San Pedro River Arts Council

A Big “Thank You”

2012-01-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

Yes, a big thank you to the artists who entered the March Celebrate the Arts! exhibition. We have space for more so check the clock below for how much time you have before the deadline.

Our exhibitors thus far are:

David Altamirano, Douglas, AZ, oil
Kat Mickelson, Benson, AZ, acrylic
Shryl Miles, St. David, AZ, watercolor
Fred Ruth, Tucson, AZ, oil
Bill Smith, Cochise, AZ, pen & ink
Rosemary Tyrrell, Benson, AZ, collage

Don’t forget our artist reception and awards ceremony on Saturday, March 3 at Cochise College - Benson Center from 6:00 to 7:00 PM. Immediately following the reception Cochise College will feature noted Cochise County author J. A. Jance. See SPRArts.org home page for details.

ARTISTS! Time Is Running Out

2012-01-19T20:38:00.003-07:00

If you plan to enter the Art Council’s Celebrate the Arts! 2012 two- dimensional exhibition, the timer to the right shows you how much time you have remaining to enter.
Go to our site http://sprarts.org/celebrate-the-arts-2012/ for links to exhibition rules and entry form.

Members Meeting

2012-01-16T20:11:00.000-07:00

The SPRArts Council Board of Directors will host a meeting for all members on April 5 from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM at Cochise College - Benson Center. We have a lot to discuss regarding the future direction of the Council and your input is critical. Please plan to attend. More details will be provided here as they become available.

Regards,
Don Grafues, President

Call to Artists

2012-01-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

DEADLINE FOR REGISTRATION FEBRUARY 1, 2012

This is a reminder that the San Pedro River Arts Council is accepting artist entries into the 2012 “Celebrate the Arts!” two-dimensional visual arts show. If you are an artist, or know an artist, who may want to exhibit, there are only a few days remaining for registration.

The show will be hung at Cochise College – Benson center and will be open to the public March 1 through March 29. This is a juried show with cash awards.

The public is invited to an award presentation and artist reception March 3, 6:00 to 7:00 pm. There is no charge for the reception and refreshments will be served. Additional information is available on our site at SPRArts.org, with map and contact information under the “Events Calendar” menu tab.

Exhibition information and rules for artists are on our web site at SPRArts.org/celebrate-the-arts-2012/exhibition-rules/.

Exhibition application (entry form) may be found at SPRArts.org/celebrate-the-arts-2012/celebrate-the-arts-2012-exhibition-application.

ACA Grant Received

2012-01-14T15:44:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to announce that once again SPRARTS has been awarded a $1,000 Organizational Development Grant from Arizona Commission on the Arts (ACA). ACA is funded by a public/private partnership and is tasked with supporting the arts in Arizona. SPRARTS will use this money to foster the growth and development of art in the community and to support art education in our public schools.

Bill Smith
Treasurer

Council President Announces Resignation

2012-01-13T19:16:00.002-07:00

President Don Grafues announced his resignation to the Board of Directors at their regular meeting January 10. His resignation becomes effective June 30, 2012. This gives the Council nearly six-months to recruit a new President. If anyone is interested in joining a dynamic organization and Board of Directors, please contact us by email giving us some information about yourself and why you are interested.

Don will remain an active volunteer in the Council maintaining the member database and updating the website.

Small Wonders at Tucson Drawing Studio

2011-11-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

	Small Wonders Show at the Tucson Drawing Studio, 33 S. 6th Ave off E. Congress St. Opening reception Nov. 19^th, 6:00 to 9:00 pm. More info at Tucson Drawing Studio. “Blue Pig” by Arts Council Board Member Bernie Fierro, oil pastel, 8" X 12".

Call to Artists

2011-11-14T13:01:00.002-07:00

Planning for Celebrate the Arts! 2012 is underway (see our Home Page for additional information). Visual artists who wish to enter the exhibition, please click here for exhibition rules and entry application.

Shryl Miles Rejoins Board

2011-11-14T12:51:00.000-07:00

After taking time off, Shryl Miles rejoined the San Pedro River Arts Council's Board. We are delighted to have Shryl's energy and creativity back.

If you wish to support the Arts Council with your energy and creativity, call or email Don Grafues, (520) 720-9732.

Benson City Hall Wall-Space Gallery

2011-10-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

Are you a member artist wishing to exhibit? The City Council Chambers is an ideal venue that has good public exposure. Exhibits are up for two months. This is a popular venue with exhibitors booked through August 31, 2012. If you are interested is reserving time, please contact Shryl Miles at (520) 586-0884. Shryl is now taking reservations for September 3, 2012 through January 3, 2014.

Member Visual Artist Release of Contact Information

2011-10-05T06:21:00.000-07:00

Member visual artists: gain exposure and exhibit your work in the Wall-Space galleries.

We have three Wall-Space Galleries, all in Benson: City Hall Council Chambers, Turquoise Hills Golf Club and Arizona Skyline Assisted Living Home. Exhibiting in a Wall-Space Gallery gives an artist greater exposure to the public and more opportunities to sell. The business or organization benefits by having a changing decor which brings in more visitors.

John Hurbon at Skyline Assisted Living is an avid supporter of the arts and wants to continue offering his facilities for the exhibition of two-dimensional works. John volunteered to take over the search for artists and scheduling the change of exhibits. Furthermore, John agreed to promote an exhibiting artist with press releases and other promotional activities.

We wish to give John a list of our member visual artists so he has a contact list of potential exhibitors. He will then contact artists to schedule exhibits. We will not give out our member artist contact information without your permission. If you want John to contact you, please email me with the email address and telephone number you want John to use. You may opt out of this at any time by notifying me and your contact information will only be give to the curators of the Wall-Space Galleries.

This offer is for our member artists. If you are not a member but wish to exhibit in the Wall-Space galleries, joining is easy and inexpensive. $15 buys you a membership from July 1 through June 30 of the following year. Payment by credit card is available on our site http://SPRArts.org via the window labeled “Membership & Fees” or you may pay by check.

Shryl Miles volunteered to manage the Benson City Hall gallery. Shryl will contact you regarding your participation in the City Hall gallery. We will have news on Turquoise Hills shortly. Check our website for updates.

Regards
Don Grafues
President, San Pedro River Arts Council

Artist Project Grants

2011-09-16T05:47:00.000-07:00

Deadline: Thursday, September 22, 2011

The Arizona Commission on the Arts provides assistance to individual artists through annual Artist Project Grants (APG). Artists apply for project-related funding up to $5,500 for research and development leading to the creation of a work of art in any artistic discipline. Previous Artist Project Grants winners may apply for and receive the Artist Project Grants every ten years. The Distinguished Merit Award recognizes a particularly outstanding project with additional funding support in the amount of up to $2,500 to one Artist Project Grant recipient. Currently, the Arts Commission receives approximately 190 applications each year with funding available to grant approximately 5 awards.

The 2012 Artist Project Grant application is now open. Before beginning your application, please review the 2012 Artist Project Grant Application Guidelines at www.azarts.gov/grants/artists/.

Adriana Gallego
Director of Strategic Initiatives
Arizona Commission on the Arts
417 West Roosevelt Street | Phoenix, Arizona 85003-1326
602.771.6530 | 602.256.0282 fax

www.azarts.gov agallego@azarts.gov

Member Artist (Visual) Update

2011-09-14T09:55:00.004-07:00

We have a few member artists who have not provided information for their personal page. A personal page on this site is one of the benefits of membership. It gives you greater exposure to the art loving public.

Here is a list of visual artists who are members of the Arts Council. Members with a name in bold do not have a personal page. Please Contact Me to have a page generated.

*Elena Bennett*	Michael Crane	Adele Crouch
Denise Eggman	Bernard Fierro	*Roger Grohe*
Bin Hu	Jan Hothoefer	*Kerry Marie Johnston*
James Kidd	Serena Melesh	Kat Mickelson
Shryl Miles	Brenda Péo	*Brian Prescott*
Judy Robison	Darlene Rodriguez	*Ray Sisneroz*
Bill Smith	*Harry Stacy*	Rosemary Tyrrell
*Daphene Wilkes*

If you are a visual artist but not listed in the table above, you can join the Arts Council for the 2011-2012 year. Joining is simple, just go to our website SPRArts.org and click on the PayPal “Donate” button. You do not need be a member of PayPal to use this service. If you prefer sending a check, instructions are included in the PayPal window.

Stacy Family Art Exhibit

2011-09-13T08:23:00.000-07:00

The San Pedro River Arts Council is proud to announce a new exhibit at the Benson City Hall Gallery featuring the works of Harry and Linda Stacy. The couple’s granddaughter Cameron will also have one of her works displayed.

The Stacys settled in the Benson area in 1967. Harry worked as an electrical engineer at Ft. Huachuca, but retired in 2000. He took art classes at Cochise Community College for about 3½ years with watercolor as his media of choice bur now works in acrylics. Harry is cultivating an Impressionistic expression in his art.

Linda Stacy’s background includes degrees in English and Anthropology/Archeology. She began painting bout 4 years ago and still enjoys taking classes. She employs a fairly realistic style to portray wildlife and landscapes, using acrylics. Linda’s mantra is “Keep it simple; keep it loose.”

An award-winning artist at the age of 9, Cameron, who lives in Nashville, TN, has had her work recognized in 2 competitions there. During a 3-week visit with her grandparents, they introduced her to acrylics, gouaches, palette knives and the concept of abstraction, among other things.

This exciting exhibit will be open from September through October. The City Hall Gallery, located at 120 W. 6^th Street, Benson, will be open during Council activities or by calling the City Clerk’s office at (520) 720-6331.

What’s A June Bug Got to Do With It?

2011-09-11T10:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was coming down the stairs to our clubhouse at our park and noticed that the stairs were littered with June Bugs. Most of them were dead, having died last evening in their race to the outdoor lights there. I don’t know what they do when they get there, but it seems that many of them don’t make it. One of them was flailing about on its back, trying to right itself. With a little nudge, the June Bug righted itself and considered what to do next. I went on my way.

I’ve been thinking about the San Pedro River Arts Council a lot since I made the difficult decision to leave it. The people on the Board, the friends I’ve made along the way, the Artists and their incredible talent, the City, the Schools and the Community are all parts of this space that I came into expecting support for the arts that I love. It has been a struggle and rewards have come sporadically.

