesitate to contact  Katherine Wadden at the Hants RDA: kwadden@hantscounty.com

Anyone interested in carpooling can contact Tacha at tacha.reed@gmail.com





The next item on our list is a workshop and demonstration by Andrea Warren of Golden Paints being held July 14th at Flying Cloud Boutique from 12-2pm.

Andrea Warren is a painter and mixed media artist based out of Ottawa, Ontario, and is a Working Artist for Golden Artist Colors, a professional quality acrylic paint company based out of New Berlin, New York.    She has shown her work in BC's lower mainland and the nation's capital, and has given lectures and hands-on workshops on acrylic materials and technique for university and college art programs and art associations across Central and Eastern Canada. She is also an instructor with Artswell, an Ottawa-based charity which provides community therapeutic art programs. Andrea studied visual art and philosophy at Trinity Western University in Langley, British Columbia, and trained with Golden Artist Colors Greenville, South Carolina and upstate New York.  Andrea lives in Ottawa with her husband Andy, a fellow painter, and their chubby kitty Howard.  



Calooh Callay
by Andrea Warren

The Golden lecture demo is a free, information-packed two hour presentation that gives an overview of Golden products and acrylics in general - we  will be looking at the different kinds of paint, pigments, gels and mediums, pastes, varnishing, the new OPEN acrylics and Digital Mixed Media line, etc.  

Andrea will hand around wet and dry samples, and each attendee goes home with a product literature pack and a little goodie bag of samples. 

A sandwich lunch will be provided by the HCAC. Please contact Tacha ahead of time to reserve a space tacha.reed@gmail.com








We hope to see you all out enjoying all of these wonderful events this summer!

Until then, happy creating!







Local Artistic Opportunities on the Rise

Just in case you missed this article in the last issue of What's Going On? here it is again!

Local Artistic Opportunities on the Rise
BROOKLYN BAKERY TO Host 6-Week ART Show

by Heather Desveaux


It almost goes without saying that artists thrive on opportunities to create, so it is not surprising to learn they also encourage new ways to promote what they produce.  Art shows increase opportunities for artists to sell works but also motivate them to create more, according to the President of the Hants County Arts Council, Tacha Reed. "Regular shows give me access to other artists, who in turn provide me with inspiration and a sense of belonging. Both are essential ingredients to my creative process," she says.


Reed credits the annual Great Little Art Show, organized by artist Andrew Fisher, hosted by the Avon River Heritage Society and now in its 14th year, for providing a drawing board for the Arts Council to organize its own annual group show, Festival of Art, now held in October. Reed says the frequency of art shows is very important to artists in rural areas such as Hants County.  "In the city it is so easy to go out and make contact with other artists, and living here we are naturally limited to a handful of the art-related functions so the more of these functions we are able to participate in, the better." She adds, "I personally would love to have a hand in creating a constant space for artists to be able to come together to exchange ideas and create."


Reed isn't the only one. In recent memory,  the Utata Gallery and Inspire Art School, both artist-run facilities in Windsor, have unfortunately had to close their doors. It's left local artists feeling a little frustrated, but more determined to have a permanent home.  After Utata closed, HCAC members tried to find places that would "fit",  like the upper level of the Avon Spirit Museum during its summer season, the Fort Edward Gallery, and HCAC member Jaki Durocher's Inspire Art School, where the group held its meetings until it recently closed.


Enter Brooklyn business owner Joan McKenzie. McKenzie, a dairy farmer turned real estate contractor who sought to have a building for community-use when she was planning her bakery business.  Located in the former Brooklyn Home Hardware, the turn of the twentieth-century building she purchased features a unique space that needed to be used for something equally appropriate.



McKenzie aptly named her business the Bread Gallery.  "I've dabbled in artsy things, but I mostly come from a family of art collectors and admirers," says
McKenzie. "So I thought it would be neat to mix the two together and it seems to be working out so far," she said. 


