August/September 2024: What's New with Arts Alive Artists

Welcome to Arts Alive’s member updates. This blog is part of our monthly newsletter, which you can access here. This month we have a couple gallery openings in BRAND NEW gallery spaces, artists excited about learning new things and expanding their expertise, and new leadership in a local arts organization. Read on!

Bryan Field learns a new carving technique

Henry the goat

Excited to have returned from a workshop at Snow Farm where I learned how to carve on the lathe using multi-axis turning. The course was taught be Derek Wieidman. After years of pens and bowls I can break out of the circular thinking that has limited my creativity and the world is now my oyster! Meet Henry the goat, my first multi-axis turning.

Social Practice Artist Residency (Keene): SPAR(K) at Covenant Living of Keene 2024

Olivia DelGandio

SPAR(K) has selected an artist for the Fall 2024 Residency: Olivia DelGandio of Portland, Oregon will be in Residency for the month of October 2024. This proposed residency will offer a $5000 stipend to the artist as well as living accommodations. Covenant Living will offer a full-time art/work studio to the resident artist and meeting and presentation rooms.

The resident artist will work closely with Craig Stockwell (SPAR(K) Director) and Gregg Burdett (Covenant Director) and Rebecca Poor (Covenant Chaplain). It is understood that the nature of Social Practice art is that a process will develop and that we will have patience to allow that process and outcomes to develop as needed.The 2024 Residency will take place at Covenant Living of Keene. Covenant Living is a senior living community that is, by mission, devoted to providing a vital community experience.  The idea for the residency grew out of conversations that SPAR(K) Director, Craig Stockwell had with Carl Jacobs, a Covenant resident. Craig is 72 and is a working studio artist and teacher, but thoughts of how to be an artist in the next phase of life are present in his thinking. The Residency would likely begin with the artist in conversation with Craig around these issues and move quickly to a convened group of 8 artists dealing with aging. The skill of a social practice artist is to take these bare bones and enter a process that would engage: 1) Stockwell, 2) a focus/core group, 3) the Covenant Community, and 4) the Keene community. Age and a changing artistic practice would be the focus with the understanding that thinking around this issue speaks to us all.

taryn fisher opens a home gallery

Gallery Director Taryn Fisher is delighted to debut her boutique fine art gallery, particularly since art lovers continue to lament the closure of her beautifully appointed LNHC Keene Fine Craft Gallery on Central Square. 

After searching for space for well over a year, Taryn chose to convert an under-utilized space in her home on Court Street into a gallery. She installed lighting, a museum-style art hanging system, new windows, and hardwood flooring, all which amplify the beauty of artworks on display.

Taryn Fisher Fine Art showcases the original, contemporary work of accomplished artists based in the Greater Monadnock Region. Mediums include paintings, prints, sculpture, photography, and mixed media artworks.

Taryn will host an Artist Reception featuring abstract oil and acrylic painter Scott J. Morgan on Saturday, August 31st from 4 to 6 pm.

The abstract curves and forms of Scott’s art emulate nature. Scott describes his work being “like a song, a lyrical dialogue of line, form and color.” Not surprisingly, Scott is also a musician (jazz, rock, reggae).

An exhibition of Scott’s artworks – including painted guitars – will be on display at the gallery from August 31st through September 28th.

Taryn Fisher Fine Art is located at 302 Court Street in Keene. Except for Special Events and Artist Receptions, gallery hours are by appointment only.

For more info, visit https://tarynfisherfineart.com, text 978-985-4720, or email  tarynfisherfineart@gmail.com.

joan hanley’s solo exhibit in Maine

Rockland, ME – The Blue Raven Gallery is pleased to announce Joan Hanley’s debut solo exhibition in Maine, titled Intimate Paradox: Joan Hanley, opening on September 3–30, 2024. An opening reception and Artist’s Talk will be held on September 21 at 5:30pm at the gallery, located at 374 Main Street, Rockland, Maine.

The exhibition marks a welcome return to coastal Maine, where, decades ago, the artist led Outward Bound trips from Hurricane Island in Penobscot Bay. Hanley’s career began in 1980 when renowned artist Alice Neel juried her into her first exhibition. Since then, she has refined her practice within the American painting tradition, drawing inspiration from masters like Fairfield Porter, Milton Avery, and Lois Dodd. “I paint the ordinary strangeness of life. My lifelong meditation practice and interest in image-based psychology inform my work, where paintings juxtapose cell phones with intimacy, and our climate crisis with herons – I love paradox,” says Hanley.