My eyes, perhaps, were bigger than my stomach, as my mother used to say to me. I wanted it all, and in a short space of time. I gave myself 5 years to work on getting the arts off the ground here, as there seemed to be wide open opportunities. The 5 years are up and time waits for no man (or woman). I have needed to move closer to my family, so the decision was made.

The group still struggles, but we have made a start. We struggled with the very concept of volunteerism. Since we were not being paid, this job had to make its place in all of our hearts. Everything we did was done from “scratch.” I often said to our group that we have no precedent for anything that we did, so we made it up as we went along. I am very proud of what we have accomplished in the short period of time that the arts have been our focus. From beginnings with “Imagine Benson 20/20,” to the Benson Arts Commission, and now our own 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Changes will be difficult, with the loss of several Board members this year, including myself. Life gets in the way, but I am optimistic. Yes, we will have to cut back our activities; we can’t put on wonderful events without people and money. Focusing on what we CAN do is a better idea, and at the Gathering of Artists and Friends on October 15th, an outline of what’s to come will be put forth.

The June Bug just needs a little nudge.

Sylvia Burnside

Sylvia Announces Resignation as President

2011-09-05T14:48:00.005-07:00

On Saturday, September 3, Sylvia Burnside, President of the Arts Council sent the following email to our members and others on our mail list.

Dear artists, supporters, and friends,

As the song implies, "breaking up is hard to do." I have been working, with others, to establish this organization for a number of years now, but it is time for me to move on, and to leave you to step up and help out. My husband of 55 years, and I are moving shortly to Colorado to be closer to our family for the later years of our lives. I cannot lead you, but I will be a staunch follower, even from out of state.

I would encourage all of you to reach out, in your art, in your support, and in your friendship towards this fledgling organization. Those who remain on the Board would appreciate your help. There is much you can do, even if you can devote only a limited amount of time.

I have enjoyed meeting you all in person and in your work. Thanks for all you have given, and will give in the years to come.

Sylvia
President
San Pedro River Arts Council
P.O. Box 1358, Benson AZ
Tel: 520-586-4782
Email: sylvia@sprarts.org
www.sprarts.org

Tubac Call for Artists - Deadlines Approaching

2011-08-23T15:01:00.002-07:00

Tubac Center of the Arts (TCA) has a couple of exhibitions on the horizon with submission dates approaching.

September 6
42^nd Annual Members’ Juried Exhibition
All media welcome. TCA membership required. See link below for more info.
September 20 (extended)
Minatures Exhibition
A national juried exhibition open to TCA members and non-members. Jewelery not eligible. See link below for more info.

Additional information and instructions for submission may be found at http://tubacarts.org/for-artists/prospectuses.

HAA Call to Artists

2011-08-19T21:04:00.030-07:00

The following is a message from the Huachuca Art Association (HAA).

Handcrafted works of art, fine art show & sale

November 2 to December 31, 2011
At the Mall in Sierra Vista
2200 El Mercado Loop

This is a non-judged show open to HAA members for displaying of crafts including: illustrated books, jewelry, pottery, leather work, fabric weaving, sculpture and other 3-dimensional works, photography and paintings including bin items, etc. All work must be original creations by the artist. No copies from magazines, books, online images, or photographs (other than photographs taken by the artist unless submitting artist has written permission from the copyright owner). No work done from kits will be accepted. Fee is $40.00 for up to 20 pieces*, a limit of five framed paintings per artist. All sold items, in-cluding framed paintings, may be replaced during the show. A 20 percent commission will be retained by the Huachuca Art Association. Each artist or their replacement must docent the show, sign up on day of delivery. This is a two-month show; artist may need to sit two to three times during this period.

Presentation

All work must be presented in suitable condition for exhibiting: framed paintings must be wired for hanging, no saw tooth hangers, frames must be in clean, undamaged condition. The committee reserves the right to refuse any damaged items. If possible, please provide display for jewelry. All paintings framed and unframed must have artist name, address, phone number, title, medium and price on the back. Crafts should be identified by cards or tags with artist name, phone, item, price.

Delivery and Pickup

Deliver Monday, November 1, 8:30-10:30 am. Pick up all unsold works Saturday, December 31, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm

Entry

This completed entry form, along with a $40.00 check made out to HAA and a completed inventory sheet, must be received by October 15, 2011. Mail to Huachuca Art Association, P.O. Box 748, Sierra Vista, AZ 85615.

Important links, contact information, etc.:
Entry Form
Inventory Sheet

Exhibition Cancelled

2011-08-16T16:07:00.001-07:00

Photo provided by www.geekphilosopher.com

It is with regret that we announce the cancellation of our planned exhibition, “Remembering 9/11.” The work and effort of Ed Meza and Bill Smith to create works and bring them to Cochise College are appreciated. Both gentlemen submitted works for exhibit but there were too few to warrant a show.

A Gathering of Artists & Friends

2011-08-14T07:16:00.000-07:00

Planning for our 5^th annual A Gathering of Artists & Friends is well underway. This is the Arts Council’s season opening event. This year the Gathering will be held on October 15 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm on the patio of the City Grill at San Pedro Golf Course just off Ocotillo Road north of I-10.

As last year, we will have entertainment, hors d’oeuvres, silent auction and no host bar. There is no charge and the Gathering is open to the public.

This is an opportunity for artists and art lovers to meet, mingle and enjoy a social evening. The silent auction will feature works by some of our very talented local artists.

Remembering 9/11

2011-08-13T20:02:00.003-07:00

The “Remebering 9/11” show goes up on Wednesday, August 17. We are grateful to Ed Meza and Bill Smith for submitting work for this exhibition. Be sure to stop by Cochise College - Benson Center to see their work. Go to the event calendar for more information.

C'mon and Join us!

2011-07-08T11:27:00.006-07:00

It has come to my attention recently that we are thought of as a “closed” group. This is about as far from the truth as you can get. Our meetings are on the 2nd Tuesday of every month, and are open to anyone who is interested in the arts, whether to volunteer, or just to observe, or to meet our fascinating bunch. Please feel free to come on in and make yourself known. Teachers, students... anyone. If you're breathing we want you to feel welcome. We meet at Cochise College, Benson Center; the College has been a partner with us for some time now. Sharon Gilman is the director of the Benson Center and is on our Board. Although some of our meetings are all business, most of the time we make sure we have a proper balance of business and hilarity. We also have donuts, although you have to bring your own coffee. We take turns buying the donuts, and usually drop a buck in the jar for the next person to do that.

The past couple of years a lot of our time has been taken up with the business of setting up a viable 501(c)(3), but we do plan to have at least two events during the year. We're planning now for the “Gathering of Artists & Friends” in October of 2011, and the all-important Celebrate the Arts! 2012, in March of 2012. You can be a part of that, even if you are a part timer here in the Cochise County. We also have a building on 4th St. that's sitting idle right now. We've got pleas out to folks who can help to finance the re-do of that building, so we can have classes for kids and adults there, and a gallery.

There's lots going on, and you can be a part of it... honestly! Arts, crafts, music, poetry, plays, acting, painting, photography... whatever your level of skill or interest. Come see what's going on with this group! YOU ARE WELCOME!

More Updating of “Remembering 9/11” Show

2011-06-19T11:14:00.007-07:00

Since we know where the "Remembering 9/11" Show will be (Cochise College), we need to update some of the rules:

The usual rules apply for some of the show: visual work (2D) should be framed and ready to hang, with screw eyes and wire on the back (no brackets). Submit jpgs with information regarding the Artist, Title, Medium, Size, and, if the work is for sale, Sale Price, by August 1, 2011, to Sharon Gilman. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A MEMBER OF SPRAC to participate in this show. This is a non judgmental show of the expressions of a special time.
3D work must weigh 50 lbs. or less and be free standing. Artist may supply a pedestal if one is needed. Submit jpgs as above for 2D work.
Journals, writings and poetry should be typewritten or in handwriting on one side of 8 1/2" x 11" paper and framed to hang on the wall. Use the above rules for visual art. Submit by August 1, 2011 as a “Word,” or “Pages” document to Sharon.
Plays may be submitted in manuscript form, typewritten please.
Music may be submitted on CD or DVD.
You should be prepared to leave your work on display through October, 2011.
Questions can be directed to Sylvia until July 29, 2011.

Updating Call to Artists for "Remembering 9/11"

2011-05-30T12:52:00.004-07:00

Memorial Day seems to be an appropriate time to update our 9/11 show coming in August, 2011. We have been able to secure Cochise College Benson Center for the venue for this show. We are looking for visual art as well as journal writings, music, plays, poetry, sculpture or any other expression that you felt about that day. Let us know by August 1, 2011 if you will be participating in the show, we will make preparations for the showing of your work! You must be a member of SPRAC to participate, so go up online to our home page and make your payment for the coming year. Journal writings should be presented in hand writing (copies only), scanned or typed. They may be submitted as a Word (or Pages for Mac) document and emailed to me at Sylvia@SPRArts.org. Jpgs of visual work may also be sent to me. Of course the usual rules will apply for visual work: framed and ready to hang with screw eyes and wire in the back (no brackets). Jpgs must have the Artist's name, the title of the work, the dimensions, the medium, and the price, or they will not be accepted.

Yahoo Email Failing

2011-05-15T21:19:00.001-07:00

We sent emails across our mailing list today asking people to check our home page for announcements including a call for artists for two shows. Many emails to Yahoo email addresses were rejected. Following the Yahoo instructions for reporting the problem, we ended up with a form to be filled out and submitted via the web. After submitting five times we quit. We never received acknowledgement the form was received so the issue could be researched.

If you received our messages in the past at your Yahoo address but not today, and if you have another email address, please let us know the other address so we can keep you informed. Just email Don@SPRArts.org the different address.

Thanks and we regret the inconvenience.

A Rant (and a rave)

2011-05-05T18:06:00.004-07:00

First the rave… we have some truly outstanding artists in the area. I am constantly surprised at the quality of work that comes from our members. Even with the effort that goes into the creation of a painting, sculpture, jewelry and the demands of a personal or family life, some of our artists still take time to actively support the Arts Council.

Shryl Miles is leaving our board after two years of dedicated service to the Council. We will miss her presence at our board meetings but look forward to more beautiful watercolors. Shryl promised to continue to help us with graphics and printing for our events.

Bernie Fierro is on our board and yet still has time to create and teach. Bernie is a valued board member “at large” and his insight and help is greatly appreciated.