McKenzie intended to start hosting art shows when she opened the bakery last May, but opted to not bite off more than she could chew. The Bread Gallery hosted its first small show in December with two local artists. A larger HCAC show featuring twelve members' works will open on March 9 and run until the last week of April. This way, participating artists can also be in the Great Little Art Show at the ARHS Museum in Newport Landing: a traditional, key fundraiser for the museum being held April 27-29.


Reed says the partnership with the Bread Gallery makes sense because
artists are also entrepreneurs. "Thanks to other local entrepreneurs, like Joan
opening the gallery, Kelly Mitchelmore hosting fundraising events like Paint Windsor, and Kathy Monroe planning the Avondale Art Fair, Hants County
artists now have several opportunities to show and sell their work locally," she says. "Over the last year the HCAC has received a great deal of support from the local community and many other arts and culture-based business have stepped forward to join as members."  Last year the group changed the venue for the Festival of Art to the historic Vaughan Shand Centre, another recently renovated historic building intending to promote its own unique blend of personal and community awareness.


With her 1950s Airstream housing her mobile art boutique currently
located in Ellershouse, Reed has her own plans to renovate her garage to an open studio where she will be joined by folk artist Jim Tracey when she re-opens in the spring.  "I can't take the Airstream everywhere so it would be nice if we didn't always have to travel such long distances to share our work with the public."  - §

Participating artists at The Bread Gallery are:

HCAC Group Show opening March 9th at The Bread Gallery

June Brown
Carlos DaRosa
Dora Davis
Terri Greencorn
Andrea Hardy
Gerald Jank
Carol Morrison
Sharon Olgilvie
Tacha Reed
Sue Robinson
Pauline Sullivan
Jim Tracey

Winter 2012 Newsletter

The past year witnessed significant changes for the Hants County Arts Council, and with change brings more opportunities to be both creative and innovative!

In April we saw a large turnover in our board of directors. Long-standing President Sandra MacDonald stepped down to spend more time with her family and to devote herself to her new role as manager of the Winding River Art Gallery in Stewiacke.



David Howells, Kristie Sheehy, Al Bergin with Stewart
Creaser and Lorraine Vasslo from Avondale Sky Winery.

Vice President David Howells, and past Festival of Art Organizer Kristie Sheehy, stepped down to organize their show Three Faces of Realism along with painter Al Bergin.

This show ran throughout October at the Public Archives in Halifax and was a destination during Nocturne.

Jaki Durocher also stepped down from the board to devote more time to her work. In April, she and Dawn Josey held a show at the Public Archives in Halifax called HERSTORY; a tribute to the influential women in their lives.



Carlos Da Rosa, Jaki Durocher and Dora Davis

Joining the board as our new president was Tacha Reed. Since moving to the area Tacha has opened Flying Cloud Boutique; a mobile shop featuring the works of nearly 30 Nova Scotian artists and artisans.



Several members of the HCAC including Dora Davis, Carlos Da Rosa and Jaki Durocher joined Tacha and musician Christina Martin to celebrate the shop’s grand opening in July by creating a mural of Blomidon. 

We also welcomed a few new faces to the board this past spring, names I’m sure you will recognize from their work being featured at the Festival of Art in previous years – painters June Brown, Liz Robinson and Sharon Ogilvie.

Andrew Harvie, our web master and membership coordinator, took on the role of Vice President and began our monthly Pub Night / Lecture Series held at the Flying Officer’s Mess at the Spitfire Pub. Open to members and guests of the HCAC, this series has featured informative sessions with artists and members of the creative community including Twila Robar-DeCoste, Evan Maxwell, Ron Hayes, Carol Morrison, artisan Pamela Kinsman of Signature Glass, and Laurie Daulton, manager of the Acadia University Art Gallery. Andrew is currently putting together the roster for the autumn of 2012 (winter and spring are booked!), so if you have a story or technique to share, or if you would know of anyone who would be a good speaker, then please feel free to contact him.

Windsor’s art community thrived in 2011 combining craft and charity through various local events. The Hants Community Hospital Auxiliary Society (HCHAS) hosted their 5th annual gala at the Cocoa Pesto featuring many of our HCAC members. Once again it was a huge success promoting art while raising funds for the Hospital!