The New Hampshire-based artist will present a new series of works featuring several large and mid scale paintings in gouache and oil, along with smaller studies that extend her exploration of oil paint. At the heart of the exhibition is Jake (2024), a large-scale gouache painting created specifically for this show, depicting the iconic black-and-white checkered floor of the historic bank where the gallery is housed—nestled between the Farnsworth Art Museum and the Island Institute. The artist’s sketchbooks will also be on display, providing an intimate glimpse into her creative process. The exhibition traces her journey from initial sketches of everyday, personal moments to small paintings where her ideas take shape, culminating in large canvases where her compositions come into full focus.

Joan Hanley (b. 1955, Queens, New York) is a painter, teacher and has led an art & yoga mentorship program for eight years supporting artists at every stage of their careers. For the past 25 years, she has lived and painted in New Hampshire with breaks for a residency year in Dublin, Ireland and extended trips teaching abroad in countries like Mexico, China, Taiwan and England. Hanley has exhibited her work internationally in venues such as Broadstone Studios in Dublin and cultural institutions such as the Fitchburg Art Museum, MA, Brattleboro Museum, VT, the Mariposa Museum, NH, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA, the Open Center NY, the University Museum of Contemporary Art at UMass and the Attleboro Museum, MA. Hanley completed a BFA from Hartford Art School and MFA from Vermont College.

Intimate Paradox: Joan Hanley is the culmination of a prolific year for the artist, presenting three exhibitions across New England, including AVA Gallery in Lebanon, NH and Gallery 51 in North Adams, MA. She is also featured in the Group show, The Lure of the Local at the Fine Arts Gallery in Putney, VT curated by Humberto Ramirez. For more information about her work, studio visits, events and her artist mentorship program, visit www.hanleystudio.com

Apple Hill has a new executive director

Sam Bergman

The Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music is thrilled to announce Sam Bergman as the non-profit arts organization’s new Executive Director, effective September 3, 2024. Bergman is a distinguished musician, advocate for greater inclusivity in classical music, and a former faculty member at Apple Hill. He will succeed Javier Caballero, who ... is now departing to pursue new opportunities. Read the press release here.

The sustainability project opens a gallery

DEPORTEES:  A TRIBUTE at the Sustainability Project's Emerson Brook Forest Center 

Some of Susan O'Hara's clay heads

The first exhibit to herald the opening of the beautiful new event space and gallery at 57 Emerson Brook Drive, Gilsum, NH will be "Deportees:  A Tribute", featuring works on paper by Erika Radich, NH Printmaker.  

The opening reception takes place on September 19th, from 4-6pm, and the exhibit runs through October 31st.  Refreshments will be served.  There is a suggested donation of $18, with no one turned away for lack of funds.  We hope for a lively turnout with ample opportunity to connect with Erika and to discuss her work.  

The Sustainability Project's newly completed event space and gallery, the Emerson Brook Forest Center, provides a permanent home for the vast collection of sculptured clay heads by artist Susan O'Hara.  There are hundreds of these creations, in a variety of styles and gestures, all evocative and emotionally compelling.  

Lucas Lopez Medina by Erika Radich

Additionally, space is reserved in the new structure, to house transitory exhibits by regional artists.  "Deportees:  A Tribute", is the first of these.  The exhibit features a suite of 28 monotype collages addressing issues of social injustice, equality, and human dignity.  As Radich explains, "...the exhibit may become personal to each viewer.  In 1948 there was a plane crash in Los Gatos Canyon, California.  Twenty eight Mexican farmworkers died as they were being deported to Mexico.  The migrant workers were buried in a mass grave, with only a single plaque, referring to them as 'Mexican Nationals'.  The New York Times reported the accident as the death of 28 'nameless' deportees.  Fundamental to who we are, what our identity is, is our name.  In this exhibit we remember who they were and, in the process, who we are."

Subsequent to the September 19th opening, the exhibit is open by appointment through October 31st. 

Please contact Valerie Piedmont at 603-209-7272 for details, if you'd like to docent this or future exhibits, or if you are interested in hanging an exhibit of your own.

