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Arts on Main

Community Arts Center in Gloucester, Virginia

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VMFA Artmobile

The VMFA Artmobile is coming to Gloucester! We are excited to welcome back VFMA on the Road. The Artmobile will be here for our First Friday Exhibit “A Journey From Realism to Abstraction” on Friday, November 6th from 5-8pm as well as Saturday, November 7th, from 10am-4pm, right next to Arts on Main.

A View from Home: Landscapes of Virginia features paintings, photographs, woodblock prints, and engravings from the museum’s permanent collection that explore the diversity and beauty of the Commonwealth’s natural realms. The collection showcases artists of various styles and periods, including O.Winston Link, Edward Beyer, George H. Benjamin Johnson and Adèle Clark.

For the duration of the COVID-19 crisis, the Artmobile gallery may accommodate up to 10 people, students and adults included, for 15-minute visits. All staff and visitors are required to wear masks.

For more information on the VMFA Artmobile. Free and open to the public. Masks are required to enter the Artmobile.

It is because of the partnership between the Cook Foundation and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, that the Artmobile is coming to Gloucester. Thank you to The Cook Foundation for bringing this amazing exhibit to the community.

Tagged With: art exhibits, arts on main, first friday, pocohantas festival, vmfa, vmfa artmobile

VMFA Artmobile

The VMFA Artmobile is coming to Gloucester! We are excited to welcome back VFMA on the Road. The Artmobile will be here for our First Friday Exhibit “A Journey From Realism to Abstraction” on Friday, November 6th from 5-8pm as well as Saturday, November 7th, from 10am-4pm, right next to Arts on Main.

A View from Home: Landscapes of Virginia features paintings, photographs, woodblock prints, and engravings from the museum’s permanent collection that explore the diversity and beauty of the Commonwealth’s natural realms. The collection showcases artists of various styles and periods, including O.Winston Link, Edward Beyer, George H. Benjamin Johnson and Adèle Clark.

For the duration of the COVID-19 crisis, the Artmobile gallery may accommodate up to 10 people, students and adults included, for 15-minute visits. All staff and visitors are required to wear masks.

For more information on the VMFA Artmobile. Free and open to the public. Masks are required to enter the Artmobile.

It is because of the partnership between the Cook Foundation and the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, that the Artmobile is coming to Gloucester. Thank you to The Cook Foundation for bringing this amazing exhibit to the community.

Tagged With: art exhibits, arts on main, first friday, pocohantas festival, vmfa, vmfa artmobile

Meet the Artist: Ryan Lytle

Opening on July 22nd, our new exhibit, “Animalia”, will feature the work of 3-dimensional artists Ryan Lytle and Katherine Maloney. This week we’ll introduce you to the work of Ryan Lytle and give you a peek into his studio.

“Whether it is pets, in nature, films and cartoons, mythology, I have always been drawn to animals. As a kid I had an extensive stuffed animal collection. These fascinations of animal archetypes, images and myths have resurfaced as visual vocabulary in my work.”

“My works are primarily created through the process of needle felting. There is a comfort that is embedded in the nostalgic material. Needle felting is done by compressing raw wool with a barbed needle into a form. Every area is stabbed hundreds of times with a single needle until the desired density is formed.  This medium allows me to sculpt works within a surreal space that is both disarming and inviting.”

“Although I mostly work with wool and felting, I also experiment with other materials. Typically, I am drawn to fiber-based techniques, but recently I’ve been working with 3D printing as well. I have been learning how 3D printing operates so that I could incorporate the process into my 3D design courses at CNU. Currently, I have converted about half of my studio over to producing face shield visors for hospitals. The university has been very supportive and generous with their equipment and materials.”

“Aside from the printing, my studio has been busy with finishing up work for a show projected for June at the PFAC. It is a lot of rabbits, and I’ve been creating an eight-foot moon rug with a rug tufting machine. It should turn out to be one of my more ambitious projects to date.”

“For the show at Arts on Main I am planning to show some of my more experimental pieces and I am excited to see how they work together alongside Katherine Maloney’s work.”

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Animal, Animal Sculpture, art exhibition, arts on main, felt art, Felted Animals, Ryan Lytle, sculpture

AiR Mail from Novelist Dan Berne

“[Here] are a few paragraphs I wrote two weeks ago. It takes place in 1937. Needing to escape the tedium of life, with her maiden aunts, my 17 year old protagonist Lydia secretly absconds to New York City with her friend Mary Ellen to meet up with Mary Ellen’s older cousin. Their plan is to attend a weekend dance marathon. After sneaking on a train from Cincinnati, they arrive at Penn Station.”