Bill Smith will join our board at the end of June to replace Janice Wright as Treasurer. We will miss Janice as she kept us on the straight and narrow when it comes to finances. We welcome Bill and look forward to his contributions.

These are a few of the artists who help advance our cause.

Now the rant… everything the Arts Council accomplishes is with the work and efforts of a few members. So few they can be counted on ones fingers without using the toes. We try to provide opportunities and service for our artist members but get little in return. If you benefit from a presence on our website, it you exhibit in one of our Wall-Space Galleries, if you exhibit in one of our shows such as the just complete Celebrate the Arts!, if you feel we bring value to the community, isn’t it time you also stepped forward to help? We have openings on the board as well as needed help with our events. Some areas in which we need support consume more time than others, but don’t let that deter you. We need volunteers to help only during part of the year and some areas need only a couple of hours a week on average. For example, sitting in the City Hall Gallery on a Saturday from 1-4 p.m. so we can keep that venue open. We even have openings for people to work from home using the telephone.

If you feel it is time to help make this organization successful and to expand our benefits to everyone, contact us and we will discuss how we can best work together within the time constraints you have,

Remembering 9/11

2011-05-02T11:03:00.004-07:00

Today all Americans are celebrating the death of our nemesis, Osama Bin Laden. It's been 10 years since the towers fell. Perhaps we can envision the death of this man's personal vendetta against us as well.

Most of us who remember September 11, 2001, remember exactly where we were, or what we were doing that awful day. The San Pedro River Arts Council has a CALL TO ARTISTS out for your remembrances of that day, be it visual art, writings of journals or poetry, photos, music, plays, constructions or sculpture. Deadline for that exhibit will be August 5, 2011. Size is not an issue, but you must be a member of SPRAC (join online on the Home Page of the website). The exhibit will be up for the last two weeks in August, through October of 2011.

If you have ideas as to how the disparity of these expressions might be shown to the public, please email me. We don't have the venue selected yet.

Member Artists - Check your personal page

2011-04-29T21:23:00.004-07:00

Your personal page on this site is how our visitors get to know you and see examples your work. We strive to keep your personal page up-to-date but that is only possible if you give us updates. Here are the items to check:

Is your biography current and correct? Did you recently win an award that should be mentioned? Are you working in a new medium?
Do you have a website or social media site you want shown on your page?
Are you affiliated with a gallery? Have they a website you want us to provide a link to?
Are there images you want added or deleted?
Are you an instructor?

I believe you get the idea.

A number of pages were recently added or updated by using the information provided with your Celebrate the Arts! submissions. And we still have a few member artists with no information who did not exhibit during Celebrate the Arts!.

We provide the personal page as a service to you. Your vigilance is needed to keep accurate information in front of our visitors.

One last item. Please remember our membership runs from July 1 to June 30 of the next year. That means your membership (if you have not already renewed) is due sometime over the next two months. Renewal is easy - use the PayPal link at the top of the left sidebar on our site.

If you have questions or comments please use the comment field below or email Don at SPRArts.org. We want your page to introduce you to the public and hopefully lead to sales of your work.

Thanks

Y'all Come!

2011-04-27T11:19:00.003-07:00

Haven't noticed that any of you are commenting on our blog. So it must be too long. Herewith a short one: we're recovering still, from Celebrate the Arts! 2011. Our May meeting will be coming up soon. If you are interested in helping out on our Board, please attend this meeting on May 10th at 10 a.m. at Cochise College, Benson Center. We may not be able to do a lot this year without more help, so if you've even thought about this, now is the time!!

Celebrate the Arts! 2011

2011-03-23T15:31:00.003-07:00

It's been a few days now that Celebrate the Arts! 2011 actually has finished. It takes so long to put something like this together, and such a short few days to accomplish it. I've spent several days trying to put my life back to "normal," whatever that is. There are still things to do to wrap up this event: publicity for the newspapers and for our website, putting all the pictures in one place on my computer, taking time to reflect on the happening; wondering how to do FaceBook stuff... and then there are the grants to seek!

We may just tackle this one day at a time. And life goes on; no rest for the weary. I still have to look for artists who would like to be on the list to display their work on WallSpace galleries. Looking for one now to display "gentle" art on the walls of the Skyline Assisted Living space. The folks there are lovely, and they love to look at landscapes, animals and children. WallSpace gallery pictures remain up for a couple of months, except for Turquoise Hills Triple Green Café; they prefer one month at a time, so I'm always looking for the artists. It would be nice if you all would contact me for suggestions. We've decided to do just a photography show in the Benson City Hall Gallery, for the months of April and May.

But I digress. I started out to tell you how extraordinary Celebrate the Arts! 2011 was. We are finding out that area folks are really picky when it comes to free events, and they aren't coming if they don't like the fare! That said, we had over 250 of you at the Benson Center for the JA Jance event. She is a very popular southwest author. I don't know what that tells us, other than that papering the area with flyers really worked!

Our opening/award night was also well attended. Of course there was food. People always come for the food (exceptional again by the Benson and St. David Culinary students)! Tom Patrick's Sextet had the place rocking, ending the evening with "When the Saints Come Marching In." This band was one of the finest we've heard.

Sunday was a quiet day: "Love Letters" is a two person play, and is read. David and Patty Lambert were the actors and the small audience really loved it. Monday was also a quiet day. We showed the film, "The Radiant Child," about Jean-Michel Basquiat, a troubled young artist who died WAY too young. We didn't attempt popcorn this year; the volunteer with the popcorn maker has gone to California!

Tuesday was, I am told, an exceptional KIDS DAY. We had Sherry Harig, from the Huachuca Art Association come to take on Poetry and Paint, with help from Sharon Gilman. 32 kids participated. I was laid low with exhaustion so didn't even get to take pictures. The plan is to increase the classes for kids next year. I did manage to get down to take a few pictures of the quilting class, with Cheryl Mammano, that afternoon.

Wednesday was special. Mia Shultz did a workshop on marketing for artists in the morning and in the evening the DayStar Chamber players from Tucson gave us Mozart, Borodin and Schubert, after having spent two hours on the highway due to an accident at the Mescal bridge.

Full day on Thursday had Eric Talerico, an enormously talented man, bringing his extraordinary creativity to his class "Mind at Work, Mind at Play" during which he showed us his hand made journals, written, illustrated and bound, with his own hands. Later that day, Shryl Miles tackled "Contour Drawing" with a beginning group, and in the evening, we all trouped over to the Benson High School Auditorium to see the Maguire Academy Irish Dancers do their stuff on the stage.

Friday evening our Community Jam Session produced 3 disparate players: Michael Almodobar on guitar, Rebecca Bryce on the harp, and Ray (last name unknown as I write this) on harmonicas. The small audience enjoyed a rather beautiful combination of sounds for lovely, relaxing music.

Saturday evening our grand finale was a blast from the Mariachi Aztlan de Pueblo under the direction of John Contreras. This was our 2nd year to have them, and they are well loved.

And so it goes. The last event to take place will be the award ceremony for the Southeastern Teen Art Competition, to be held on Sunday, August 3rd at 4 p.m. at the Benson City Hall on 6th St. in Benson.

CALL TO ARTISTS!

2011-03-11T15:34:00.003-07:00

This will be an especially poignant show. We want to relive through the arts where we were, physically or mentally, on September 11, 2001. I'm giving you a "heads-up" for this exhibit, to be held at the Benson City Hall Gallery, or at Cochise College, wherever the most space is needed for such an exhibition from August through October, 2011, the 10th anniversary of the horror our nation faced on that day. You may either create a new work, or find an old one done within the past 10 years on this subject. You must be a member of the San Pedro River Arts Council for 2011 (see the website for information on joining), and, of course, the work, if it is a painting or photo, must be framed or gallery wrapped, with wire across the back. Size is not an issue.

We are also looking for poems, journal writings, plays, short stories, music and any other artistic expressions of emotion personally representing your experience of that day.

Please give us some feedback on this Call to Artists. We may need many ways to show the public these works, other than in galleries. Your ideas will be heard.

Celebrate the Arts! 2011

2011-03-11T15:20:00.002-07:00

Our first event for Celebrate the Arts! 2011 was held last night at Cochise College Benson Center. We had well over 200 people for the talk and book signing for J.A. Jance, a very popular local author. This was by far the largest number of people we have had for an event at the College, and Jance was worth the effort. She was funny, engaging, and for a lot of us who live in this area, absolutely authentic. Even without a mic (which failed on the get go) she was able to project throughout the room, which was filled into every nook and cranny!

Every book that had been brought for sale was sold and autographed. The hall was finally emptied around 9 p.m. and the staff was left setting up for the next event, which will be the big band sounds of Tom Patrick, a Tucson musician.

We can pat ourselves on the back for the success of this event. It takes HARD WORK, a great many hands and generous sponsors to pull off an event of this magnitude. For our small organization, this was the jewel in the crown...at least for now. We have yet to go through a week of cultural delights, and who knows if any will surpass this one. We can only hope!

Starving Artist?

2011-02-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

Learn how to go from a "starving artist" to one that is successful. Click here.

Who Will Be the Mentors?

2011-02-10T15:51:00.003-07:00

We are excited that we now have our first student! We actually bartered for her by trading art lessons for grants processing. This a first baby step toward getting a program going to teach children about art. Art is fast becoming extinct in the schools today, as budgets crunch, and crunch some more, but that's always the way it's been, isn't it? The first to go is art and music in school curriculums when the money gets tight!

So where do kids go after school if they are not engaged in sports, and if their parents are not home? What do they do if they are creative kids without an outlet? We know that some of them use their creativity in destructive ways. This organization, though young, hopes to try to remedy this situation. It is a slow process. First we need a place for this to happen. We are searching for grants to renovate "our" building on 4th St. That would be one place. We'll also need start up money for supplies.

It always comes down to money, doesn't it? But kids need to emulate older people too. If there is no art instruction in the schools' lower grades and if parents see no use to art, then we can fill in with that mentoring for creative kids.

In the hum drum of life, people forget that television shows are the creative efforts of someone, that the television itself was in the imagination of someone. Progress in human terms has always been the imagination of people who want to make things better. Instruction in art in the schools is one way to foster that imagination. If it is gone, who will the mentors be?

From the Arizona Commission on the Arts

2011-01-21T16:41:00.000-07:00

Late last week, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer released her budget proposal for fiscal years 2012 and 2013. This budget includes an additional 8% reduction to the Arizona Arts Trust Fund and the Arts Commission's general fund appropriation has been eliminated, listed at $0.

