Meeting Notes 5/22/10

A small but lively group of Chensters enjoyed exotic and oh so delicious Malaysian Cuisine at our May monthly meeting, thanks to Jenny Chen. Our beautifully framed Arts Ovation Award for emerging artist is hanging in the front of the restaurant. I passed around the other official documents and proclamations that go with the award, and Ellen will be scanning the documents so we can post them at the blog. Congratulations to the group.

Ellen, who is helping to coordinate our next group show, presented some details about the show.
It is scheduled for August 7th-20th, with an opening on Aug. 7th at 7pm, at the Antonio Salemme Foundation Gallery on Hamilton St. in Allentown. Thanks to Joe Skrapits for offering the space. There will be a $10 entry fee, and Heather will be collecting the money, which is due at the end of June. Artists can submit up to 3 works of art, through e-mail. We can hang the show salon style, and will be able to fit up to 40 pieces to hang on the walls, plus there will be pedestals for sculpture, and shelving available for displaying art work. We will be limiting the size of the work to 24"x36" We will need volunteers to sit at the gallery, and to accept the work the weekend before the show. If you are interested in participating, please attend the next meeting so we can discuss forming committees of volunteers. If you are interested in showing your work, please volunteer in some way to help with the show. There is a piano at the gallery, and Heather has offered us a pianist to perform at our opening. Thanks Heather!

We discussed possible themes and titles for the show, but decided that we need more artist input, and we should conduct a vote (through group e-mail)
Here are the ideas we discussed: Renewal, Ovation, Emergence, Revolution, and Action
More details about the show will follow through group e-mail.

Sondra, Executive Director of HALA (Hispanic American League of Artists) addressed the group. Sondra is on a planning committee working on turning the vacant Neuweiler Brewery building into an arts center. She is surveying artists, organizations, and business owners to determine what needs they have for space. She will be sending online surveys to artists. The city owns the building, and the DCED (Dept. Community and Economic Development) is working with arts groups like HALA, Arts Luminarium, and others to turn the abandoned building into a green , environmentally sustainable, multicultural home for the arts in Allentown. Ideas we discussed: a possible future gallery space, artist studios, a theatre outlet, fashion, bakery, location to shoot movies.

Hope to see you at the next meeting, and look for e-mails and updates at the blog.

Angie Villa
Fish photo by Gianni

Inexpensive ads available for artists

Hi there everyone,

As you know, Matt and I are working with a team of volunteers to bring Allentown Freak Out to the downtown June 18-19.

We are busy working on our festival program booklet and selling ads to support the festival. Basically, the ads help us cover costs and pay performers (bands, fire performers, etc...) so the event can be FREE tot the public.

If you are interested in supporting this cause, while also advertising your artistic skills, please contact me to tak out an ad at: sponsors@allentownfreakout.com

We are offering business card-sized ads to working artists for just $30. The same size ad for a business sells for $50 and a half-page program ad sells for $100. Thanks for considering this offer.

Deadline for ads is June 1.

Hope to see you downtown at the Freak Out!
Sarah
sponsors@allentownfreakout.com

Art Opening at fun new bookstore in Emmaus

Here are the details for an art opening featuring the work of Michael Shoudt at the Blind Willow Book Shop in Emmaus:



(image from the store's blog)

Blind Willow Bookshop - 412 Chestnut St., Emmaus: http://blindwillowbookshop.wordpress.com

Do we want to plan a group show?

Hi there. I recently sent out an email about holding our next group show at the Salemme Foundation on Hamilton Street. Please discuss dates, length of show, fees, planning, etc...in the comment section of this post.

Here are the basics:

Antonio Salemme Foundation is located at 542 Hamilton Street #203 on the second floor overlooking downtown Allentown.

The space is available for rent for a group show at $75 a week.

We may not be able to accommodate the 30-40 artists that we have in the past, but we could probably do 20 in this space. (I do not have the exact wall footage at this time, I am only estimating.)

Please discuss and decide if we should move forward. If someone would like to volunteer to coordinate this show, please step forward and send me an email at the address below! Thanks.

Sarah
chenarts.info@gmail.com

Arts Funding Alert from Citizens for the Arts in PA:

Dear Fellow Arts Advocates,

Will the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA) be on the chopping block when the PA Senate finishes deliberations on the state budget?

Yesterday afternoon, Governor Edward G. Rendell announced Pennsylvania will end the fiscal year (June 30, 2010) with a deficit of over $1 billion. Without additional revenue enhancements, Rendell speculated that significant layoffs and furloughs are inevitable.

In reaction to the latest budget news, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that Senate Appropriations Chair Jake Corman (R-Centre County) said that his caucus would push "for reducing spending to reflect the state's new "budget reality." He did not describe what cuts he would make." http://bit.ly/9zl3OL

We need your help and we need it NOW! The PA Senate is working on the state budget.

We need you to: Share this e-mail with friends, family and business associates and encourage them to advocate for the arts. Organize a trip to your State Senator's District Office ASAP (bring other arts advocates with you). Personal visits have the largest impact on public policy-makers. Share information about jobs supported by the arts with your senator (there are 62,000 full-time equivalent jobs that are supported by nonprofit arts organizations in PA) Make sure that you have at least one of the senator's constituents in your group.

These visits to your senator's district office are of vital importance to keep PCA funding in the FY 11-12 state budget. MAKE THAT APPOINTMENT TODAY!

Jenny L. Hershour
Managing Director
Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania