January 2009

Greetings Everyone!

On behalf of ArtBerkeley and our Board of Directors, I want to just take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Happy and Prosperous New Year! 2008 was a wonderful year for ArtBerkeley! We have come together as a group, in a way we have not seen in the past and because of this we have really begun to evolve. As you have seen in previous newsletters, we have had a number of successful events. And you can see here, there is more to come.

It has been about 3 years since ArtBerkeley (Arts Alliance of Berkeley County) was started. We have weathered some storms, but due to the core group of determined members that have kept the belief of what we could be, we have kept moving forward. Our membership has grown, and people are really working to make things happen. We have done this by working together, and working with our community and other organizations.

As we move into 2009, we invite others in the organization to offer your talents to help with upcoming projects. We will have an opportunity for you, no matter what the talent or time you can offer. (And who knows, you might even find we do have a good time!)

Don’t miss our General Membership Meeting on February 1, 2009!

MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN ’09!

Judy Jeffares, President

Big New Year

ArtBerkeley is growing! In 2008 we added several new members and new programs as well. The members of ArtBerkeley who volunteer their time and ideas are helping this organization grow and thrive. In 2009 the “Windows to the Arts” program will continue. Another show at the Arts Centre is scheduled, as well another event at the Dunn Building before the year's end. Our First Light the Night event at Boydville was quite successful and plans to do this again are under way. This cooperative effort with the members of the Heritage Craft Center and the friends of Boydville should be larger and even more illuminating.

New for this year will be of our Earth Day Celebration in April. Behind the scenes the members of the programs committee have been quietly working to make this event successful. Additional plans are in the works to bring our members together with the local community and other organizations to give our members more exposure and opportunities.

Members Meeting Up

A general membership meeting will be held on Sunday, February 1. All ArtBerkeley members are urged to attend. This is an opportunity to meet the members of the board, as well as programs committee members, and to offer suggestions for future plans. The meeting will be held at the Martinsburg Library, on the corner of King and Queen Streets in downtown Martinsburg. We will assemble in the Martinsburg Room on the lower level of the library near the Queen Street entrance at 2 p.m.

Opening “Windows to the Arts” 2009

The next round of our well-received “Windows to the Arts” will begin February 16. Before each round of Windows there is a lot of organizing that goes on. Merchants need to be contacted and a summary of their window needs to be compiled. Often there are light or space restrictions that need to be considered before artwork can be placed in the window. In addition the style of the artwork needs to be considered so that it accents the storefront. This round of “Windows to the Arts” is being headed by Paul Berryhill. Artists who wish to take part in this round need to contact Paul at 304-262-6705 before 6 p.m., or email him at odinsfurry (at) yahoo (dot) com. Your work will need to be set up the week of February 16, and remain in place until the week of March 23.

Vacant Windows in Downtown Martinsburg

Following the success of “Windows to the Arts” we are now embarking on a new project — filling vacant windows with the kind of displays more often found in museums than on main streets.

Still under construction (see photo) is our pioneer project featuring student renditions of “Picassos” — based on principles of Cubism that revolutionized modern art at the turn of the twentieth century. Sharon Smith, member of ArtBerkeley’s programs committee and art teacher at Martinsburg High School is guiding the student project.

Building on this transformation of the former “Super Juiced” store at 133 North Queen Street, we are looking forward to more coordination with Berkeley County Public Schools, showing student work on a variety of subjects. And we welcome other groups with displays of interest to the wider community.

Art Berkeley is continuing to look for ways to revitalize downtown Martinsburg through the Arts, and anyone with ideas for displays for vacant windows should contact Marcia Ruth (Email ruthmarcia (at) yahoo (dot) com or 304-268-6027.)

Digging into Earth Day Details

Plans are progressing for our Earth Day Celebration planned for Saturday, April 18. In recent months several nonprofit organizations have been contacted and most plan to be part of the event. Details are being worked out so that there are free earth-friendly activities for children who attend. We are looking for eco-friendly businesses and farmers to join in on the celebration at War Memorial Park.

A section of the park is being reserved for artists and artisans. Another section is slated for the businesses and farmers. Plans are under way to have live entertainment throughout the day as well as recycling, and an exchange area during this free event. We anticipate hundreds of people will be in attendance at the park. This is a good opportunity for us to familiarize the public with our members and maybe help Mother Nature in the process. The focus of this event is earth friendly, therefore balloons and styrofoam will not be permitted at this event. Sue Brown is heading up this project and welcomes your input.