Arts Alive explores heritage crafts and morris dance with artists

Artists gather at 17ROX artist studios in Keene. Photo by Jennifer Paone.

On Sunday, August 25th, at 10AM, Arts Alive invites the arts community and arts lovers to join a Field Trip at The Craft School at Mill Hollow Works in Keene, NH. Participants will meet the co-founders Heather Holloway and Wade Smith, who will share the story of the Mill Hollow school, from its beginnings as Elm Farm and why heritage crafts are so impactful, to how the school operates and different ways to get involved as an artist or creative. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided. 

Afterwards, participants will have the opportunity to watch a performance by Firebird Morris, a English folk dance group that performs molly and border dances in costume at festivals and community events. Participants will also be able to take part in a steam bending demonstration and activity with the craft school, and tour the premises, which border a farm. Weather permitting, the Field Trip will take place outdoors. Registration is $15 at monadnockartsalive.org/artist-field-trips and $10 for Arts Alive members.

Artists meet at 310 Marlboro in Keene to hear from Berlin-based muralist Polina Soloveichik on her work-in-progress on the building. Photo by Taryn Fisher.

As an arts service organization, Arts Alive offers Field Trips, a series of casual, friendly mornings designed for exploration, learning, and connection, to local artists and arts lovers looking to expand their creativity and network. During Field Trips, attendees dive into local arts spaces and businesses they may not otherwise explore, meet and connect with new people in their community, and learn about available resources and opportunities for social, creative, and professional expansion in and around the Monadnock region.

Heritage crafts is a large discipline that practices skills and knowledge of traditional  materials, function, design and techniques that have been carried through two or more successive generations. The school at Mill Hollow Works teaches boatbuilding, carving, textiles, and basketry, among other crafts to cultivate empowerment, community and self-reliance. Because Mill Hollow Works is known primarily for their traditional boatbuilding, woodworking and carpentry programs, the school will offer an easy woodworking activity. Following a 5-10 minute demonstration, Field Trip participants will be able to make their own wooden bracelets from steam bending cherry birch and fastening the wood together with copper clench nails.

Jordana Korsen of Hot Glass Art Center in Marlborough leads participants in making glass ornaments at an April 2024 field trip.

Previous field trips to visual and performing arts venues in New Hampshire’s Monadnock region and Brattleboro, Vermont include DublinArts & Muse Gallery, MAXT Makerspace’s Ceramics Center, 17ROX Artist Studios, Historic Harrsiville and Harrisville Designs, the Keene Public Library’s Kingsbury Makerspace, The Stone Church, Mitchell Giddings Fine Arts, First Proof Press, Epsilon Spires, and individual artists’ studios.

Previous attendees have expressed the value of this program through feedback appreciating “Learning about the artists and organizations in our community,” “Meeting other people involved in the arts and comparing stories,” and “Seeing studios and artists and spaces. Sharing thoughts.”

This Field Trip is $15 and $10 for Arts Alive members. To register for the event and future trips, visit monadnockartsalive.org/artist-field-trips. For information about accessibility, please call 603-283-0944 or email nina@monadnockartsalive.org.

Arts Alive is supported in part by National Endowment for the Arts, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, and this program is supported by a generous gift from C & S Wholesale Grocers.

Arts Alive News: Glimpses into Projects of Local Artists

Welcome to Arts Alive’s member updates! This blog is part of our monthly newsletter, which you can access here. Read on for highlights on ongoing projects, recent successes or inspired ideas, shifts in direction, achievements, and other pursuits that swell the hearts of our our member community with curiosity, inspiration, and pride. The Monadnock region is home to so many interesting and creative people and initiatives…find out what’s happening around the corner or under your nose!

