THE CLAUDIA MITCHELL ARTS FUND GRANT: FAQ/ABOUT

The Claudia Mitchell Arts Fund grant to the Middle Street Gallery

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

On May 1, 2014, the Middle Street Gallery received a $2,000 grant from the Claudia Mitchell Arts Fund.

Q: Who is Claudia Mitchell, and what is the Mitchell Arts Fund?

A: The late Claudia Mitchell was an avid supporter of the arts, including the Middle Street Gallery. When she died, she left behind substantial funds “to enliven and sustain the arts in Rappahannock County with the goal of enhancing the quality of our community life.” The fund is administered by the Rappahannock Association for the Arts and the Community (RAAC).

Q: Who gets these funds?

A: According to the RAAC, “We award grants in the visual arts, music, literature, theater, dance, film/video, and projects combining multiple media. We offer grants to emerging and established artists of all ages, arts organizations, art programs within community-based organizations, collaborative projects, and especially to programs with a community focus.” Grants go to fund specific named projects, not for general support of operations.

Q: What projects did the gallery propose?

A: Two projects aimed at arts students at Rappahannock High School. One is a workshop program and the other an in-gallery docent program.

Q: How would the docent program work?

A: That hasn't been precisely determined yet, but the idea is that the school would bus some number of students to the gallery, probably but not necessarily during school hours, for a tour and informal lecture by a gallery member. The docent would guide the students around the gallery making brief statements about the styles, methods and strengths of the various works at the gallery that month. The docent might then select some small number of the works (maybe 1-4) do do an in-depth critique and explication. 

Q: How would the workshops work?

A: They would most likely occur at the school during school hours. Alternatively, they could happen at the gallery or in an artist's studio. Memebers Jo Levine and Gary Anthes will do one at the school in photography this fall. We also have members who tentatively have agreed to do one on glass work/mosaics and one on Japanese paper making. 

A: When will these things take place?

Q: During the 2014-2015 school year, from Sept. through May.

Fields, Gardens, Elephants and Abstracts at the Middle St. Gallery

(Press Release)

From May 16 to June 22 the Middle Street Gallery in Sperryville will show scenes of the Virginia outdoors by member artist Kathleen Willingham. Her exhibition, “Land, Sky, Water,” captures “the enjoyment and sense of peacefulness that I feel while on-site or remembering the place at a later time,” she says. Willingham, a former art teacher who has lived in Fauquier County all her life, offers paintings of Virginia places from the mountains to the Chesapeake Bay.  Many of her works are “plein air,” or painted on location.

“I enjoy painting near water, fields, gardens, and wooded areas within sight of mountains when possible,” she says. “I use the medium of soft pastel, and I enjoy the richness and purity of color that come from the strong pigments. Manipulation of the pastel to creates textures and visual expressions that happen with this medium is just fun.”

Five members of the non-profit artists cooperative will show smaller collections. Nancy Brittle presents a suite of paintings from her gardens. “As the farmer's daughter, digging in the earth is part of me,” she says. “After the work is done, I love to sit in the garden in all seasons to read, reflect, and paint.” One of her paintings shows her two 10-year-old cousins helping her in the squash patch.

Rosabel Goodman-Everard's three pieces are based on contour drawings of her left hand, “with the hand representing the mind.” Thomas Spande will show four framed pencil drawings of zoo elephants, rendered with confident and energetic lines. Photograher Jo Levine will show moody architectural scenes and semi-abstract images, while Gary Anthes will show a suite of four photographs of the identical farm scene in Rappahannock County, each in different seasons and types of weather.

The gallery will hold an opening reception for the artists and the public from 3pm until 5pm on Sat., May 17.

Located at Rappahannock Central at 3 River lane in Sperryville, the gallery is open Fri., Sat. and Sun. from 10 AM until 5 PM. For more information, please visit http://www.middlestreetgallery.org/ or call 540-987-9330.

Submitted by Gary Anthes