Paperwork to reserve spaces will go out this month. Spaces will be assigned on a first come first reserved basis. Keep in mind spaces are limited. Any artist, business, farmer or organization that is interested in being part of this event needs to contact Sue and fill out the appropriate paperwork. Contact Sue at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com or phone her in the evenings before 10 p.m. at 304-263-6264.

A page has been set up on the ArtBerkeley web site about our Earth Day event. Check in from time to time and see how it is developing here: http://www.artberkeley.org/earth_day.php.

Arts Centre Exhibit in April

Don't forget the ArtBerkeley Members' Exhibit at The Arts Centre coming up in April. Here is a summary of the main points:

  - The exhibit will run April 3-30
  - The exhibit will be open to all members of ArtBerkeley, in any      medium or style.
        - Authors may submit written work in bound form
         - Performing artists may choose to perform at the opening              reception or another scheduled time during the exhibit
  - New members may join by the submission deadline and
     participate in the exhibit.
  - Artists may submit up to five pieces, in person at The Arts Centre.
  - The Entry Fee for the exhibit is $15.00

Delivery of submitted artwork will be between March 24 and March 28

The full prospectus for the exhibit should be available in February. But in the meantime, everyone should be thinking about what they will be submitting. If you have any questions contact email Rip Smith: sterlingimages (at) gmail (dot) com.

Submission Guideline for Newsletter.

100 words or less. Include Members name,name of event,date, time, location, web address or contact information. You must be a paid member of Art/Berkeley to submit items for the newsletter. All submissions are subject to editing and must be submitted by 20th of each month. Submissions should be sent to S. J. Brown at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com.

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December 2008

Presidential Note: Art At It's Best!

What a difference a year makes! 2008 has seen ArtBerkeley and the Arts Community in Martinsburg really make things happen. December's newsletter highlights what can be done when people step up to the plate, take the lead and all of us work together. Since we are an all volunteer organization, we have to depend on each other to make things happen and WE ARE! Not only are we working together as a group, but with other organizations. I personally feel that is where our strength lies, coming together as a whole. As you can see, we had many successes in 2008, and 2009 looks even more exciting. We continue to look for new members, new ideas!

The Board of Directors thanks everyone for all their ideas, hard work and efforts! I personally want to thank everyone for all their support and hard work. We invite all members to participate in any way that you can!

Rest up, we will schedule a General Membership meeting for January and gear up for 2009!

Hope everyone has a great Holiday Season!

Thanks Again!!

Judy Jeffares
President, ArtBerkeleiy, Inc.

Looking for Artists

The Arts Centre, at 300 W. King Street in downtown Martinsburg is looking for artists and artisans to exhibit and sell their work for the holiday season. Their holiday art show and sale began during the Snowflake Festival and runs through December 24. Sales have been brisk so they have room for a few more creative individuals to offer their works. For more information contact Julie TerHaar, program director, at 263-0224 or email her at julie (at) theartcentre (dot) org.

Dunn Event not Done Yet

The opening reception for the Dunn Building event was a big success. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Leia Wood, twenty artists and artisans were represented at the opening. Guests wandered the second floor of the Dunn Building enjoying the refreshments, and commenting on the wonderful works of art. Several members also set up tables at the event to offer their works for sale. A silent auction helped raise funds for our organization.

But this event isn't finished yet. The artwork will remain on display until December 20. We urge all our members who were not able to attend the opening to take a few minutes to check out the work of your fellow members. The Dunn Building is a county facility, located at 400 W. Stephen Street and open to the public during regular business hours.

Boydville Shines

The afternoon of November 21 at Boydville was quite active. Luminaries covered the floor in the sun room, while artists assembled displays of their work. ArtBerkeley and Heritage Craft Center volunteers pulled together to hold our first "Light the Night" fundraising event. As nightfall arrived the Boydville Mansion was decked out in holiday greens and nearly 1000 luminaries lined the driveway and flickered throughout the grounds. Once inside the mansion, guests were treated to songs by the Martinsburg High School women's choir, and refreshments supplied by the organizations with generous donations from Martin's Grocery store. The Friends of Boydville were on hand to answer questions and give tours of the historic house. The front two rooms were filled with crafts and works of art.

Numerous ArtBerkeley and Heritage Craft Center members took the time to sell luminaries for this event, and volunteered to help make it happen. It was all coordinated by Judy Jeffares and members of the Heritage Craft Center with help from City National Bank. Everyone's efforts made it a memorable evening, and a fundraising success.