New York, October 1937

Mary Ellen’s cousin Freddie met them at Pennsylvania Station. Or rather, they met him. They had to step off the train and into the main waiting area before seeing him leaning against a marble pillar, hands in his pocket, a half-smoked cigarette cornered in his mouth. He was wearing a russet-brown suit and a chestnut fedora that was tilted toward his left ear. He barely straightened up when the girls approached him. He nodded toward his cousin, a “Hi ‘ya” barely escaping from under his cigarette. He looked Lydia up and down, nodding in apparent approval. 

“This way.” He turned without offering to help them with their suitcases. Outside the station, the noise and sheer amount of people was staggering. It made Cincinnati seem like a small farm town. It was nearing five in the afternoon and already getting dark, cold in the shadows between the buildings. But Lydia barely felt the chill. She inhaled the smells of car exhaust and construction dust and hot dogs and Chinese food, all seemingly wrapped around the soles of leather shoes. She absorbed the honks of taxis, the shouts and yammering of jackhammers. New York was big and noisy and dirty and dangerous. She was so entranced she nearly lost sight of Mary Ellen and her cousin. What was his name again? Freddie?

After twenty minutes or so, he led them inside a brick apartment building on East 15th. Lydia was hoping for a view of the streets, but Freddie channeled them downstairs to a basement apartment at the end of the hall. Apartment was overstating it. There was one decent-sized room with a window that looked out onto a broken concrete patch broken up by weeds and a dead lilac bush. The light filtering in gave everything a bruised, leaden cast. One side of the room was fitted with a refrigerator and a small electric range that was crusted with what was probably dried spaghetti sauce and who know what else. To the right was a narrow hallway with a bedroom door on each side.

To Lydia’s surprise, there were already six or seven people in the room, mostly her age. Freddie introduced them quickly: Neil, Roberto, and Carter, Jocelyn, Tilly, and Gwynne. They were the kind of names you never heard of in Cincinnati. Lydia had the feeling they were also not the kind of people you met in Cincinnati, at least not the ones she knew. No one seemed to pay them much mind, though before she knew it, Freddie had placed a martini glass in her hand. The drink was the color of sunset and smelled slightly of oranges. He had a glass for himself as well, though the liquid inside it was colorless.

“Cosmopolitan,” he said, turning so that he flanked her on her right side. 

Lydia had drunk alcohol before of course. Stolen gulps of sweet wine at home and pilfered swigs of Crab Orchard Kentucky bourbon behind the school bleachers. Neither was particularly pleasant except for that feeling of euphoria. She tilted the glass and sipped. 

“Hokey smokes. This is really good.”

Freddie smiled, arching his right eyebrow. “Everyone is drinking them.”

“You’re not.”

“I prefer straight vodka.” He sipped his drink, staring at the top of her dress. “You do know you’ve popped a couple of buttons, don’t you?”

She laughed. It sounded so funny from him, the way his mustached twitched when he said it.

“It’s a long story,” she said, not wanting to get into what happened with the train cop. “Mary Ellen and I will them sew back on.” She looked around. “Where is Mary Ellen anyway?”

Freddie tilted his head toward the hallway and bedrooms. “Back there. Taking a nap, I guess.”

“Ah.” 

Lydia drank more of her cosmopolitan, turning her attention to the animated conversation in the larger room. Neil and Roberto were arguing as to whether Amelia Earhart could still be alive, Roberto sure that she was.

“Roberto, you’d masturbate to that photo of her in Life,” Tilly laughed.

“So would I,” Jocelyn quipped. 

They all laughed, but no one seemed aghast to hear her say it. Someone mentioned the Japanese and Chinese fighting somewhere. Everyone seemed worried about the rise of fascism and nationalism, though whether or not these were one and the same, Jocelyn and Carter thoroughly disagreed. It was also dizzying.


About Dan Berne

DAN BERNE grew up in a working-class family in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked in his way through college, with jobs in drugstores, warehouses, U-bolt factories, and cement plants. He moved to the west coast in 1979, settling in the Portland area in 1990. He has been an active member of a select writing workshop led by author Karen Karbo for ten years. His short stories and poetry have been published in literary magazines and has won a literary award from the Pacific Northwest Writers Association. Dan owns a market strategy consultancy and is currently writing a book on market transformation. He lives with his wife Aliza in Portland, Oregon. The Gods of Second Chances is his debut novel. More can be found at his website danberne.com.

Author Statement

Nothing energizes me more than the art and craft of writing. Shape. Sound. Sensuality. For me, a well-crafted sentence or paragraph is umami on the page. Storytelling is a deep part of what makes us human, of what binds us together down through the generations. 

