Now Showing: Lewisburg Arts Council Members’ Show
Gallery 255 at the Public Library for Union County February 2 through February 27, 2023
For the first time in 3 years, artists and art-lovers gathered at the Public Library for Union County to celebrate the opening of the Lewisburg Arts Council’s 8th annual Members’ Show. Sixty attendees enjoyed this opportunity to chat, check out the work on display, and nibble on light refreshments.
Nancy Cleaver, whose work has been featured in most (if not all) of the previous shows as well as the current one, sums up the importance of occasions like this, “Since most of us are solitary makers, receptions and gallery visits provide conversations with insights into our work. We have a large and friendly arts community around here.”
Displayed in the lobby cases and hanging on the walls are 89 pieces in total. Most of the 38 Lewisburg Arts Council members with work in the show have participated in past years, but five are first-time exhibitors.
One new participant, Ana Arnabar, states, “I love art and … sharing it with my community is another big part of being an artist, sharing and enjoying what other artists do. When I started my career I was afraid of entering exhibitions. But what I learned is that the artist community is so welcoming that I felt at home right away. I want to be part of this happy community and share what I can with others.”
Sharing with the community at large is also important to Dan Hyde, who has entered artwork in the last five shows: “The annual Members’ Art Show is a wonderful vehicle for members of the Lewisburg Arts Council to share their artwork with the Lewisburg community.”
The public is invited to “Meet the Members”on Tuesday, February 14, and Tuesday, February 21, from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m., when members of the Artists’ Guild of Lewisburg and the Lewisburg Photography Club will be on hand to answer questions and discuss the show.
One of the pieces in this year’s show, Tony Ragusea’s photograph “Praying Mantis,” offers this reminder: Stop. Look. You’ll be amazed by what you see!
Being a photographer for me means training myself to always be on the lookout for the “intriguing details.” Don’t just look where everyone else looks, many great subjects are in the corners, underneath, behind, below, above. I was working on a bonsai tree, a task that requires painstaking attention to detail, otherwise I probably wouldn’t have spotted this male praying mantis hidden among the leaves.
– Tony Ragusea
The Lewisburg Arts Council wishes to thank Exhibit Committee volunteers Barbara Baker, Pat Bontinen, Sandy Davis, Karen Jenkins, and Linda Swan, for making this show possible, as well as Reception Committee volunteers Margaret Brody, Michael Brody Joyce Lokitus, Linda S. Rishel, and Reba Buck Rohrer, whose efforts made the evening enjoyable both visually and gustatorially.
We are grateful to the library and its staff for providing the community opportunities like this to connect with art and artists.
If you are a Lewisburg Arts Council artist (any medium) and have news to share about an upcoming exhibit or achievement, please contact our PR Committee today. Our “Now Showing” articles feature Lewisburg Arts Council members whose work is currently on display locally. We can help you spread the word through email and on social media!