Alexandria Peary

I have a Fulbright for 2024-2025 to conduct research in Pforzheim, Germany (my mother's birth city). I will be conducting archival research and interview to look at the February 23, 1945 bombing of Pforzheim by the British Royal Air Force, an air raid which lasted approximately 20 minutes and decimated the city and its population. (Per capita, Pforzheim, though lesser known, was more destructive than Dresden.)  I'll be looking at what I call “the language of city hall bureaucracy”—town hall documents. How city officials between approximately 1935-1955 conducted ordinary city business (electricity, road management, taxes, etc) and at the same time used that language to perpetuate human rights atrocities (prior to February 23, 1945) and then manage the removal of the city rubble and the regeneration of the city. My focus is on city hall rhetoric around two sites: the mass grave in the city cemetery with victims from the February 23 bombing and Wallberg, one of the “rubble mountains” made from the broken buildings that stand at many German cities. At the same time, I'll be building my own intergenerational identity, getting to know Pforzheim and my relatives. I really only first met my German extended family in 2019, and I brought my mother back to Pforzheim last summer. She hadn't seen her brothers since 1963. In essence, I'm using scholarly methods (archival research, rhetorical analysis, field research and interview) to write imaginatively. I'll be using the research to write creatively, a duology, a book of poetry and a book of creative nonfiction about Pforzheim. An example of the work I've already completed through research is my long poem The Pforzheim Quartet.

Jeanne M. Thieme

I just had an unveiling of a 4' x 16’ mural that I painted. Last summer, I had a fall off the back of my horse. I broke a right collarbone and left wrist. This left me unable to care for my horses. They sadly went to new homes. Over the years 11 horses have lived in my barn at Pipe Dream Farm so when I could paint, I created this mural of all 11 horses and had an unveiling last week. My four grandchildren painted the background. As I painted this mural pain and loss became gratitude that I had 40 years with my horses and they would live on on my barn wall for a very long time. Oh the healing power of ART!! The story and more photos are on my FB page and on my website.

Sandglass Theater

Sandglass Theater is delighted to celebrate that we have received artist visas for 3 international companies! Xavier Bobés Company from Spain, FAB-Theater from Germany, and Puzzle Théâtre from Canada will be joining us at our upcoming Puppets in the Green Mountains festival this September. We can't wait to introduce these unique and wonderful artists to our community.

Chris Pellerin

I needle felt landscapes and animal portraits. This technique uses a barbed needle to secure fine wisps of dyed wool fibers into a felt or cloth background. My current obsession is trying to capture sky and water in wool, studying the light at different times of day and seasons on Highland Lake in Stoddard.  I attached a couple of photos, one of myself and one of a work-in-progress.

Viva Bach Peterborough

Preparations are in full swing for our third annual Viva Bach Peterborough Festival, taking place from October 25-27!  Our Festival Chorus will begin rehearsals on August 8, under the expert direction of Colin Mann. Mann, who is currently pursuing his doctorate in Choral Conducting at Eastman, brings a wealth of experience to our festival. He previously served as Artistic Director of the Monadnock Chorus and is well-acquainted with the Monadnock region. In his third year of conducting Viva Bach Peterborough Festival chorus, Mann has curated a stunning program for day three of the festival that includes Bach's cherished Motet "Jesu Meine Freude" (BWV 227) and the beautiful Cantatas "Aus der Tiefen rufe ich, Herr, zu dir" (BWV 131) and "Brich dem Hungrigen dein Brot" (BWV 39).

Our Festival Chorus is a vibrant, intergenerational group of 70 singers, ranging in age from 16 to 90. We look forward to bringing this diverse and talented ensemble together to celebrate the timeless music of Bach. Find more info on the event, under the leadership of Artistic Director Veronika Schreiber, here!

Amy McGregor-Radin

Amy McGregor-Radin of Jaffrey, NH will be one of five artists sharing their work and creative approach at A Sense of Wonder: Paying Attention with Intention, an art exhibition at the Dublin Community Center in August. She will be joined by Susan Byrne of Keene, Joan Cunningham of Hancock, Terry Govan of Peterborough, and Jean Mann of Hancock.

While each of these artists has a distinct style and approach, they all share a
curiosity about what it means to pay attention with intention throughout the
creative process. They also share an appreciation for the beauty of the natural
world and the sense of wonder it fosters—as a healing force and an antidote to
the persistent distractions of everyday life. The exhibit features art in a variety of mediums, including oil paintings, collage, detailed mandala-like designs, and hand-pulled prints.

The Dublin Community Center is a non-profit organization located in the heart of Dublin Center. The exhibit will be open from August 9 through August 28 during DCC hours 10-12 Mondays, 9-3 Tuesdays and 1-4pm Wednesdays. The opening reception will be Friday, August 9 from 5-7pm at the center at 1123 Main Street, Dublin NH.