Last September HCAC member and owner of Phoenix Hollow, Kelly Mitchelmore, hosted the 3rd annual Paint Windsor. Featuring local visual and performing artists, Paint Windsor has evolved into a celebration of trade and community, involving everyone from iron welders and painters to musicians and cake decorators all creating works on site throughout Windsor! This years 4th Annual Paint Windsor promises to be even better – held once again at Phoenix Hollow on September 9th 2012. 

This past year we found that we had outgrown the canoe club as a venue for the Festival of Art, so in October we held our 5th annual event at the newly renovated Vaughan Shand Centre. The event was a great success and we are already planning for the 6th annual event which will coincide with this year’s Pumpkin Festival, October 12th -14th 2012.

In the meanwhile we have also had the great fortune of being invited to host a group show at The Bread Gallery in Brooklyn this March. Any members interested in participating please contact Tacha at tacha.reed@gmail.com before February 15th for more information and to book a space.

Over the next year we plan to continue growing the council, collaborating with local groups and providing even more art-related events, workshops, information and opportunities to you, our members. To that help achieve that goal, we would like to add 5 to 7 new members to the board of directors this year. We are looking for a variety of skill-sets, so that we can expand what we do as a society. Opportunities include: art director, director of marketing, public relations, fund developer, web designer, sales and workshop coordinator. We are looking for team players who are willing to devote an hour or so a week to growing the HCAC so that we can better serve our membership.

On January 19th the second edition of our Arts Digest was delivered to 17 000 homes in Hants County. Before we can distribute the remaining 2000 copies to local business, galleries, boutiques, tourist bureaus and the airport the digests must be folded and packaged.

On February 18th Liz Robinson will be hosting a get together at her home in Garlands Crossing so that we can meet as a group and package the digests while also brainstorming on where we would like to take the HCAC over the next few years. Members are encouraged to bring a list of ideas along with a snack to share while we sit down and plan for our future. The gathering commences at 1pm at 150 Underwood Road, all members and potential members are welcome!

2012 really does present a world of opportunities for the HCAC and we hope that you will all join us on this wonderful ride as we grow!

Over the last few years the HCAC has taken that first giant leap into the 21st century by joining the world of Social Networking and beginning our blog to promote our artists and the events that we host. Our blog has become the home for our seasonal newsletters and we would love to see our members contributing content. Whether that is coverage of local events, promotion for upcoming shows, art reviews – anything art-related is welcome! You can also keep up to date by following us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hantscountyartscouncil or on Twitter @hantscountyarts

Don't forget that our website also has room to display YOUR events. All you need to do is let us know the details and we'll be happy to do what we can to help publicize your arts-related events.

A Look Back to the 5th Annual Festival of Art!

In the days between September 30th and October 2nd 2011, members of the Hants County Arts Council transformed the the vacant second floor of the Vaughan Shand Centre in Windsor, Nova Scotia into a beautiful and inviting art gallery.  

This year's collection featured a wide variety of paintings, sculpture and fibre pieces by 20 local artists. 

Opening night drew in over 100 people for a lively evening of art appreciation. 

A motivational speech by fellow artist and entrepreneur Kelly Mitchelmore and the awarding of the first ever HCAC's Hall of Fame to artist and volunteer extraordinaire David Howells all added to the evening's excitement. 


We are proud to announce that sales greatly increased from past years,with HCAC newcomer folk artist Jim Tracey kicking things off with the evenings first sale, a wood carving called Big Bird!

Overall the event was a success! The rain may have been working against us Saturday and Sunday, but many folks still manged to brave the elements and take in the show at their leisure. 




Those who made it out for the weekend portion were able to enjoy the live artist demonstration's provided by Flying Cloud Boutique's Tacha Reed and Jaki Durocher.

Now that we have all recovered from this year's Festival of Art the Hants County Arts Council's Board of Directors would like to extend a big thank you to everyone who came out to join us in this annual celebration of our local artistic talent.