I seek to create compelling tension in every scene, in every chapter, and in the spaces in-between. I then try to marry that with language that lifts off the page.

I love sharing the craft of writing with others. There’s always something new to experience. I conduct a weekly writing work group, as well as writing workshops and seminars. I also coach individual writers. 

Much of my writing focuses on character and landscape, and how those interact to create a narrative. My current novel, The Gods of Second Chances, is set in eastern Oregon during the late 1930s. The protagonist is a young woman. As a male writer, it’s been a good creative challenge to bring this character fully into life.


The Artist in Residence (AiR) program in sponsored in part by the Cook Foundation. To learn more about the AiR program click here. 

Interested artists may inquire about the program via email: Mollie Stewart, Director, Artist in Residence Program at Arts on Main: airdirector@gloucesterarts.org

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: AiR, AiR Mail, artist in residence, arts on main, Cook Foundation, Dan Berne, Historical Fiction, Novelist, Writer

Felt Your Favorite Pet (Dogs or Cats)

Felt Your Favorite Pet

Learn the techniques of needle felting while creating your favorite furry friend, except these won’t bark, scratch the furniture or make a mess. Once complete, your pet will measure approximately 4” in height. This three-hour workshop is taught by Valerie Johnson of Flying Cow Creations. Minimum age is 12 years old. Attendees will be working with needles and should expect to prick their fingers. Cost: $60pp, includes materials.




Tagged With: art class, arts on main, felt your favorite pet, felting class, flyin, flying cow creations, valerie Johnson

Paint Your Own Pottery Kids – Cupcake Dish – FULL

Paint Your Own Pottery Kids – Cupcake Dish

Join Owner and Operator of York River Pottery Co, Stephanie Kessel, for a morning of painting pottery while having fun with friends. Ms. Stephanie will guide through the color selection and glazing process to help you paint a fun piece of pottery you’ll be proud of.

In February, the kids will be painting a cupcake dish perfect for their future tasty treats!

Light snack, a drink and materials are included in the price. Please allow a week for firing and return to the gallery for pick-up. Parents please be sure to leave your name and contact information on the class login form once your child arrives so that we may contact you when your cild’s piece is ready for pick-up. These classes will be held quarterly, so check back to find out what the little ones will be painting next!

15 children maximum

10 children minimum

Minimum age is 5

Tagged With: arts on main, paint your own pottery kids, pottery, stephanie kessel, york river pottery

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Gallery Hours

Open Wednesday – Saturday
Noon – 5:00pm
Closed Sunday & Monday
Call: (804) 824-9464

Open Studio

Every Friday Morning, 9am-Noon
Free Painting Sessions!
Open Painting Studio

Art Classes

Ongoing classes in all mediums for kids of all ages.
Art Class Registration Info

Facility Rental

Hold your next event in our gallery!
An excellent party and reception venue for up to 100 people.
Facility Rental Info

Volunteer Opportunities

Are you looking for ways to volunteer in the community? Arts on Main has wonderful volunteers and would like you to join them. Call the gallery for more information. 804.824.9464

 

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Arts On Main
Tonight’s the night! We’re celebrating our 10t Tonight’s the night! We’re celebrating our 10th Anniversary with the opening reception of our 10th Anniversary Exhibition. It’s one of our biggest shows yet! Special thanks to Lynne Bohon Manning our Exhibition Sponsor 🎉🎉 If you didn’t make a reservation to join us the show will be up through January 30th 🎨 Featured Artwork: Red Clover Magic by @brendasilverraven Brenda Sylvia
On the final day of "Artful Gifting" wherever you On the final day of "Artful Gifting" wherever you find yourself on this holiday, whether "Lost on the Path to Grandma's" or in the comfort of your own home, we hope you have loved ones to spend it with!
On the eleventh day of "Artful Gifting": Sweet Kit On the eleventh day of "Artful Gifting": Sweet Kitty says today is #caturday There is no arguing with Sweet Kitty because every day is Caturday. If you're a cat-lover you understand or you can commiserate 😸 Either way this adorable painting by Theresa Wells Stifel is sure to please our furry friends and their owners.
On the tenth day of "Artful Gifting"...have a love On the tenth day of "Artful Gifting"...have a lover of Daffodils on your list? Maybe they're just a big fan of Gloucester? Former Daffodil Festival Queen? All three? Let them carry a little bit of Gloucester close to their heart with this hand-painted, one-of-a-kind beauty by Mary Maveline Originals.
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Activities at Arts on Main are partially funded by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Arts on Main is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

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