Central Iowa Art Association News
Volume 1, Issue 5 May 2008
Mother’s Day Art Trek
The first ArtTrek of 2008 was a lot of fun. We made awesome bugs and critters from plain old river rocks. Some rocks were obviously meant to be lady bugs, others were dogs, cats or turtles.
May’s craft will be a gift for Mother’s Day. It would be really nice if the Dads could bring the kids for this one and surprise Mom.
ArtTrek is for children from 5 to 12 and is a real CIAA membership for only $15/year – yes, I’m sorry, we had to raise the price before August. Materials get old or dry out and need replacing; more importantly, we want to have enough scholarship money for those who cannot afford even such a modest annual fee. Each child gets a free packet of drawing supplies, a membership certificate, 6 free workshops (the August workshop is a free open session), a monthly newsletter with projects, and a 10% discount on summer Art Camp. Kids can bring a friend to a workshop for only $5, just call ahead so we have enough supplies on hand. If a younger sibling is present and wants to try the craft, too, we’ll let them do so for a smaller fee of $2.50 if the parent is willing to guide their activity. After all, the program is about kids doing art!
We always meet on 1st Mondays, usually two projects are done, and snack is included. Children must be accompanied by a responsible adult. We have May, June, August, October, November, and December to go yet. Shikah Chugh is the ArtTrek Director. Call 753-9013 to register to attend or ask questions.
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Kiln Donated… Space becomes an Issue
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Garage Sale & Luncheon Results
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Color Me Happy & Pre-Empted
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Drawing & Acrylic Classes Offered
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Helen Degner Featured Artist at May 3rd “Tea”
Helen Degner, a local artist with incredible talent in a number of mediums is May’s featured artist at the Central Iowa Art Association’s monthly exhibit in the Fisher Community Center Auditorium. The public is welcome to attend the reception – bring in all your friends --which will be held from 2:00 until 4:00 pm, Sunday, May 4th. Refreshments can be enjoyed while people meet the artist and enjoy her work. I’ve included a photo of one of her hangings and I wish we could afford to do this in color. Well, you’ll just have to come see it!
A longtime resident of the Green Mountain area just northeast of Marshalltown, Helen is well known for her art. She started painting when her brother, Ralph, gave her a set of oil paints for her 13th birthday. She has worked with watercolor, pastel, and ink. I can remember going to the bank with my mother when I was young and seeing Helen’s work hanging there. I was so impressed! I knew a real artist! In addition, for the last 18 years she has been doing quilts and fabric wall hangings. Amazing for their detail and delightful for their color and frequent whimsy, Helen’s work has to be seen in person to be appreciated properly. Examining the work close up, the textures, the thread detail, and the painterly colors can be clearly seen. When you see Helen’s work, you like it, when you look more closely, you love it.
Helen has shown at the Central Iowa Art Fair and won three purchase awards (most sales awards). At the World Pork Expo “Pigcaso,” she has won a Second Best of Show and three Blue Ribbons for textiles. At the Iowa State Fair, Helen has won a Blue, a Red, and two Honorable Mentions fortextiles. She was also the winner of the Conservation Milestones Art Contest in 1999.
St Mary’s School
Donates Kiln - Step One!
Pottery is one thing I have wanted to restore to the CIAA ever since I came aboard. We’re known for ceramics; we have an amazing ceramics study collection – even I know that! I love pottery and other ceramics but I barely know a thing about it, I’m sorry to say. Those of you who know are going to have to teach me.
I had been casting about for a way to replace our kilns and potter’s wheels but money is always a factor and it just wasn’t available for another program given that we have to start again from scratch. The Friday before the garage sale, April 25th, I got a call from the office at Saint Mary’s asking if I knew of someone who might want their kiln. I sure did!
Alas, every time Vern Pries (in charge of studio maintenance) thinks he has got the back room well organized I mess it up again. No sooner had Vern gotten all the bargain canvas arranged and accessible, than I accepted a LOT of frames donated by Sandy Schlessinger’s daughter. We could still get in the room, but the canvas was harder to reach. Now I’ve acquired a kiln which has to go into the back room where the wiring and exhaust are located. You can get into the room, but barely. That’s okay. Vern and I have a plan…
Bookshelves Donated
by Vernon Pries
The Student Supply Store is doing well. Jeanne Schoborg, Supply Store Manager tells me sales have gone up about 25% since last month. What does that have to do with bookshelves? We know we have to establish and maintain good sales so the CIAA can have a little steady income in addition to grants and donations. In order to make room in the store, we need to move the library books. To move the library books, we needed shelving.
I located some inexpensive garage-type shelving we could use but Vern came forward with a donation of nice shelving which he is in the process of assembling. We’ll put the shelving on the west wall of the studio and stock it with the library books, art related videos, CDs and DVDs. (Did I mention Shelli Finch donated a small television? Hooray!) Jeanne will then be able to acquire more stock and we can advertise our available merchandise. Of course now Vern has to devise a way to get the canvas out of what has become the “kiln” room and into the supply store. We’ll think about the wonderful cache of frames later. To paraphrase Scarlett O’Hara, “I’ll think about it tomorrow.”