The State of Arizona's FY2012 budget will undergo adjustments until its ultimate enactment. Governor Brewer and the State Legislature will negotiate until the Legislature votes to approve a FY2012 budget, which they will send to Governor Brewer for her signature.

After years of painful reductions, the current legislative session may be the most challenging in the history of support for Arizona's statewide arts industry. Should the current budget proposal be enacted, Arizona's state arts funding will stand at its lowest level in 22 years, with the lowest general fund appropriation in 42 years.

We are currently hard at work with our statewide partners, investigating options and strategies to protect what remains of public funding for the arts in Arizona.

Here's how you can help:

Engage with the Arts Commission, Arizona's state arts agency. Stay tuned for updates, join us on facebook and sign up for email alerts at www.azarts.gov. We will keep you posted as information becomes available.

Engage with Arizona Citizens/Action for the Arts (AzCA/AzAA), Arizona's statewide arts advocacy organization. Subscribe to receive updates and instructions for arts advocates. AzCA/AzAA will inform you when there are specific actions to take related to the state arts budget.

The Arts Commission continues its commitment to serve the Arizona arts industry, as it has for the past 44 years, and is moving forward with programs and services. Guides to Grants for organizations and schools are posted, and EGOR - the Electronic Grants Online Resource - will begin accepting FY2012 applications on January 31, 2011.

We understand you may have questions. Please do not hesitate to contact us at 602-771-6502 or info@azarts.gov.

Together, we can imagine an Arizona where everyone can participate in and experience the arts.

Arizona Commission on the Arts

Are we rushing through life?

2011-01-20T10:56:00.004-07:00

I received this in an email the other day and would like to share it with you:

THE SITUATION
In Washington DC , at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After about 3 minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.
About 4 minutes later:
The violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.
At 6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.
At 10 minutes:
A 3-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent - without exception - forced their children to move on quickly.
At 45 minutes:
The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.
After 1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.
No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.
This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the DC Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities.
This experiment raised several questions:
*In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?
*If so, do we stop to appreciate it?
*Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?
One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made . . .

How many other things are we missing as we rush through life?

WallSpace Galleries

2011-01-16T16:15:00.002-07:00

The San Pedro River Arts Council is currently maintaining three WallSpace Galleries in the City of Benson, AZ: City Hall Gallery, Turquoise Hills Triple Green Café, and Skyline Assisted Living Home. Only the City Hall Gallery has themed shows, but all of these spaces require that you be a member of the San Pedro River Arts Council.

City Hall Gallery is, as the name suggests, the City Hall for the City of Benson. It is in an old church building. The walls are white, punctuated by wide, arched windows. The City of Benson has graciously purchased a permanent hanging system to use in that building. The hanging system consists of a rail that runs along the top of the wall, with wires suspended from it and hooks to hang the work on. The hooks and wires are very sturdy and can hold a lot of weight. The wires are moveable so that wide pieces can be correctly centered.

This building serves as the City Council chambers, so we share space with flags and a long curved desk where the Councilors sit. It is on a raised dais in the front of the building. There are rows and rows of pews used now for spectators. "Our" walls run along the length of the building. We are currently requesting more rails and wires, so we can take advantage of all of the space in there. When we ask that you frame your work, this is the reason: we need a way to hang the work correctly, without the possibility of its falling if brushed against during the normal process of people coming and going there. This Gallery is only open on Saturdays, with the help of artist "sitters," from 1-4 p.m., although the City clerk's office is very accommodating and will open it by request, and, of course, it is open when there is City activity going on in there. In this Gallery, the work is themed, and a poster in the lobby is made to accompany the show.

Our second space is far different. Turquoise Hills Triple Green Café is in the clubhouse building of a golf and RV resort. These folks have also purchased a permanent hanging system, and we are allowed one long wall, broken by two wide arched doorways into other parts of the building. This space is open all the time to the public for meals, and the work is by one artist only. There is no theme. The walls are an off-white color, changed for our benefit after the awful storm in August of 2010, that tore the roof off of the Triple Green, and made it unusable until redecorated.

The third Gallery is at Skyline Assisted Living Home near Pomerene, open most of the time during the days. The space is not large, and serves an aging, but very appreciative population. Though not themed, the shows hung here are "softer and gentler" in tone than is required of other places. The walls here are off-white. There is no permanent hanging system yet, so we continue to pound in the nails required to hang the work. This wall can take about 1 dozen pictures. The residents here are enthralled when we come to hang the work and often ask about it. They are likely to play the piano and sing for us as we go about our work.

All of the work hung in all of the Galleries is marked with simple tags made by our own graphic designer, Shryl Miles, herself an artist. She also makes a tag with a personal statement, or bio for each artist. The work is most often for sale, and many pieces have been sold since we started doing this a couple of years ago.

If you want to exhibit in any of these spaces, you must first become a member of SPRAC (see our website for details). You must submit the work, by JPG, to be juried, along with a title, medium, size and price for the work to Sylvia@sprarts.org and then you must bring the accepted work, framed and properly wired in the back, with hooks and eyes (no brackets) to the facility at the appointed time. There are no fees for exhibiting work at this time, and there are no prizes for exhibiting. Each facility has its own length of time that work is to be exhibited: City Hall, 2 months, Turquoise Hills, 1 month, and Skyline, 2 months. It's requested that you leave the work on the wall for that length of time, even if it is sold.

Tragedy in Tucson

2011-01-13T14:53:00.002-07:00

Like all Americans, but especially Arizonans, we grieve with the families of those who lost their lives in the shooting at the "Congress on the Corner" event last Saturday in Tucson. Regardless of your political affiliation, this awful event has robbed all of us of our feelings that "it can't happen here." Gabrielle Giffords is our representative, and we feel in her wounding, our own loss. She will take many months or years to recuperate. No one knows for sure if she will be able to attain her former functions. She has been a staunch supporter of the arts. We can only hope that her complete recovery will be the miracle that we all hope for. The San Pedro River Arts Council sends her family our prayers and best wishes.

Looking for the Miracle in 2011

2011-01-02T11:08:00.003-07:00

This is the post holiday season; time to get to work on preparations for spring and for looking back at this fruitful year here in old Benson town. If we struggled to keep up with ourselves this past year, we did a pretty good job of it, given that there are so few of us working on this passion of ours. We now have three WallSpace galleries that we're putting art in, and another that's expressed interest in having us. We have a building that's exactly where we need it to be, and we have a good start on programming for Celebrate the Arts! 2011. What we don't have is funding. This illusive necessity is giving us nightmares! Consequently we will have to ask our artists and supporters to cough up more this year in the way of dues just to sustain our viability. Your $10 application/annual fee will increase to $15 for 2011/12 fiscal year that begins on July 1. We don't like to do this. It would be nice if we could keep everything free, but this is not practical for our organization. We can't support artists without them supporting us. We are all volunteers. We have other lives, and some of us are artists ourselves and need to spend time in the studio. It costs this organization lots of money to put on events for the public and this past year was very expensive. Next year will be even more so. So the "free" concept is basically over, as we plan for our 2011 events. There, of course, will be some free events, or workshops, but as we all prepare to give of ourselves to the arts, we need to open the wallets as well. It would be a miracle if we had some money to work on our "new" building, or to pay for someone to put out the newsletter. Our sponsors have been great, but we need more of them.

We are also in great need for volunteers, especially at the Board level. Especially needed is someone who will program events, i.e., search for performers and workshop leaders needed for Celebrate the Arts! 2012. Volunteers who might like to work together on a project are welcome. We need curators for each of our WallSpace galleries who will contact artists and make sure that work gets hung on time. We need someone who likes to write, who will keep up with the publicity needed to let folks know what we're doing. The list is endless.

As we have wrapped up 2010, and look forward to 2011, we welcome the newness of this year, and have high expectations that this one will be better. If you're reading this and have even a glimmer of interest in putting some time into the arts, there are vehicles for doing that on our web page. Welcome to 2011!

Generosity of Spirit

2010-12-23T08:34:00.003-07:00

This is the season that most of us feel most generous. It is the generosity of spirit that sometimes takes precedence over other emotions. To give to the food banks, the homeless, the mentally ill, and other interests seems the generous thing to do, more so than at any other time of year. But with both feet planted firmly on earth, we see the generosity of spirit as a separate thing that we can attend to only when there is food on the table, clean water, and a warm place to sleep. Generosity need not be confined to just mid-winter. We give when we smile at another, open a door or lend a hand. We give when we volunteer to help the cause that we feel most strongly about. The San Pedro River Arts Council is about giving...giving back to the community we live in. The arts are what we feel strongly about all year long, strongly enough to attend the monthly meetings that permit us to program the events for a community starved for beauty and pleasure. These are not just emotional longings, but deep seated needs; just as one needs food and water for survival, artists have a heightened need for seeing the world through a different lens. We appreciate that need and the generosity of spirit that is required to feed that need, and that is why we exist. When you give yourself, or your dollars to this organization, you will get that back tenfold, even though in these beginning years it feels as if all is giving and no receiving. If we can give something back to you at this time of year it is a healthy dose of patience. We have big plans for what is now a small organization. However, with your generosity, and your expectations, we can, and will give back to you...and that's a promise for the season and the New Year.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a Happy New Year to everyone. Keep up your giving spirit. It will make you whole.

Holiday Greetings

2010-12-19T16:55:00.001-07:00

Our greetings to you, our devoted members, readers, sponsors and volunteers. Without you we would not be in existence.

Holiday Greeting

Remember, there is still time to make a tax deductible donation for 2010. Simply click on the “Donate” button on our home page.

Thanks again and
Happy Holidays!

Christmas On 4th

2010-12-10T19:03:00.000-07:00

The Benson Chamber will present “Christmas on Main” on Saturday, December 11. Lots of vendors will be selling Christmas items and there will be dancing, choirs, Christmas music and, of course, Santa Claus.

The SPRAC Gallery 208 will be open so you can experience first hand the "“before” as we begin work on a premier exhibition and classroom space.

Cochise County Is Flagless

2010-12-05T14:42:00.000-07:00

Yes, Cochise County has no flag. But you could change that.
The Cochise County Board of Supervisors is holding a contest open to any resident. The rules and an entry form are available here.