17Rox

17ROX is having a Solo Exhibit and Group show on September 13th from 5-8PM. James Duffy will be presenting abstract acrylic work. Music, art & snacks provided! 

The Local crowd monadnock

The Local Crowd Monadnock is gearing up for Choose Indie Art Month in October! Inspire our community to celebrate local artists, artisans, and creativity—learn more here.

Choose Indie Art is part of the American Independent Business Alliance’s Choose Indie Local Initiative.

For more stories on the arts going on in our region, check out these arts spotlight blogs on our Discover Monadnock site! Local nonprofits like the Monadnock Chorus, MAXT Makerspace, and the Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music are doing amazing work!

ARTS ALIVE BRINGS ELEVATE THE ARTS FESTIVAL FUNDRAISER TO DOWNTOWN KEENE

Elevate the Arts Fest by Jim Murphy.

Arts Alive is excited to host their third annual outdoor community arts festival and fundraiser, Elevate the Arts Fest, on Sunday, August 11th from 11AM-4PM. The event will be held rain or shine in the Commercial Street lot on Gilbo Ave. in downtown Keene.

An afternoon full of artists, arts activities, performers, games, and music, Elevate the Arts Fest represents Arts Alive’s mission of increasing access to art, culture, and creativity as a human right. Admission and all activities are free, enabling attendees to support local artists at the arts market and Arts Alive at the raffle fundraiser.

An arts market with over 20 vendors will offer a variety of creations to peruse, ranging from handmade jewelry, ceramics, and artwork to screen-printed skateboards, honey, cookies, and wood crafts. 17ROX Artist Studios, based in downtown Keene, organizes the market. Each vendor has an item in the raffle that festival-goers can enter to win.

One of the awesome local makers at our artisan market! Photo by Jim Murphy.

Live music starts at 11AM with local band Touch the Ocean, who will then host an open mic. Musicians and performers will be sharing their work in 10-minute sets until 2PM. At 3PM, the headliner, internationally performing group Theo Martey & The Akwaaba Ensemble, will give a 45-minute performance of traditional west African drumming, dancing, and music. Other performers include Doug the Devil Stick Man, who will take a pause from making balloon animals to engage visitors with a street performance at 2:30. All the while, puppet performers from Sandglass Theater will roam the festival. Monadnock Media Group will also be broadcasting live from the event.

Theo Martey and The Awkwaaba Ensemble! Photo courtesy of akwaabaensemble.com.

Throughout the festival, arts activities with demo artists will be available to engage the creative senses of all ages. These activities include community mural painting, DIY terrariums, a WakaDoodles art area, bouquet-making with dried flowers, face painting, origami, and juggling balls with Flying Gravity Circus. Giant games of checkers, chess, connect four, and cornhole will also be available for everyone to enjoy. Food vendors will be available throughout the day: Yahso Jamaican Grille will offer tasty Jamaican cuisine, Toasty Buns will have their signature hot dogs, Frisky Cow Gelato will provide ice cream, and Shaken not Stirred will offer the summertime classic lemonade. Through this festival, Arts Alive aims to raise funds to continue the organization’s mission of supporting the arts and local artists and arts organizations. Tickets for the raffle fundraiser will be available for purchase throughout the day. Prizes donated by local businesses, arts organizations, and artists will be available to win and enjoy. The raffle drawing will be held at 4PM.

Josh Greenwald left, Nicole Colson right, Renee Monteil center volunteering at the raffle table. Photo by Jim Murphy.

Elevate the Arts Fest is a volunteer-organized event for the community. Any enthusiastic volunteers are invited to help with setting up or cleaning up the day of the festival. Find more information at monadnockartsalive.org/elevate-the-arts-fest.

Arts Alive is grateful to the 2024 event’s sponsors: The Putnam Foundation, Belletetes, Savings Bank of Walpole, Mascoma Bank, Fairfield’s Auto Group, Brewbakers Cafe, Stripe-It-Seal-It, Monadnock Media Group, Indian King Framery, Aloha Keene, 17ROX Artist Studios, and The Production House.

Unity through the arts: Arts Alive's welcome speech for the 2024 Ewing Arts Awards

Photo by The Keene Sentinel’s Hannah Schroeder

Welcome to the Ruth and James Ewing Arts Awards, where we come together to recognize and celebrate extraordinary achievements in the arts. 