Good
Sale $ News
I am happy to say that the garage sale was a success. Thanks to the members who donated their extra or unneeded items. Thanks also to those who were able to help set up the tables, enticingly display the goods, and generally keep order (thanks, Keith), to cover the studio while I worked on the sale (thanks, Ron), price the items (thanks, Afton, for those cookies, too), and handle the money (thanks Betty H., and Jeanne). The results aren’t final, but I we cleared $350 and may have made nearer to $400. To give you an idea how much that means to us, we pay $450 in studio rent these days. Every time we can cover the rent the rest can go to programs, scholarships, and operational expenses. So all of you go right and buy NEW stuff so next year you can donate the old stuff to us all over again! Think ahead!
Brown 
Bag Lunch!
Saturday, May 17, 2008 in the CIAA Studio at 12 noon there will be “Bring Your Own Brown Bag Lunch.” ( I order carryout!) The CIAA will provide dessert – and there will be sugar-free dessert, too. No charge! We had a good time talking, eating and solving the problems of the world at large.
“Color Me Happy!”NEW Class for Children Ages 3 to 5
Shikha Chugh, who directs and teaches ArtTrek for children ages 5 to12 has initiated a new program for the younger set. Color Me Happy will help to prepare children in the 3 to 5 age bracket for preschool or kindergarten. It’s all about having fun while learning the basics of art such as how to handle a crayon and which color is blue.
Studies have shown that children who are provided a rich environment for early exploration do better in an educational setting. What can be more fun than exploring the way paint colors mingle and being encouraged to tear paper and play with glue sticks? What early experiences got YOU involved in art?
The new program begins May 7, 2008 and will meet the first 4Wednesdays of every month. (We have to say that, sometimes a fifth Wednesday comes along.) Classes will meet from 5:30 – 6:30 pm. A parent or guardian must attend with the child. There will a snack. The cost is $15 per child for 4 Wednesdays in a row. This limited time commitment enables parents re-enroll for the next 4 weeks if they wish—different projects, no repeats – or skip 4 weeks if other commitments interfere. Scholarships are available for children to attend. Every time a parent pays their $15 tuition they are helping to sponsor another child’s participation.
Pre-Empted!
Last month I mentioned that the CIAA would be getting a chance to be on KFJB’s Central Iowa Today every 4th Tuesday at 12:30 pm. Last week I got pre-empted. They had a fellow on talking about road conditions. I really couldn’t complain. I mean, I nearly lost my mini-van in some potholes this last winter. I had two blowouts in one night! I drive some of the IVH students back to their residences after open studio and they can attest to the slalom driving we had to do on some streets. The shocks on my van are shot. So, yes, I think they had a good reason to pre-empt me.
Mike Lindell did give me a quick interview about our garage sale, though. That was nice. And he reminded me to go over to HyVee the Friday before our Saturday sale to get on the Man on the Street Program with Kyle Martin.
“If I hadn't started painting, I would have raised chickens.”
Grandma Moses
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Thanks to all who have chosen to remember
Bob Sunday
with a gift to the CIAA.
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Offering Basic Drawing
& Acrylic Painting Class
Two new classes for adults and young people 13 and up are being offered starting in May.
Jeanne Schoborg will be teaching Basic Drawing which means she will be covering the essentials that will set you in the right direction for any other drawing or painting you may do. The course was set to start May 1st but we have some student conflicts which Jeanne has adapted to and the first class will now be May 15th from 2:30 to 4:30 pm. The cost of this class is $105 for non-members; 10% member discount. There will be 8 classes. Teaching drawing is a little different from teaching oil painting. It will be difficult to make up a missed class because each the concepts build on each other. Please call the studio if you are interested.
Peggy Funke will be offering Acrylic Painting from 3-5 pm on Wednesdays. It is great to have her teaching again! If you are interested in trying your hand at acrylics, please call the studio to register.
CIAA Contact Information
Phone: 641-753-9013
Calendar of Events
(Fisher Community Center unless otherwise stated.)
May 4th, 2-4 pm
May 5th, 5:30 pm
May 6th, 5:30
May 7th, 5:30-6:30 pm
- Color Me Happy
- Beaux-Arts Meeting 5 pm (office)
May 17th, 12-1 pm
- Membership Lunch & Dessert
Open Studio Hours:
Mondays 1:30 – 4:30 pm
Thursdays 5:30- 7:30 pm (Let me know you’re coming)
Fridays 1:30 – 4:30 pm
Saturdays 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Classes
Tuesdays: Oil Painting with Jeanne,
Session one: 2:30-4:30 Session two: 5:30-7:30
Wednesdays: Basics of Painting with Jeanne, 2:30-4:30 pm
Acrylic Painting with Peggy 3-5 pm
Color Me Happy with Shikha 5:30-6:30 pm
Thursdays: Basic Drawing with Jeanne 2:30-4:30 pm