Elfrida Open House

2010-12-04T20:26:00.001-07:00

I stopped by the Open House hosted by the Elfrida Art Center, Inc. today. The Open House was to recognize students in the "basic" class; that is, 7 to 12 year olds.

One feature is the “Signature Wall.’ Each new student leaves his or her hand print as a memento.

The basic class students had their work on display. All lessons for children ages 7 through 12 are free.

The Elfrida Art Center has exciting news regarding a new facility. But it is only appropriate you get the information from them.

The open house had an excellent turnout.

Brenda Péo - Best of Show

2010-12-01T08:25:00.003-07:00

Congratulations to our member artist Brenda Péo for winning Best of Show at the Tubac Art Center of the Arts’ “Members’ Juried Show”.

Brenda won with her oil entitled “Code Bleu”. Code Bleu can be seen at the Tubac Art Center, 9 Plaza Road, Tubac, AZ 85646, until January 9, 2011.

We Are Thankful

2010-11-28T15:58:00.004-07:00

Thanksgiving has come and gone. We are thankful that we have come such a long way with this nonprofit organization, but we are still looking for people who can help to carry the load. volunteers are always needed. On our special wish list for Christmas is someone who can handle the programming for our Celebrate the Arts! 2012 event and someone to pick up our Gathering of Artists & Friends in October of 2011. We could also use someone (or two) who will be a curator for our several wall space galleries in this area, we have 4 now. You'll get plenty of help too. We never lack for people to hang the shows.

The "208 Gallery," our "new" building on 4th St. in Benson, AZ is in a state of flux, waiting for permits to get us started on what needs to be done there. The building will be open on December 11, 2010 so if you're wandering by for the Christmas on 4th St. event, you can stop to meet us, and see the possibilities it has to offer. Sign up to be a member of the San Pedro River Arts Council, make suggestions for the use of this wonderful space, or donate to help make it happen. You might even have a cup of cider and some cookies while you're at it. We're hoping that by next year at this time, we'll be able to offer a little more...a gallery (with a real name), and art classes.

While we're talking about December 11th, you need to know that there will be no Art is Ageless! show in December. Our building is not ready for the public to be in it, and we have no other space we can use presently. We may try to do the kids' show later, but for now, it will be impossible.

SCAM Alert

2010-11-21T11:09:00.002-07:00

Rebecca Dahlke, President of the Huachuca Art Association sent this email with a SCAM alert to artists and art associations.

There appears to be a new scam rolling through the internet targeting artists who sell their work through their website and art associations that teach art. The sender purports to be interested in art classes in your “area” because they will be bringing a group of people from Europe. Or they contact you because they want to know if you have any art priced between $400-$700. When you answer, they tell you that they are a “collector” in Europe. The e-mails have just enough information to be enticing to artists anxious to sell their work; however, please note the poor English, the lack of concrete information about their “group” or who they are. These e-mails are simply a scam in order to defraud you or your organization of money. Best advice? Do not respond and they will go onto the next victim... but not [one of us] if we’re informed and ready for them.

Seeking A Poet

2010-11-15T07:19:00.000-07:00

We are looking for a person to lead a poetry workshop during our eight-day event Celebrate the Arts! in 2011. The event runs from March 12 through March 19. If you can help, please contact us. The workshop would be during the day for 2 to 3 hours in duration and held at Cochise College - Benson Center.

Studio Space: Consider all your options

2010-11-14T08:09:00.000-07:00

If you don’t have a dedicated space in which to create art you know how difficult it can be to find a space to spread out your art supplies and put yourself in an emotional place to be creative. Then you have to put everything away once you are through for the day. Bummer!

For a number of years after we retired to Arizona, my art supplies were scattered and stored from one end of my house to the other. Just finding them was a problem. If I wanted to paint, I had to first locate the appropriate supplies, gather them together and then think about trying to be creative. By that time, who cares! That never worked for me. I’m the type who has to have everything out where I can see it so I can start painting whenever I have time or in the mood. As a result of not having everything handy, my creative energy was limited to what I could do using a computer. That wasn’t all bad because I created some very neat works using some unconventional tools. However, it’s not what I really wanted to do.

Then about three years ago my sister moved out of a park model trailer that has been on our property for about ten years. One day I was down there doing some clean up outside and it dawned on me that the trailer could be my answer to having a studio space. (Talk about being slow to figure things out). Anyway, I started looking at the trailer as a possible studio and discovered it had a lot going for it: it sat far enough away from the house that I could work undisturbed, it has about 800 sq ft of floor space, has good north facing light, lots of windows, and tons of storage space. What more could you ask for?

Well, for all the good things to consider there was one tiny little issue that might prove to be a problem for a watercolor artist. It had no indoor water! Right after my sister moved out the trailer developed serious water leaks that were too expensive to repair so we shut the water off. However, there was water just outside the door that we left on. Now being a watercolor artist I need ready access to a water supply. So I had to decide whether or not the inconvenience of having to go outside for water was offset by all the other things the space had going for it. Duh! That’s a real no brainer when you desperately want a space to paint. I decided to go for it and have not regretted it one bit.

A little paint went a long way in making the space brighter. Removing some cabinet doors opened up the storage space to where I could see most of my “stuff”, installing a stereo system meant I can turn my music up as load as I want without disturbing anyone and it already had a refrigerator. One studio in the making.

The point of this rather rambling post is to encourage artists in need of studio space to look for un-used or under used space around their home or property. It could be a shed, workshop, travel trailer and under-used room in your house or any space that will give you a place to work without having to put everything away after a painting session. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Look beyond any obvious drawbacks and work around them. You will not regret it.

Shryl Miles

Shryl recently joined our Board and has been a supporter of the Council since its inception. You can read more about Shryl on our web site at http://sprarts.org/visual-artist/shryl-miles/.

Gripes and Kudos

2010-11-10T10:07:00.004-07:00

The first phase of the Southeastern Arizona Teen Art Competition, a part of Celebrate the Arts! 2011, has been sent out to teachers in Santa Cruz, Cochise, and Graham Counties. Teachers were asked to respond by email by November 1, 2010, so we'd be able to figure the need for a space large enough to show the work in March of 2011. 18 letters were sent out with a packet of information. Out of those 18, 5 have responded positively, so I'm to assume that we will have about 50 pieces of art work from all of those counties combined!

I am disappointed. Last year we were able to hang almost 60 pieces of art work, but we only asked schools from Cochise County. My question is: why do teachers not respond? Do they not have 5 minutes to send an email, which clearly is there for them to use? Are they overwhelmed with work and don't want to participate and feel no reason to be polite enough to tell us that?

Celebrate the Arts! 2011 programming has been in the works since early last summer, and the Teen Show was no exception. Superintendents and Principals of the High Schools in the above counties were contacted so that we knew if there were art programs at the schools, and then who the teachers were. Most of these people responded and we are most appreciative, but the process got stuck there.

I am still willing to have teachers let me know if their students are participating, but I need to know NOW, so if you have kids in the High Schools of the counties mentioned, ask if they will be participating. It's a great opportunity for the kids to show off what they can do, and to encourage schools to keep their art programs alive. November 17th will be the drop dead deadline for teachers to let me know. After that, I have to assume that they will not be participating.

My second gripe is that artists are not following directions with regard to the Call to Artists for various Galleries. So listen up: pictures MUST be sent to me in jpg form, HEAD-ON WITHOUT THE FRAME SHOWING, by email by the Saturday BEFORE the art work is to be delivered, so that jurying can be done quickly and we can let you know which of your pictures will be accepted for a certain Gallery. It's easiest just to include the information with your submission, then we don't have to go chasing around after you to get it done. This information link will be online soon.

Lastly, I want to give you a heads up about this organization. We are moving ahead. We now have a building on 4th St. in Benson, AZ, that we are calling home. We have 6 people on our Board, but we need others. All of us are working exceptionally hard to bring the arts to this area, and to partner with businesses that will benefit by the increase in tourism, bound to come. If you would like to help with this venture, or if you are a business that would like to see us succeed in Benson, or if you just want to learn more about us, please feel free to contact us. We're on Facebook and Twitter as well, although I have to confess that I am not the one who is doing that.

Update

2010-10-20T15:19:00.003-07:00

It's been awhile, and there are things I'd like to tell you about. First off, the San Pedro River Arts Council has a new home. Through the generosity of the MTE corporation, the building at 208 4th St. in Benson, AZ is now ours. It needs quite a lot of upgrading to turn it into a teaching facility and gallery for our young organization, but we are optimistic that we can do wonders! This building is just perfect for our needs; it's on the main street of Benson, it's ADA compliant, and it's up to date as far as electricity is concerned. It has over 2000 sq. ft. of space and long windowless walls, perfect for the gallery we envision. We'll keep you updated as we go along.

The Gathering of Artists & Friends is going to be held at the Turquoise Hills Golf and RV Triple Green Cafe on Saturday, October 23, 2010, from 4-7 p.m. If you're in the area, c'mon by. It's a wine tasting, social event, with food, live music, and, of course, wine and art.

Coming in December will be a one day event called "Art is Ageless!" Work of school children and adults will be accepted for viewing in a unjuried show that's always popular, as it's on the same day as Christmas on Main St. in the City of Benson. Watch for the Call to Artists on this one.

Celebrate the Arts! 2011 will be fabulous this year's break week at Cochise College Benson Center. The opening on March 12, 2011 will be the jazz of the Tom Patrick Sextet. There will be a performance of "Love Letters" on Sunday, a film on Monday, Kids Day on Tuesday, the DayStar Chamber Players on Wednesday, the Irish Dancers on Thursday for St. Patrick's Day, J.A. Jance on Friday, and the Mariachi kids on Saturday. We're working hard now to nail down all of the details. If you'd like to be involved, go on over to the volunteer page and send it in. You can join us if you like too, for only $10 (this will be going up next year!)

A note about the "Wall Space Galleries:" Turquoise Hills is one of them, and we have a list of artists who would like to show there. We are also encouraging artists to show at the Skyline Assisted Living Facility in Pomerene. And, of course, there is the City Hall Gallery in Benson, where "Stage West; Old and New Visions of the American West" is wrapping up and a new show, "Little Treasures" will be going up for the November 1, 2010 opening.

Finally, I'd like to give you a heads-up: next September 11, 2011 will be the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 event when we were attacked by extremists. If you're old enough to remember this event, perhaps it affected you and your art. We'll be having an art show to commemorate this event with art and photography that demonstrates your remembrances. It will be called "9/11 - The Memory Project." If you have already painted or photographed images from your imagination of the event, or from actually having been there, we'd like to see them. The Call to Artists will be going out probably by June of 2011.