We have come together, united, to celebrate what is good in our community. To experience stories, performances, and a gallery show of artists and arts presenters, arts educators and advocates who believe that the arts have an important impact on individuals and the social fabric of our community.

All of the eleven artists and organizations selected to receive awards this year are leaders. Tonight, let them inspire you with their generosity, their creativity, and their skill.

This is our tenth Ruth and James Ewing Arts Award celebration. 

The first time I sat down to discuss this idea with folks at the Sentinel, there was some idea that we’d try this out and we’d run out of folks to give awards to after a few years. I said, “I’m not sure that’s possible!”

We have hosted this event for ten years, celebrating 141 artists and organizations. The landscape of the arts has changed even in these ten years. New organizations are popping up, artists are finding their profound voices, folks passionate about the arts are moving to or returning to the area. 

We could certainly host this event for another ten years, fifty years, a hundred years—not only because the arts are flourishing here in the Monadnock region, but because the arts are an essential part of the human experience. I’m sure we could continue this event for thousands of years into the future!

Since human cultures emerged, the arts have given us a pathway to understanding. They help us deeply understand ourselves and our place in the world. When an individual expresses themselves and reflects on their inner world or the big wide world around them, we can see our own values reflected in that work—and our differences.

The arts offer a mirror to human complexities.

There is something about being witness to extraordinary art. Time can stop. The synapses in our brain are firing, writing new pathways of understanding, making new memories of something never experienced before, allowing us to slow down. There is so much to process. A moment, a shape, a color, a word, a note can contain a multitude. 

And why is that important? The arts reveal humanity and the world’s nuanced and multifaceted beauty. The arts embrace ambiguity, and challenge simplistic views of the world rooted in soundbites and headlines. And the arts provide us the tools to question and deconstruct binary narratives that are dangerous to democracies.

The arts generate within us a complex view of the world, ourselves, and each other. That complexity births empathy and understanding. Unity. Unity—which doesn’t mean we are all the same, all aligned in one thought, one morality, or one lived experience—it means we are committed to taking the time to see and feel this multitude of diversity and complexity—acknowledging each others’ motivations, passions, thoughts.

Why are these eleven our winners in 2024? These artists are not just exercising their own voices, but they are uplifting the voices, visibility, and passions of others: Art for turtles; Art for a new narrative of womens’ history; Art for queer community advocacy and placemaking; Art for encouraging the next generation towards their dreams.

With the Ewing Arts Awards, we honor those who have contributed to uplifting a complex dialogue, and those whose work continues to inspire and transform us. We honor those who enrich our lives and our communities with their creativity and vision, bringing us together.

To carry the spirit of these awards forward, I encourage each of you to lift up the local arts community. Attend a performance, visit an open studio, read a book, or participate in a workshop. Learn from the deep wisdom of arts practitioners here in the Monadnock region—they are excellent. And by supporting local artists, fellow artists, you help sustain the vibrant cultural fabric that enriches our lives and fosters deeper connections within our community.

To carry this spirit forward, share your work and process with others. Art is a universal language that speaks to our shared humanity, and by sharing, you contribute to an ongoing dialogue about the human condition.

To carry this spirit forward, discuss and reflect on the art that you encounter. Whether it's a play, a piece of music, a book, or a painting, take the time to talk about its impact with friends, family, or colleagues. These conversations help us appreciate the diverse perspectives that art and arts experiences reveal. These conversations enrich our understanding of the world.

Finally, I urge you to take inspiration from the recipients of the 2024 Ewing Arts Awards. Support increasing access to arts experiences as they do. Seek out and uplift the voices of quiet and underrepresented artists as they do. Encourage creativity in everyone because access to the arts is a human right.

By championing a diversity of artistic expression, we embrace the full spectrum of human experience and ensure that the arts remain a powerful force for unity and understanding.

Delivered by Jessica Gelter, Executive Director of Arts Alive, at the 10th annual Ruth & James Ewing Arts Awards on July 18, 2024.