Thank you to all of our sponsors who helped make the weekend just a little bit more special! A huge thank you to Yum Bakery for all the tasty treats, especially the carrot cake.

Thanks to Just Us! coffee roasters for providing the hot beverages, Mason's for the tangy apple cider, Blossom Shop for the lovely flower arrangements, Flying Cloud Boutique for designing and donating all the posters and brochures and thanks to the Grapevine, The Hants Journal and What's Going On! for helping to spread the word.

A thank you should also go out to Kelly Mitchelmore for her moving speech on the importance of self promotion; I hope everyone was left with the inspiration to become their own biggest fan!

Last, but not least, a big thank you to our membership, volunteers and the local community for coming together to help make this annual event something special. We appreciate your ongoing support and look forward to seeing you all at our next event!


In the meanwhile, here is a trip down memory lane :)

Photographs courtesy of John Webb and Tacha Reed

Festival of Art: Our Creative Community

Pure chance brought the Hants County Arts Council to the Vaughn Shand Centre as a venue to host this year’s Festival of Art. This historically rich building, known better as the former Hawboldt’s, is being rejuvenated thanks to the inspiration and determination of one Matthias Jaepel.

In the Spring, while researching sites to open her own business, current President of the HCAC Tacha Reed met with the Vaughn Shand Centre’s April Griffin and got a firsthand peek at the plans for their transformation of the space into a wellness centre. After exploring the building and learning of Dr Jaepel’s great passion for community, the arts, architecture, fitness and health, April and Tacha were both certain that this setting was perfectly suited for the HCAC’s next Festival of Art!

The Council’s increase in interest over the last year meant we were going to need much more room for this year’s event, and we’ve certainly found it with the open and welcoming space that is the Vaughn Shand Centre. We are delighted to be working along with April and Matthias who believe that by including all aspects of health, healing, community and culture we all will become happier, healthier individuals.

Being new to the community herself Tacha inquired about the naming of the soon to be opening community centre, which it seems has quite the history:

Dr Matthias Jaepel

In the midst of "trying on" names for the Centre we felt a strong desire to pay homage to the local Shand family, knowing that Mr. Andrew P. Shand was part owner of the original Windsor Furniture Factory (Vaughn Shand Centre, 69 Cedar St).  As we started to research a bit deeper we found more than one of the family members contributed to the community in ways that support our Vision. In honour of the feminine side of the family (Henri Vaughn Shand) we decided to join the two names to create "Vaughn Shand Centre”.

Andrew Shand was known as being an "idea man". His son Clifford Shand was a local businessman and an early bicycle enthusiast during the bicycle craze of the 1890's. It is said that Clifford practiced riding in the empty upper floor of the building. 

Henri Vaughn Shand, wife of Clifford studied Art at the Boston Conservatory and later at the Ladies Seminary in Wolfville (Acadia University).  She painted at a Studio at her former Vaughn home.   Pieces of her work can be viewed at the Shand House Museum, Windsor.

Gwendolyn Vaughn Shand, daughter of Clifford and Henri achieved degrees from Acadia University, McGill University and later on studied Anthropology at the London School of Economics in England.  She worked for various welfare and charitable organizations and was a pioneer in the establishment of the Maritime School of Social Work and Charity as well as a published author.  The ladies echo our concern and commitment to community and the arts. 

Commitment to community and paying homage to the past seems to be a running theme with this year’s event, something that is echoed again with the welcoming aboard of local winery Avondale Sky, who too has its own story of transformation and rejuvenation.

By adopting a farm on the Avon Peninsula , the owners of Avondale Sky have been able to follow their hearts and create their own dream job as producers of fabulous wine:

The vineyard is one of the oldest in the province but our winery is among the newest. The evolution from vineyard to winery has been a journey. Rather than construct a new winery, the decision was made to salvage an old barn which was looking forlorn on a dike along the St. Croix River ten kilometers from the vineyard. While it was being dismantled to be transported to its new home, offers to rescue other barns began to trickle in. Then churches. Then the trickle picked up momentum.

