Art on the Green Schedule

Friday, April 13 from 6 to 9 pm
Saturday, April 14 from 11am to 6pm
Sunday, April 15 from noon to 5pm

For Immediate Release
From Downtown Davidson Inc.

Davidson, N.C., March 31, 2007 – Davidson’s free Gallery Crawl on April 13, from 6 to 9 pm will include six locations, two openings, an artist demonstration, and movie.

The Gallery Crawl will be followed by Art on the Green, a display of juried art on the Village Green on April 14 from 11 am to 6 pm and Sunday April 15 from noon till 5pm. Participating galleries are:

Lake Norman Art League (108 S. Main). The LNAL Spring Show will feature post card sized images of Lake Norman area themes: local scenes, landmarks, cultural events, architecture, flora and fauna, and anything that captures the character of the region. A selection of the entries will be chosen by a panel of local artists and community leaders to be published as postcards for sale throughout the Lake Norman area.

Merrill-Jennings Galleries (462 S. Main) will feature an opening by Loren DiBenedetto. Loren was born in New Jersey and completed her fine arts education at the Academy School of Fine Arts and the Art Students’ League, both in New York City. She is best known for her bold still life oil paintings of fruit and vegetables. This show will also feature her landscapes and nudes.

Town Hall Rotunda (216 S. Main) Merrill-Jennings Galleries presents works by Betsey Barber Hampton of Davidson, North Carolina. Hampton graduated from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Art Education. During her early years of painting, she won first prize in a Salisbury Art Guild Show judged by Philip Moose. She has exhibited at Art Vivant in Charlotte, Waterworks Visual Arts Gallery in Salisbury, Art 1 in Gastonia, Yorkville Artist Guild in York, SC, the Charlotte Art League, the Mooresville Artists’ Guild, Full Circle Arts in Hickory, Art and Frame Gallery in Statesville, Stanly Art Guild in Albemarle, Daniel’s in Newton, and Original Art in Concord.

Whistling Swan (202 S. Main #C) shows original oil paintings, pottery and several one-of-a-kind pieces of folk art and reproductions by American artisans. Many of the artisans represented have been recognized in national magazines and by museums.

Wooden Stone (445 S. Main) presents guest artist Marjorie Sellers’s (Denver, NC) Cathedral quilts. Hand-quilted, each piece represents over 800 hours of work and is the culmination of a lifetime of craft, including sewing, painting and pottery. Work on display through April 30.

Creative Art Exchange (formerly the Icehouse Center, now at 19725 Oak Street, Unit 1 in Cornelius) hosts the 2nd Chance Festival, the best films of the 2006 Festival, as voted by the audience, in various venues in and around Charlotte. Each screening includes a festival short (student or narrative) and a feature (narrative or documentary). From groundbreaking documentaries and delightful student shorts to inspiring and engaging narratives of any length, the 2nd Chance Film Series has a myriad of options. $3 per person.

Art on the Green Saturday and Sunday

From more than 40 applications, 30 artists have been selected to exhibit their work at Art on the Green. The works span ceramics, wood turning, photography, jewelry and painting. The top three artist exhibits will receive cash prizes. In addition, there will be music on the Green offered by Noteability, Kate Minogue and Kelley Gardner, and the Merrows. The Gamut, a new dance ensemble from Davidson College, will also perform.

“Last year we had 40 artists from Lake Norman exhibit. This year we hope to attract artists from a wider area, in addition to local talent. Applications will be juried.,” explained Downtown Davidson manager Kate MacIntyre, “by Adrienne Dellinger, ceramics artist and Executive Director for Clayworks, Inc. in Charlotte; Rita Shumaker, artist and Master Teacher at the Mint Museums; and Kate Ballion-Case, arts administrator with Joie Lassiter Gallery. The intent of jurying is to ensure balance and quality among the artists.”

The exhibits will be open on the Village Green on Saturday from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. and Sunday from noon – 5 p.m. Admission is free. To encourage hands-on participation, the Creative Art Exchange will have three pottery wheels on the Village Green for adults to try. “We’ll have teachers there to help,” explained Diane Ruggiero, executive director of the Creative Art Exchange, “The point is to have fun.”

Art on the Green is made possible, in part, through an ASC North Town Initiative grant from the Arts & Science Council. Sponsors are Friends of the Arts at Davidson College, Ryan Homes, Saussy-Burbank, Cedarcroft Homes, Great Graphic Results, People’s Bank, Southern Community Bank and Wooden Stone.
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For more information about Art on the Green, please contact Kate MacIntyre at 704-892-2118.