We're always busy. Art waits for no one! If you love art and want to be involved we'd love to hear from you!

Art not for the faint of heart

2010-09-18T07:11:00.000-07:00

I'm crouched on a stack of easels with eleven other painters on the top of a snow-clad mountain waiting for a thumping Bell 212 helicopter to rise away in a swirl of whiteout. At times like this, thoughts run through one's head.

There's the sheer brutality of this great gas guzzler with its thundering twin jets and the swish swish swish of the killer windmill just off the top of our precious little heads.

The other thought is the outrageous privilege and joy of being whisked to places you would never otherwise see--often with an altitude change of more than 4000 feet--all in less than ten minutes. Then there's the miraculous and eerie silence when your chopper leaves and you're simply king of the world, gobsmacked with 360 degrees of infinitely paintable magnificence. With a lump in your throat, only humbling praise comes easily. FYI, we've posted some photos here.

We're staying at the Bugaboo Lodge, high in the Purcell Range in southeastern British Columbia, Canada. Bundled up for the blown snow, hail, and sharp, sub-zero winds, we have the added fun of painting in mittens. Another spot included sunshine, soaring golden eagles and alarming bear scat. Daily we've staked out our territory, not too much out of sight or earshot of one another, coming to grips with our private terrors of plein air.

No matter what we've done or accomplished in this life, we take our winnings and our weaknesses to the peaks and carry with us the methods and processes of our prior learning, great and small, right and wrong. Breathless in the high altitude, tears in her eyes, a painter turned to me and said, "I simply can't do justice to this place."

"Calm down, settle down, get into the flow, feel the magic; today's second painting will be better than your first."

At times like this I think of the words of the Austrian-Canadian mountain guide and climbing pioneer Konrad Kain, (1883-1934) who, well before helicopters, was first to the top of many of these spires: "The guide should never show fear, should be courteous to all and should always give special attention to the weakest member of the party."

Robert Genn
September 10, 2010

You can subscribe to Robert Genn’s twice weekly newsletters by clicking here.

And be certain to visit San Pedro River Arts Council’s website. There you will see information on our upcoming “Gathering of Artists & Friends.”

A St. David Volunteer Speaks

2010-09-05T20:47:00.001-07:00

If you want to have a terrific experience and feel that you are contributing to our community, volunteer wherever the need presents itself. I would like to share with you my experience as an artist volunteer at the Saint David High School.

At the beginning of the school year Charlotte Taylor, the Assistant Principal, put out a call for volunteers to help with two classes in the art program. Their art teacher had retired and replacing her was not an option so two of the existing staff members (neither staff member was an art teacher) offered to take on one art class each in order to keep the art program available to the students.

As it turned out, I answered that call and became a volunteer in Charlotte Taylor’s high school art class. At first I wasn’t sure what if anything I would be able to contribute. After talking to Charlotte, I decide the best thing to do was to sit in on her class to see where I might be able to help and contribute some of the knowledge I have acquired over the years. It didn’t take long before we settled on some areas we thought would be helpful to the students. We chose Blind/Modified Blind Contour drawing, proportionally scaling artwork from smaller to larger or vise versa, and transferring smaller images to a larger size using the grid system. We concentrated on areas where Charlotte felt she was not as comfortable in her depth of knowledge as she would have liked.

Thursday the 2^nd was the Blind/Modified Blind Contour drawing lesson. I admit I was a little uncertain how the students would respond. They were fantastic! They really got into the program and did so wonderful drawing. Each student drew a blind and a modified blind contour drawing of two different items that I had brought to class with me. After they finished with the two required items many of them went on to do studies of other things in the classroom without being prompted to do so. I also provided a handout with instructions and examples for each student to have and keep for future reference.

I hope the students enjoyed working with me as much as I enjoyed working with them. I don’t think I will be nearly as concerned about how they will receive the next two lessons because they have demonstrated their keen interest in learning something new and accepting instruction from a layperson.

At least three other artists that I am aware of have volunteered to participate in this program. What a wonderful statement that is about the artists in our small community.

Shryl Miles

Arts Talk!

2010-08-24T15:24:00.005-07:00

Here's the thing on volunteering, particularly on a Saturday afternoon in a Gallery that doesn't get much traffic. Why do we "waste" this time? It's a 3 hours stint of doing nothing...OR, we could have a conversation about art. Let's call it "Arts Talk" for lack of a better term today. Anyone who drops in to the Gallery would be welcome to join the artist already there to talk about our favorite subject! Since we're asking artists who exhibit at the City Hall Gallery to "babysit" the Gallery at least one Saturday during the two months that their art is on the wall, we thought we'd give them something to do, like actually think about their art and the art of those showing on the walls around them. If people come in, they would like to know about the art, so here's a chance to get in on the talking about it. The artist sitting in the Gallery can throw out a subject like the difference between art and photography, the difference between symmetry and asymmetry, where to find a teacher, how to do collaged pieces, etc., etc. I've also thought it would be nice to have a little music in there too. What if we had a local (or not) guitarist give us a little background music. I can think of a lot to do with 3 hours on a Saturday afternoon in Benson, Arizona. C'mon over and let's talk about it! Oh, and don't forget to sign the guest book (yes, we actually have one now!).

Helping St. David

2010-08-12T06:47:00.000-07:00

Volunteer to help to Save Art Program at St. David.

A notice in the latest San Pedro River Arts Council newsletter concerning the retirement of Saint David School District’s art teacher caught my attention last week. As a result of the loss of their regular art teacher and no funds to hire another, the art program was in danger of being cut. To prevent this, two of their staff members agreed to pick up the slack by each taking on one of the art classes schedule to be canceled.

The two teachers, Assistant Principal Charlotte Taylor will be taking over the High School program and Mrs. Chandler will be taking over the Middle School program, are asking for local artists to volunteer to work with them in the classroom to enhance the programs by sharing the artist special knowledge with the students.

I contacted Mrs. Taylor and volunteered to help in any way I could. I met with her yesterday and we identified several areas where I could be of assistance to her. I will be “teaching” (I use that term loosely because I am not a teacher) a technique known as Blind/Modified Blind Contour drawing, how to use a grid system to scale artwork proportionally, and talking about watercolor techniques and any other areas we identify in the future.

I’m really looking forward to working with Mrs. Taylor and the high school students. Mrs. Taylor has outlined an ambitious program, which should be fun for the students and interesting for me as a volunteer. One of the things she is planning is to create murals in the library and also one on one of the outside walls at the school. I’ve always wanted to work on a mural and never had the opportunity but thanks to this volunteer program I will get to participate in one of the things I’ve always wanted to do.

If any of you artist out there want to help preserve the art program at St. David High School go to the newsletter (scroll down to the headline “Fantastic Opportunity”) posted on this website and read all about their request for help. It could be both rewarding to you and the students.

This post was submitted by Shryl Miles, a Member and Volunteer of the San Pedro River Arts Council. You can read about Shryl and her work by clicking here.

In praise of inexpensive materials

2010-08-10T17:59:00.010-07:00

Bernie Fierro, one of our top supporters and volunteer, put us onto Robert Genn. Robert is an accomplished painter and writer and lives just across the border in British Columbia. You can visit Robert’s web site by clicking here.

Robert emails a “Twice-Weekly Letter” to his subscribers. With Robert’s blessing, we will from time to time reprint his letter here. If you would like to subscribe to Robert’s “Twice-Weekly Letter,” click here.

In praise of inexpensive materials
August 10, 2010

When buying art materials, it's almost always wise to get the best you can afford. This is particularly true for supports--the surfaces you work on. Nothing is as disappointing as paper that yellows after just a few years, or cotton canvas so thin and threadbare that it wouldn't pass for a prison bedsheet.

At the same time, quality and high price don't always come first when it comes to pigments. There are many cheap colours, particularly earth colours, where the raw materials are so readily available and dense enough to begin with that they work well for most jobs. Further, the fillers, extenders and other additives that go into a lot of cheaper paints can actually be a benefit in sullying the garishness that comes easily in high-density, expensive pigments.

A lover of Golden Acrylics (I'm not on their payroll), lately I've been adding squeezes from the fat tubes of Winsor and Newton Galleria (student quality) and even Chinese Pebeos that come at a fraction of the price. But it's not about saving bucks. It's about volume of paint and the potential for juicy creativity. Expensive paints bring out your resident miser. Cheaper paints, used discretionally, are more likely to be lathered on in abundance and bravura.

Fact is, for some of us, inexpensive materials bring out the magic of playfulness. Take my friend Toni Cavelti. One of the most honoured jewelry designers in Canada, he's spent a lifetime working with precious diamonds, rubies and emeralds. In his workshops, gold and platinum were the metals of choice. Now retired from serving the rich and famous, Toni has made a new career making sculptures using 1.5 mm iron wire that costs him less than ten bucks a roll. FYI, we've put a short video of Toni and his work at the end of this post.

In paint, the most important thing is the binder or medium. In acrylic media, rough stones and pieces of found junk can probably be held together for millennia if there's enough binder. I wouldn't skimp on quality acrylic medium. In oil, you can think about the admixture of quality materials with student materials, as well as appropriate amount of the current, not too smelly media designed to take the place of the popular (and yellowing) Linseed oil. In watercolour, particularly, you need to be aware of the fugitive nature of some pigments. Reading the permanency guide on most labels will keep your colours the way you want them.

Best regards,
Robert

2010-08-04T15:04:00.005-07:00

I guess we've all been busy. I've gotten a new Mac computer and have been transferring to it. If you ever have had to do that, you know what the process is.

Around the water cooler at the Arts Council, we've been thinking of ways that we need to use volunteers and each of us was invited to get together a “wish list” for the help that we need.

Janice would like someone to learn how to do the grant process.
Don would like to have someone to take over the database when Celeste leaves.
Sharon (and all of us) will need volunteers to help with Celebrate the Arts! 2011 when that comes up next March.
I am probably the most needy: I'm always looking for people to “babysit” the City Hall Gallery so we can open it to the public from 1-4 p.m. on Saturdays. So far, we've kept it open for those Saturdays that our show, “Faces” will be up.

On August 21^st we will be changing out the show to: “Stage West, Old and New Visions of the American West,” and we’ll need the artists who are exhibiting to step forward to help out.