Ewing Arts Awards to celebrate excellence in the arts July 18th

On Thursday, July 18th at 6:30PM at Keene State College’s Redfern Arts Center, The Keene Sentinel and Arts Alive will present the 10th annual Ruth & James Ewing Arts Awards. Named in honor of the late Ruth and James Ewing, the awards continue these influential figures’ legacies of celebrating artistic excellence. The purpose of the event is to recognize those who contribute to the flourishing local arts and culture scene in the greater Monadnock region. 2024 marks both the 10th anniversary of the awards and the 225th anniversary of The Keene Sentinel.

During the celebration, 11 artists, arts organizations, and arts advocates from southwest New Hampshire and southeast Vermont will be recognized with awards for excellence. This year’s honorees are: Matt Patterson, illustrator; Elisabeth Roos, costume, fashion, and fiber arts designer; Jo Dery, independent filmmaker, visual artist, writer; Paulee Mekdeci (Miss Ginger Soulless), theater and film-trained drag queen and burlesque artist; Christina Wright-Ivanova, pianist, operatic vocal coach, and music educator; the volunteer-run nonprofit Monadnock International Film Festival (MONIFF); Gavin Key, independent filmmaker, musician, and recent Keene State College graduate; Alec Doyle, local arts leader; Richard Whitney, accomplished portrait and landscape artist, author, and educator; MAXT Makerspace Executive Director Roy Schlieben; arts supporters Brewbakers Cafe.

The award ceremony will include winners performing live dance and music, screenings of short films produced by winners, a pop-up onsite gallery with the work of other award recipients, and video interviews featuring the wisdom and stories of each of the honorees. The winners are profiled in a special glossy magazine that is published each summer by the Sentinel, which will be released at the awards event. 

Doors open at 6:30, and the ceremony starts at 7. This year, the event has a masquerade party theme, and attendees are encouraged to wear costumes and masks. Light refreshments and desserts will be served after the presentation. Tickets are $30. For more information, visit www.monadnockartsalive.org/ewing-arts-awards or www.sentinelsource.com. 

Arts Alive raises funds for Mini Grants

From 5PM on June 11th to 5PM on June 12th, 2024, Arts Alive will be participating in The NH Center for Nonprofits online fundraiser NH Gives. Arts Alive, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, uses all funds raised to support emerging artists in the Monadnock region through a program called Mini Grants.

Arts Alive’s mission is to ignite creativity and spark connection across the Monadnock region. By nurturing artists, culture-bearers, and creative instigators, the organization strives to bring access to the arts to every Monadnock region community member. The organization provides artists and organizations education, resources, assistance, and community support for success. Through the Mini Grants program, Arts Alive seeks to boost emerging artists, especially those that identify as experiencing financial hardship, in their professional and creative endeavors. 

In 2023, Arts Alive raised $2000 during NH Gives to award grants of $100 to $250 to 10 projects that either expanded the artist’s or business’ professional abilities or increased the amount of people they could reach with arts experiences. There were 33 total applicants. Through anonymously collected demographic information, Arts Alive determined that 39% of those applicants lived at or below the poverty line and over 57% made less than the region’s median income.

This is an incredible program to resource creative instigators in our community. Through it, we are able to connect artists with funding to kickstart their dreams. - Arts Alive Executive Director Jessica Gelter

Recipients of Arts Alive’s 2023 mini grants include Christopher Clauss, a published poet and slam poetry event organizer who plans to start a monthly poetry night in downtown Keene; circus artist and juggler Nate Olson, who practiced street performing as a performance artist who started as an adult; violinist, vocalist, and composer Tara Novak, who recorded demos and music videos for two new projects; journalist James Rinker, who obtained a camera lens for a photo project documenting the medical and social aspects of transitioning one’s gender; graphic designer and skateboard builder Michael Anfuso, who purchased a 3D printer to produce a new modular skateboard mold; multi-disciplinary artist Hallie Driscoll, who will put the grant towards a mixed media embroidery workshop series for the community; and retired Film Studies professor Lawrence Benaquist, who hired a video editor to work on a promotional video for a documentary on Jewish sculptor and concentration camp survivor Esther Topaz.