Members Make It Happen

The members of ArtBerkeley are making things happen. The programs committee thought the “Windows to the Arts” program would give members a chance to exhibit their work as well as introduce the community to the area artist and artisans. So they pulled together and made it happen. Leia Wood was a participant in the 2006 Dunn Building event, and wanted to see another event happen there. She approached the programs committee with the idea, and together they made it happen. Judy Jeffares thought hundreds of luminaries flicking in the dark would look neat and discussed her idea with the programs committee. After much discussion and a bit of planning, they made it happen. Sue Brown would like to see Martinsburg hold an Earth Day event. She is working with the members of the programs committee and they are making it happen. That is how ArtBerkeley programs happen. It starts with an idea and builds from their. Any member that has an idea for an event or program they would like to see ArtBerkeley tackle can pitch their idea to the programs committee. Your event can begin with a simple e mail to the programs committee chair at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com. That email will be followed by a phone call to get you in contact with the whole committee. The committee will meet, discuss your idea and work out the details with you and see if they can make your event happen.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2008 has been a good year for ArtBerkeley. The organization has grown and expanded. We have added many new members and have introduced a large part of the community to the arts.

February found members displaying their works at the Arts Centre, with three of them winning "people's choice" awards at the event. The "Windows to the Arts" program fostered a cooperative arrangement with local merchants while giving members an opportunity to display their works. There were two rounds of “Windows to the Arts” this year. More members participated each time, and the programs committee fine-tuned their coordinating efforts. Most importantly, the local community was introduced to the wealth of artistic talent we have in Berkeley County.

Many of our members took the time to participate in First Saturdays, where they were able to offer their work for sale. Each month the crowds in the downtown area increased and so did the sales. Main street Martinsburg has done a fine job of taking over this event.

In July the first edition of the ArtBerkeley News was posted. The purpose of this newsletter is to keep members informed, reporting each month on past, present and future activities. The newsletter relies on information from its members who can contribute by simply emailing S. J. Brown at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com. Please place Newsletter in the subject line.

In October the programs committee gathered up supplies, debated a few ideas and spent an afternoon assembling Artsey, the scarecrow. Artsey proudly stood on Queen Street representing ArtBerkeley for a number of weeks as part of the downtown scarecrow project.

November brought cooler weather and the Dunn Building event, another opportunity for members to display and sell their works. This event included a silent auction that brought in much needed funds to the organization.

Last but certainly not least was "Light the Night". This fundraising event brought together ArtBerkeley members and members of the Heritage Craft Center, for a wonderful evening at Boydville, assisted by the Friends of Boydville.

2008 has been a busy year for ArtBerkeley and we are looking forward to all the wonderful events that are in the works for 2009.

Thanks

The programs committee would like to send out a big THANK YOU to everyone that participated, and volunteered their time during 2008. We can only offer programs if our members help with these events. We would like to wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday season and we look forward to working with all our members in 2009.

2009

Our plans for another active year include another exhibit at the Arts Centre in the spring to coordinate with the Earth Day Celebration at War Memorial Park in April. For more information on the Arts Centre Event contact Rip at smith (dot) rip (at) gmail (dot) com. For more information or to offer ideas for the Earth Day Celebration contact Sue Brown at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com.

Main Street Martinsburg plans to continue to hold First Saturday events and many ArtBerkeley members can participate. On the first Saturday of every month from April through October artists and artisans are welcome to set up downtown and offer their works for sale. For more information contact Randy at RLewis (at) mainstreetmartinsburg (dot) org.

To participate in our planned "Windows to the Arts" for 2009, contact the programs committee at programs (at) artberkeley (dot) org.

There are also plans in the works for an art show and sale in an area outside downtown Martinsburg, so that artists may offer their work to the residents of Berkeley County. Mary Jo Bennet will be coordinating that effort. More information will be posted in the newsletter on this as plans evolve.

2009 will also bring together members from ArtBerkeley, the Heritage Craft Center and the Arts Centre for a joint exhibit. The three organizations plan to meet after the holidays to make future plans.

The programs committee will once again create a scarecrow for the downtown scarecrow event in the fall. There are also plans in the works to Light the Night again with an even larger and more luminescent event, and additional volunteers will be needed to help behind the scenes. More volunteers will also allow ArtBerkeley to be part of the Snowflake Festival in 2009.

More information

Have you noticed a particular program mentioned in the newsletter, but weren't sure how to get involved? Just email Sue at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com, or give her a call at 304-263-6264. Sue loves hearing ideas from members on new projects, and will gladly fill you in on current programs and let you know how to participate. This is your organization, get involved.

Newsletter Submission Guidelines

100 words or less. Include the member’s name, name of event, date, time, location, and web address or contact information. You must be a paid member of ArtBerkeley to submit items for the newsletter. All submissions are subject to editing and must be submitted by the 20th of each month. Submissions should be sent to S. J. Brown at bisqueness (at) juno (dot) com.

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