Besides all this activity, we still are in need of someone to record and transcribe our meeting notes.

Volunteering is simple. We have an on-line application. Complete the application and click “submit”; or if you prefer, download an application and mail it to the address shown on the volunteer page.

Our meetings are all about the future now. We will be participating in the Butterfield Stage Days put on by the Chamber of Commerce, and planning is in full swing for the Gathering of Artists & Friends on October 23rd at the Turquoise Hills Triple Green Cafe in Benson. We'll need all you artists to come out for that. It's going to be a wine tasting event and should be fun. Let us know if you plan to bring a piece of art to show.

Charlene Kennedy is now showing her work at the Turquoise Hills Triple Green Cafe. Shryl Miles graced the "Business of the Month" table at the National Bank of Arizona the last week in July.

We don't stand still in the summer!

Seeking Vendors

2010-07-11T13:02:00.002-07:00

The Elfrida Art Center is a non-profit organization providing art lessons to children. A basic class is offered for 7 to 12 year old students and an advanced class for students completing the basic class. All supplies are provided to students at no cost.

The Fall Festival is their major event to raise funds to purchase supplies. The 2010 festival is October 9 and 10. The Fall Festival organizers are looking for vendors to register for the festival. The cost is $15 for both days. Please email Adele for additional information or get a vendor application from their web site.

"Wall Space" Galleries

2010-07-10T14:51:00.004-07:00

Not an artist but love art? Do you own a business? The San Pedro River Arts Council wants to know if you have walls...yes, walls! We actively seek wall space for our artists to display their work, and to possibly sell it. These spaces are called generically "Wall Space Galleries" and we make a list of those that want to grace their walls with art. Typically we ask an artist to supply us with a number of works, depending upon the space that is available. Size is sometimes an issue, as is the wall itself. We check out the space, of course and all the work is juried so it is appropriate to your space. We ask that the artist leave the work up for about 2 months. If he or she sells a piece of work, we ask that they replace it on the wall so that there are no gaps. If you'd like to host a "Wall Space Gallery," click here or contact us on our contact page. We'll get back to you.

Volunteers to Sit the Gallery

2010-07-08T15:37:00.004-07:00

When the City Council last met, on June 24th, I told them about our new show, "Faces." Some of the councilors came to me to tell me just how much they liked it and that our putting the art work there is appreciated. I asked if there was some way we could keep the City Hall Gallery open at least some of the time during the week, and was given permission to keep it open on Saturday afternoons from 1-4 p.m. All well and good, but we don't have the bodies to do that. If you think you could be one of those volunteers to "babysit" the Gallery for one 3-hour stint in a month, please let us know. It's one of those volunteer positions that doesn't take a lot of your time and absolutely no money! It's quiet in the City Hall Gallery, too, and one can just enjoy the time away from the chaos of life for a little while, all the time being surrounded by beautiful art works. Let us know if this appeals to you by sending me an email.

Summer Activity For Kids

2010-07-04T09:03:00.001-07:00

Buttermilk Painting Project

The kids are out of school now for a month and you are looking for something to keep them occupied. Look no further. Buttermilk Painting is an inexpensive and fun (perhaps a bit messy) project for kids and adults.

Sherry Harig is a board member of the Huachuca Art Association. Sherry has a blog named “Sherry's Visual Journey” with a post about Buttermilk Painting.

Give it a try and let us know how it turned out. You can either comment on this post or use the “Contact Us” page on our site San Pedro River Arts Council.

Call To Artists

2010-07-03T15:05:00.005-07:00

Stage West

Old & New Visions of the American West

Showing at the City Hall Gallery, 120 West 6th Street, Benson, AZ, from August 22 through October 30. This will be a juried show with a western theme. Framed, ready to hang, paintings, drawings and photography will be accepted by submitting jpg images by email to Sylvia.

With your jpg image please include title of the piece, medium and dimensions.
Last date to submit works of art is Wednesday, August 18.
Submissions will be juried and must not have been previously shown at the City Hall Gallery.
Please note the show will remain up for approximately two months.
There is no fee to exhibit in the City Hall Gallery, and there are no prizes, but artists are encouraged to join the San Pedro River Arts Council.
Accepted works should be delivered to the City Hall Gallery on Saturday, August 21 between the hours of 1:00 and 4:00 pm.

We need volunteer help. If you can help with receiving art work for this show or hanging the show please let us know by sending an email to Sylvia. Experience is not necessary, training is free!

News and Stuff

2010-06-28T14:36:00.004-07:00

Our new show is up at City Hall Gallery in Benson, AZ. It is called "Faces." We have human AND animal faces. It's fun, and a pleasure to see. There are nine artists, from around Southeast Arizona...2 photographers and the rest are visual artists...26 pieces in all, and for the size of this Gallery, the arrangement works just fine. This show will be up until August 21rst, at which time we will be putting up a new show on Western art. It hasn't been named yet, but you can start looking around your studio now for works to save for the September/October time frame. We're discussing ways that we can keep City Hall open, at least on Saturdays from 1-4. We don't have enough people to help us in this way. If you are someone who might be able to lend a hand to "gallery sit," let us know.

The work at Turquoise Hills Triple Green Cafe is that of Alix Orton. Come by if you're in the area. Triple Green has a great breakfast! That work will come down at the end of July. If you are an artist seeking to show some work, let us know. We do the jurying by JPGs on email. There are no fees and no prizes. It's just a chance to show your work and to possibly sell it. The work is mounted for a length of two months. It's a lot of work to mount one of these shows, so we like to leave it up for that length of time. Turquoise Hills requires anywhere from 8-15 pieces, depending upon the sizes of each. We are investigating other walls of businesses in the area.

The Board is discussing ways that artists can support each other. One way is to charge a small commission on works that sell at outside venues like City Hall Gallery and Turquoise Hills. Since we are nonprofit, all of the funds that we take in go toward the arts in this area. The current membership fee is $10 for one year, but next year (2011/2012) we will have to increase this to $15 for one year. If you've been thinking of joining us, now is the time.

It's never too early to start talking about the Gathering of Artists & Friends on October 23, 2010, from 4-7 p.m, although we don't have a venue yet for it. We're planning to take the Gathering in a different direction. You can keep track of it through the newsletter or this blog. We are always looking for volunteers. Our regular meetings are at Cochise College: 10 a.m. on the 2nd Tuesday of every month.

New Show

2010-06-03T11:41:00.003-07:00

This just posted:

CALL TO ARTISTS

The San Pedro River Arts Council will be hanging a new juried show in the City Hall Gallery on June 27, 2010. The theme for July and August, will be "Faces." All two-dimensional work will be considered. Deadline for jpg. submissions will be Monday, June 21, 2010. Artists will be notified of acceptance, and required to deliver the framed (no brackets please - wire only) work to City Hall on June 26, 2010 from 1-4 p.m. City Hall Gallery, on 6th St. in Benson, AZ. is open on days and evenings when there is City Council, or other activity, or by appointment. Call 520-720-6331 for more information. Jpg. submissions of the art work should be sent via email to Sylvia@sprarts.org. Please include your name and contact information, title of the work, medium, size and price. There are no fees applied to this show.

We can always use a volunteer or two to help with a new show. If you can help, let us know.

Memorial Day

2010-05-31T10:36:00.005-07:00

Today is Memorial Day. We are reminded on this day of those who have fought to make this country one where we can express ourselves without fear of reprisal, where political cartoons can be enjoyed, and works of art are just that. Art is often used to dig at some injustice, but it is just as likely to be viewed because it is, well... "art." Are we sure what art is? Do we know the difference between art and craft, illustration and graphics? What are posters for, if not to inform people with words and images? Is it image or process that make it art? Should we embrace or shun photography, or computer generated "art?" How do the layers of a work of art play upon our emotions... pride, disgust, joy, sadness, remembrance? This day, when we look at images of the war overseas and the devastation of the Gulf Oil spill, we can't help but think that the images are being sent back to us by "boots on the ground," by photographers, artists and journalists, the eyes and ears of our culture; we are able to look at all of it because we live here in America.

So next time you get out the pens, the paints, the computer, your creative thoughts, you can thank all of those who fought in all those conflicts since this country was formed, for our right of self expression.

And while you're thinking of creating, be aware that in the next year, the San Pedro River Arts Council will calling for artists' reaction to the 911 tragedy. It will be 10 years since that event, in September of 2011.

Summer Artists And Summer Not

2010-05-28T13:02:00.008-07:00

It's summer here in the desert. We're close to our first 100° day. The San Pedro Arts Council has had a bit of a chance to rest from our big Celebrate the Arts! event in March. This was the first year we have done an event on this scale, and we are rightly proud of the result. Now it's time to get to work on next year! We've already started tweaking the various aspects of the event. If you have ideas pass them on to us. And tell us if you went to the event, or one like it where you live. I lived in New England a good part of my life, and I subscribe to an email from "WhoFish.org." They post events in that region and as I know the area well, I can relate to what they are doing. We struggle here to live up to our mission, and the events that we can put on are limited, mostly because we are short of help. Is this the case where you live or do volunteers "come out of the woodwork" as one person told me?

While we're working on next year's Celebrate the Arts! we are also planning for the rest of the 2010 year. We will be sitting in on a Chamber of Commerce event called "Butterfield Stage Days," in October. We will be putting on our own event for the 4th year running, called A Gathering of Artists & Friends. See our Home Page to find this event. We're looking to redirect the scope of this event and your ideas will be welcome. What would you expect to find at A Gathering of Artists and Friends? A little later on, toward the end of the year, we will put on an unjuried show of adult and kids' art, for one day only. We attract people from all over the Cochise County, in Arizona. Last December we called this show "Art is Ageless!" (also look for this from the Home Page) which seemed fitting, and we had a beautiful big space to do this.

We'd like to position ourselves to be able to hold classes in art, and forums on various arts concerns, but we're not there yet. We could use a building, unfettered with having to pay for anything on a regular basis (utility bills are out of the question right now). We are getting more and more members, but the money generated is not anything like what we could really use. We are searching for ways to generate that money; grants are one way, but inventive ways are needed and if you have some ideas, here would be a good place to share them.