Tara Novak’s band Ishna by Shaylyn Grace Photography

We are slowly uploading all of the videos to our websites and social media, using them not only as booking tools but also to help build our following online. The cost and time to produce these materials can be very prohibitive. The support from Arts Alive makes a difference, as does the support from everyone in our community! - 2023 Mini Grant Recipient Tara Novak

For the 2024 Mini Grants program, Arts Alive aims to raise $2500. More information on the program can be found at monadnockartsalive.org/mini-grants. More information on past projects and supporting Arts Alive during NH Gives can be found online at www.nhgives.org/organizations/arts-alive. Updates on Arts Alive’s and other local arts organizations’ participation in the 24-hour fundraiser will be posted to social media.

Arts Alive invites artists to learn and connect at West LA Beer Company

On Tuesday, June 18th at 5:30PM, Arts Alive invites artists, creatives, and art-lovers to join a Field Trip at West LA Beer Company in Swanzey, NH. West LA Beer Company works with emerging artists and musicians for custom drink labels, onsite murals, taproom gallery, and live music nights on their outdoor patio. This Field Trip will explore themes of collaboration in craft beer and local art to benefit both emerging and experienced artists and musicians who are looking to expand their understanding of what it can mean to live and work as a local creator. Registration is $12 ($7 for Arts Alive members) at monadnockartsalive.org/artist-field-trips. 

Arts Ambassador meetup at West LA Beer Company

Through conversation with the head brewer, gallery curator, music coordinator and a local artist/muralist, Arts Alive and West LA will explore questions such as: How does a small craft beer company find and commission artists or artwork for use in label designs? What do they look for and what kinds of design elements or restrictions influence decision-making? What does the graphic design and licensing process look like? What does a small business look for in bands or musicians and how does that relationship work? The event will also answer questions on how an artist might approach a brewery or local business about label design or displaying artwork.

As a musician and graphic designer himself, head brewer Ryan Gale will discuss the culinary art of brewing and how that informs the label-making and design process. Tristan Bridges (TGB Fine Art) curates the artwork that hangs in West LA's taproom. He and local artist/muralist Jonathan Aaron will speak about their experiences creating commissioned work and the murals on the outside of the building. West LA co-founder/owner Eric Johnson will speak about how the brewery books and works with musicians. Eric will discuss what a small business looks for in booking bands and how the relationship works.

An optional design activity with TGB Fine Art will follow to allow participants to engage with all the ideas and information discussed using play, creativity, connection, and fun. Participants will get inside the mind of both label commissioner and artist to create a design of their own. Whether the label wants to tribute a certain artist or musician or highlight specific ingredients or a flavor profile, or support a cause or a nonprofit, participants will have many examples around them to spark their imagination. 

Alternatively, participants can take the opportunity to network with fellow artists, view the patio and outside murals, and peruse the artwork on display. While waters, snacks and tastes of West LA's beers and seltzers will be available, attendees will be responsible for buying their own drinks from the brewery,

Field Trip at Hot Glass Art Center

Field Trips are casual, exploratory, and educational events for artists, creatives, and art lovers in and around the Monadnock region. These events are characterized by a laid-back atmosphere to spark friendly connection, learning, and creative inspiration. During Field Trips, attendees dive into local arts spaces and businesses to see arts spaces they might not otherwise explore, and learn about available resources and opportunities for community-building, creative expansion, and professional growth.

Previous Field Trips to arts venues in New Hampshire’s Monadnock region and Brattleboro, Vermont include DublinArts & Muse Gallery, Sharing Arts Community Ceramics Center, 17ROX Artist Studios, Historic Harrsiville and Harrisville Designs, the Keene Public Library’s Kingsbury Makerspace, The Stone Church, Mitchell Giddings Fine Arts, First Proof Press, Epsilon Spires, The Hot Glass Art Center, and individual artists’ studios.

Arts Alive launched Field Trips in January 2023 as a response to a November 2022 community survey that highlighted a need in the arts community for connection, creative inspiration, and professional growth. Attendees have expressed the value of this program through feedback appreciating, “Meeting artists and exchanging creative ideas for new projects,” “Connecting with other artists,” and “[Hearing] from people engaged in the arts in town and how they help create community.” 

This Field Trip is $12 and $7 for Arts Alive members. To register for the event and future trips, visit monadnockartsalive.org/artist-field-trips. For information about accessibility, please call 603-283-0944 or email nina@monadnockartsalive.org.

Arts Alive is supported in part by National Endowment for the Arts, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, and this program is supported by a generous gift from C & S Wholesale Grocers.