“Conundrum” at the apARTment Gallery in Scranton

“Conundrum”, an IAC Exhibition, will take place at the apARTment Gallery Apt 1, 1009 N. Irving Avenue, Scranton, Thursday, February 16, from 6-9 PM.  Featured artists include Kaitlin Staples, Katie Campbell, Mark Maglioli, Matthew Colazizzo, Eric Brocious, Brie Taylor, Tory Utt, Maggie Innes, John Bromberg, Kelly Ufkin, Ryan Bossert, Andrew Valanda, Paul Nielsen, Evan West & Karsten Goodwin.

For more information, call John at 460-9286 or Ryan at 778-5322.

“Posing Beauty” at the Everhart

Opening at the Everhart Museum on Friday, February 3, 2012 is the international travelling exhibit Posing Beauty in African American Culture. The exhibit will be on display through April 1, 2012 during regular museum hours. On loan from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, Posing Beauty explores contemporary understandings of beauty by framing the notion of aesthetics, race, class, and gender within art, popular culture, and political contexts. This exhibit features approximately 84 works drawn from public and private collections and is accompanied by a book published by W.W. Norton. According to the exhibit’s curator Deborah Willis, “Posing Beauty in African American Culture explores the contested ways in which African and African American beauty have been represented in historical and contemporary contexts through a diverse range of media including photography, film, video, fashion, advertising, and other forms of popular culture such as music and the Internet. Throughout the Western history of art and image-making, the relationship between beauty and art has become increasingly complex within contemporary art and popular culture.” Funding support for the exhibit is courtesy of Gertrude Hawk Chocolates, Inc.

STAR Gallery at the Steamtown Mall

To local art teachers, from STAR Gallery (fine arts gallery located in Steamtown Mall) -

The Gallery is set up for art teachers to run own art classes. For more information call Simona Gavern, at 877-3900. Feel free to inform other teachers as well.

Annmarie Ciccarelli and Heather Martyak at AFA in March

Boats

Ripples throughout Space

Annmarie Ciccarelli and Heather Martyak will be having an exhibit of their paintings from March 1-30, 2012 at the AFA Gallery in Scranton.  There will be an opening reception on First Friday, March 2nd from 6-9 PM

Annmarie Ciccarelli received her BA in Visual Art from Keystone College. Her work is abstract, combining bold color with organic and geometric shapes. She has exhibited her work throughout the region in juried and group exhibitions. Annmarie is an Artist in Residence with the Pennsylvania Council for the Arts. She was awarded a Lackawanna County Arts and Culture Grant in 2010 for a collaborative project.

Annmarie draws inspiration from her surroundings.  She says, “Scranton, a city that I couldn’t wait to leave, has now become home to me. With a renewed acceptance I view my home with new eyes. I peel away the most interesting shapes, reflections, and shadows. Together they create a pattern of shapes which then breathe new life into what was there already, a reflection of myself and the beauty of the city that is my home.”

Heather Martyak has received both an Associate of Fine Arts degree and her BA in Visual Arts from Keystone College.  She continues to work as an artist both personally and professionally.  Heather’s inspiration comes from nature and a connection to something greater in the universe.  “I appreciate that life is made up of the tiniest particles joining together, working in harmony and forming a larger more beautiful whole.”

Her paintings have been exhibited regionally, nationally and internationally including commissioned works and murals.  She is currently working to nurture creativity and art exploration with preschool children at the Endless Mountains Learning Center in New Milford.

Call For Artists – 3rd Ward Winter 2012 Open Call

Make this your Breakthrough Year. You’re invited to join the 3rd Ward Winter 2012 Open Call, an international search for exciting, innovative, and compelling artwork, awarding over $15,000 in prizes, including a 1-year work residency in NYC, a worldwide audience and a NYC Gallery Show.  To register, go to http://www.3rdwardopencall.com/

Your Standard Entry Deadline is February 29th, 11:59pm EST

This Open Call is offering More Prizes than Ever. An esteemed panel of jurors will select 4 Winners to be named the Grand Prize Recipients in Art, Photography, Graphic Design, and Furniture Design. FOUR Grand Prize Awards $500 cash grant 3-Month Work Residency in NYC Inclusion in a New York City Group Exhibition Online feature promoting you and your work internationally Register todayand get your work seen by a panel of esteemed jurors from SUITE New York, PRINT Magazine, and the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA). One People’s Choice Award $5,000 cash grant 1-year Work Residency in NYC Inclusion in a New York City Group Exhibition Online feature promoting you and your work internationally

RWANDAN ARTSHOW AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON

Check out the Rwandan Art Show at the University of Scranton!

CALL TO ARTISTS StArt

StArt, a 2012 Leadership Lackawanna Class Project, announces a “call to artists” in order to find artists who will compete in a live art event on May 18, 2012.  Winners of the live event will have their winning artwork and additional supporting pieces displayed in vacant storefront windows in downtown Scranton, more specifically in the “First Friday Scranton footprint,” on Friday June 1, 2012.

Project Overview: The purpose of StArt is to partner with First Friday Scranton to engage and inspire the Greater Scranton business community and local artists with events that encompass the artistic ability in our region and showcase available Downtown Scranton storefront venues.  StArt will use art as a focal point for community development and highlight the integral role the arts play in strengthening the vitality of Downtown Scranton. StArt feels that through creative use of the arts, the quality of life can be improved, economic prosperity can thrive and cultural tourism can grow.

Eligibility: Open to all artists

 Call Requirements:

1. Brief statement explaining the artist’s interest in being considered.

2. Current artist resume.

3. 6 images of recent work (within past two years)

4. Non-refundable Entry fee of $10 made payable to Leadership Lackawanna

Applications and entry fee can be mailed to or dropped off at:

The Vintage Theater

Start! Leadership Lackawanna

119 Penn Ave.

Scranton, PA 18503

The submission deadline is Midnight (EST), Friday, March 2, 2012. (If the Vintage Theatre is closed applications can be placed in the mail slot on the door.)

March/April 2012: StArt Project members meets to review materials and select finalist for the live event; All artists will be notified of outcome following review meeting via the StArt Facebook page.

Friday May 18, 2012: Finalist will create their pieces at a live timed event.  Winners will be chosen to display their artwork in vacant store fronts. (The number of winners will depend on the number of vacant store front availability).

May 21 – May 31, 2012: Artwork from the live event and additional pieces are installed in the vacant storefronts.

Friday June 1, 2012 June First Friday Scranton artwork is displayed to the public.

Artist & Artwork Requirements:

• Final artwork must be able to fit through a standard size door (30” x 84”)
• The artwork may not contain nudity, profanity, or other inflammatory language or subject matter as it will be placed in a public location.

Additional Information:  If you have questions or require additional information about this project, please contact the StArt Team at startleadershiplackawanna@yahoo.com or contact us through our Facebook cause, Start! Leadership Lackawanna.