Of the buildings we had an opportunity to purchase, St. Matthews Church from Walton, was the one for us. The simple, elegant structure exuded a calm strength. We couldn’t stand to know that if we couldn’t give it a new home, it would be destroyed. Moving it wouldn’t be easy, but we were confident it would be worth the effort.

LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE ENTRERPRENEUR!

The folks at Avondale Sky and Matthias won’t be our only ambitious entrepreneurs on hand for opening night, another soul always finding creative ways to follow her dreams is our guest speaker for the evening Kelly Mitchelmore.

Successful artists are the ultimate entrepreneurs, and Kelly certainly lives her life by example, making use of her many talents, combining them for a very unique and fulfilling lifestyle.  

Kelly’s mantra is “You paint because it feels good, so swing easy kid” a simple statement passed on by her grandmother and teacher Jean Mosher. From a life in the Canadian Navy to running a B&B Kelly has toured the world, celebrated diversity, painting all along the way:

Kelly Mitchelmore

I moved to Windsor in the Fall of 2007 and hit the ground running; renovating the house to open as the Phoenix Hollow B&B and then becoming an active part of the arts community. I made over 20 easels and canvassed supporters and sponsors to host the first annual Paint Windsor in 2009. This show created a venue for artists to show their works, paint around the community and also help out the Hants Community Hospital Auxiliary Society as part of the proceeds from the sales went to that organization. I am very interested in the arts and cultural vitality in Windsor and will continue to promote it in any way I can.

I have often been asked about my style since it changes so much between works. Being self taught, I am still experimenting and I simply paint for the moment and what feels good.

Speaking of feeling good, Yum Bakery has ensured that we will be feeling good opening night thanks to a selection of tasty treats from their newly renovated bakery, housed just across the street from the Vaughn Shand Centre. 

Another inspirational local entrepreneurial story, the bakery which produces a variety of baked products including breads, bagels, muffins, cookies, squares, granolas and nut butters, has been successfully operating since 1975: 

For 36 years Yum Foods Limited has been making local food with local ingredients; supporting local producers is just something we do naturally. Over the years Yum Foods has shown growth. We started in a small space on Front Street in Wolfville and only hoped that all these years later we would still be growing, baking and providing employment for Valley families.

 



Bakery owner Dave Browning believes that being a local producer means being loyal to the agri producers in Nova Scotia. He continues to demonstrate that buying local is not only a viable business decision, but a way to say thank you to the community at large for their long standing support.

In keeping with Yum Bakery’s dedication to the support of agri based business in Nova Scotia, the Yum Foods’ retail store carries only Nova Scotia produced items which includes art by Members of the Hants County Arts Council.

Supporting the local community is one of the driving forces behind the Hants County Arts Council and we are happy to welcome along Flying Cloud Boutique as one of our Event sponsors. Showcasing the works of nearly 30 Nova Scotian artists and artisans in her renovated antique airstream camper turned shop on wheels, artist, business owner and President of the HCAC Tacha Reed will be revealing her mini “cloud” kiosk during the weekend portion of the festival.

Flying Cloud carries a variety of local handmade jewellery and accessories, house wares, clothing, toys, bath products, gardening and party decorations, art prints and more! Tacha along with fellow Flying Cloud Artist and HCAC member Jaki Durocher will be on hand Saturday and Sunday providing demonstrations on techniques such as needle felting and creating “cut-up” portraits:

I believe that as artists we should always be growing, exploring and sharing; whether that is trying out new techniques, materials or looking for alternate sources of inspiration; we are all creative beings and we should do our best to support each other. I find it hard to not promote all the wonderful talent that Hants County and Nova Scotia has to offer, if I could I’d announce it from the roof tops so that the whole world can know we are here!




With over 40 artists and artisans represented, this year’s Festival of art is shaping up to be an excellent display of our local arts and culture; we hope that you all can find a moment over the 3 day event to make your way over to the Vaughn Shand Centre and take in a little of what our local creative community has to offer!