Southeastern Arizona Arts In Academics Training

2010-05-27T15:18:00.000-07:00

Southeastern Arizona Arts in Academics is a consortium of rural schools: Ash Creek, Double Adobe, Naco, Fort Thomas Elementary, Fort Thomas High School and Mount Turnbull Academy (a charter school on the Apache Reservation at Bylas). It is a professional development project to improve academics through arts integration. The project is funded by a grant from DOE for professional development in arts integration. The project is just completing its second year and is funded for one more year. The project has produced some amazing results in terms of student engagement and learning, as well as bringing teachers professional development in curriculum design and performance based assessment.

Our June training will highlight some of the projects designed and implemented by our 6 master teaching artists in collaboration with classroom teachers in the project. The session is also designed to reinforce the curriculum planning and the performance based assessment tools and concepts the project is using. The teaching artists and the teachers will be engaged in several performance tasks to refine and demonstrate their skill level.

June 1 & 2, Cochise College - Benson Center, registration June 1, 7:15 am to 7:45 am

Balancing Creativity

2010-05-16T18:46:00.000-07:00

Artists, What’s Your Style: How do you manage to be Creative in this busy world?

Are you one of those artists that can hold up in a studio and work all day? Do you need a specific place set aside to make art or can you just set up your materials and work anywhere? These are just two questions that I always want to know from other artists.

Personally, I can only work for short periods of time, maybe 20 to 30 minutes, then I have to walk away from my painting or inevitably I’ll screw up and ruin the whole thing. I’m a watercolorist and it’s really easy to over work a painting. So, I learned the hard way not to try and push a painting to completion. I also have to have a specific place set aside to do my painting. Given the way I paint, in spits and spurts, it would not be practical for me to have to clean up and put away all my materials until the next time I take up a brush. I have what I loosely call my “studio” where I can leave my materials out and just walk back in and start where I left off on a painting. It’s the only thing that works for me.

One day I’ll have to describe my “studio” for you. It’s not perfect (can we say no running water) but it works for me.

I would like to hear how other artist’s work and hope many of you will share with the rest of us how you manage to create your art. What kind of environment do you have? What is your working style? Tell us how you manage to deal with all the outside influences that eat into your creative time. If you would like to share your creative experiences with us just respond to this blog. I know there are a lot of artist out there who would love to hear how you balance being creative with all the demands of everyday life.

Shryl Miles

Shryl is a watercolorist and a member of the San Pedro River Arts Council living in Saint David, Arizona.

Thoughts Of A Volunteer And Artist

2010-05-12T07:19:00.000-07:00

As any visual artist knows making art is a solitary endeavor. But being an artist in a rural environment doesn’t have to mean you live in an artistic vacuum.

My husband and I moved to Saint David over 10 years ago and up until about two years ago I had not met one single local artist. I had always lamented the fact that this area seemed to be devoid of artists. If I had only known then what I know now my previous eight years of residency would have been a lot different.

Before I became involved with the San Pedro River Arts Council (SPRAC) I felt totally isolated as an artist. But since becoming involved with the arts council I have met literally dozens of local artist. I have participated as an artist in events sponsored by SPRAC, volunteered to help with organizing and implementing events, and provided graphics for different function. I’ve even participated in the Benson 4^th of July parade handing out information about SPRAC. It doesn’t get much more exciting than that!

The point I’m trying to make is that becoming involved in the local art community provides numerous opportunities for any artist who is interested in meeting other artist, exhibiting their work or becoming part of the arts community. You might want to give it a try.

Shryl Miles

(The image is that of a Shryl Miles watercolor titled “White Petunia’s.”)

Teaching Artist Roster

2010-05-11T08:21:00.000-07:00

The Arizona Commission on the Arts Teaching Artist Roster is now accepting applications for 2011-2012. The roster is a database of artists of differing disciplines with web search capability. If you are an artist, being listed on the Teaching Artist Roster is one more way you can be found and recognized. To quote ACA:

The Arizona Commission on the Arts Teaching Artist Roster identifies and promotes high quality Arizona artists in all disciplines who maintain active careers as teaching and professional artists, and have particular expertise in collaborating with communities and schools to conduct learning experiences in, through and about the arts.

Artists are approved for listing on the Teaching Artist Roster after completing a rigorous application, review and interview process led by a panel of artists, educators, presenters and citizens of Arizona.

Deadline to submit “Artist Intent to Apply:” August 5, 2010
Deadline to submit “Teaching Artist Roster Application:” September 2, 2010

Links for additional information:

The teaching artist roster: http://roster.azarts.gov
The application guide: http://www.azarts.gov/arts-learning/teaching-artist-resources/apply-to-the-roster/

And be sure to check the web site of the San Pedro River Arts Council for other events and news.

Where The Wild Things Are

2010-05-10T18:03:00.000-07:00

Now through June 23 you can see an exhibit of local and not so local artists presenting works that represent their interpretation of the theme, "Where the Wild Things Are." The show is in the Benson City Hall Gallery, 120 West 6^th Street, Benson, AZ. The gallery is open when the City Council Chamber is open for business or by appointment by calling (520) 586-6331.

Appreciation

2010-05-08T10:09:00.000-07:00

When one works as a volunteer the reward one receives is the satisfaction of successfully accomplishing a goal set by the organization. Celebrate The Arts was a major undertaking and while we thought the event a success it is great to get confirmation from someone outside the organization.

I'm writing to thank you for the wonderful event that you pulled together to "Celebrate the Arts." It was tasty, musically fulfilling and artistically enhancing. Very nice that the show was up for a few several of the classes and am planning to pursue the encaustic workshop with Karon Leigh.

Thank you for your very successful efforts!

Sincerely,
Denise Eggman

And thank you Denise for taking the time to write to us.

Call To Artists

2010-05-07T18:27:00.000-07:00

The Triple Green Cafe inside Turquoise Hills Golf & RV on Rt 80 in Benson displays the work of our local artists. Bernie Fierro is exhibiting during the month of May. We are looking for artists to follow Bernie. Works in oil or acrylic, watercolor, photographs, graphic art, conte crayon, pastels... anything that is framed and can be hung on the walls. The art work is seen by many people and provides an opportunity for you to get greater exposure as well as sell your work. There is no fee. If you are interested, please click here to send an email and we will put you on the list. Thanks.

We Have Walls

2010-05-07T08:14:00.000-07:00

Bernard (Bernie) Fierro, western artist extraordinaire is exhibiting his work in the Triple Green Cafe. You can see samples of his work on his web site. The Triple Green Cafe is in the Turquois Hills Golf & RV, 800 E. Country Club Dr., Benson, Arizona 85602. Telephone: (520) 586-7535. The Triple Green Cafe is open seven days a week from 7:00 am to 3:00 pm and some evenings for dinner. Call for evening hours.

How We Exist

2010-05-06T12:17:00.000-07:00

We could not continue our work without support from the community. This includes financial support as well as help from volunteers. You can help us financially by clicking on the donate button on our site.

We have an immediate need for volunteers. We are looking for volunteers who will help us:

Recruit artists to exhibit at Turquoise Hills Golf & RV in Benson, approx 8 hours/month.
Create a theme and recruit artists to exhibit in the Benson City Hall Gallery, approx 8 hours/month.
Join our Board of Directors, time depending upon position but approx 20 hours/month.

If you want to join an active organization, be involved in the arts community, work and have fun, click here to send me an email. And thank you.

Southwest Arts Conference

2010-05-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

Register for the 33^rd Annual Southwest Arts Conference!

The Southwest Arts Conference is the only convening of the statewide arts community in Arizona, hosting artists, arts educators, arts advocates, volunteers, arts administrators and arts enthusiasts. The conference offers learning sessions and opportunities for networking with peers and dynamic speakers representing state, regional and national arts organizations. Attend the one-and-a-half day convening for professional development, to grow your peer network and to be inspired by other attendees, performers and guest speakers.

For complete conference information, please visit http://www.azarts.gov/swac/.

New Web Site

2010-05-05T13:35:00.001-07:00

We hope you have visited our new web site, www.SPRArts.org. We will keep our site updated with cultural events across Cochise County, news about our local artists and happenings within the Council. The site is very new and you will notice changes and enhancements as we continue our site development.

This site is for you. If you have suggestions to make the site more useful please let us know. You can email me or use the comment section below. I will respond.

San Pedro River Arts Council

A Big “Thank You”

ARTISTS! Time Is Running Out

Members Meeting

Call to Artists

ACA Grant Received

Council President Announces Resignation

Small Wonders at Tucson Drawing Studio

Call to Artists

Shryl Miles Rejoins Board

Benson City Hall Wall-Space Gallery

Member Visual Artist Release of Contact Information

Artist Project Grants

Member Artist (Visual) Update

Stacy Family Art Exhibit

What’s A June Bug Got to Do With It?

Sylvia Announces Resignation as President

Tubac Call for Artists - Deadlines Approaching

HAA Call to Artists

Handcrafted works of art, fine art show & sale

November 2 to December 31, 2011 At the Mall in Sierra Vista 2200 El Mercado Loop

Presentation

Delivery and Pickup

Entry

Exhibition Cancelled

A Gathering of Artists & Friends

Remembering 9/11

C'mon and Join us!

More Updating of “Remembering 9/11” Show

Updating Call to Artists for "Remembering 9/11"

Yahoo Email Failing

A Rant (and a rave)

Remembering 9/11

Member Artists - Check your personal page

Y'all Come!

Celebrate the Arts! 2011

CALL TO ARTISTS!

Celebrate the Arts! 2011

Starving Artist?

Who Will Be the Mentors?

From the Arizona Commission on the Arts

Are we rushing through life?

WallSpace Galleries

Tragedy in Tucson

Looking for the Miracle in 2011

Generosity of Spirit

Holiday Greetings

Christmas On 4th

Cochise County Is Flagless

Elfrida Open House

Brenda Péo - Best of Show

We Are Thankful

SCAM Alert

Seeking A Poet

Studio Space: Consider all your options

Gripes and Kudos

Update

Art not for the faint of heart

A St. David Volunteer Speaks

Arts Talk!

Helping St. David

In praise of inexpensive materials

Seeking Vendors

"Wall Space" Galleries

Volunteers to Sit the Gallery

Summer Activity For Kids

Call To Artists

News and Stuff

New Show

Memorial Day

Summer Artists And Summer Not

Southeastern Arizona Arts In Academics Training

Balancing Creativity

Thoughts Of A Volunteer And Artist

Teaching Artist Roster

Where The Wild Things Are

Appreciation

Call To Artists

We Have Walls

How We Exist

November 2 to December 31, 2011
At the Mall in Sierra Vista
2200 El Mercado Loop