Coming in September

The September exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery will be showing the Art Work of artists who attended the Winter Workshop Series at the Gourgaud Gallery (www.GourgaudGallery.blogspot.com), (https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068), and The Cranbury Arts Council www.cranburyartscouncil.org

The Winter Workshop Series consists of classes in collage, watercolor, art history, and painting Landscapes.  The Art Show opens September 6, 2011. The artist reception will be held in conjunction with Cranbury Day, September 10, 2011.

In addition to the Art Exhibit, there will be an outdoor sale of matted and framed original paintings and craft items in the parking area outside the gallery.  A percentage of sales of these items will benefit the Gourgaud Gallery and Cranbury Arts Council. (Sept. 10, 2011).

AUGUST EXHIBIT AT GOURGAUD GALLERY – PROFILE OF THE ARTIST – ZARA FINA STASI

AUGUST EXHIBIT AT GOURGAUD GALLERY – PROFILE OF THE   ARTIST – ZARA FINA STASI

BY BOB GILBERT

ZARA FINA STASI

The August exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery is entitled “21 Years of Painting: Travels and Experiences from Around the Globe”, and features the oil and watercolor paintings of Ms. Zara Fina Stasi.  The collection represents Zara’s travels abroad as well as scenes from Cranbury and Cape May, and includes landscapes, portraits, and still life. 

Zara is a native of Cranbury and is presently a senior at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, where she is majoring in Art and History. 

Zara turns twenty-one years of age shortly, and I wondered about the title of the exhibit, which seems to indicate that she has been painting since she was born.  She explained that “I have been painting since I was old enough to hold a brush for no reason other than I love to paint”, and that the title conveys that painting has been an important part of her life from early childhood.  In fact, she participated in juried art shows at the Gourgaud Gallery as a child, and even at that time, there was a bid to purchase one of her paintings.

 Many of the paintings appearing in the current exhibit have been made in the last two years, but Zara is also including a number of paintings that she created as a child, as early as seven or eight years of age.  This will demonstrate the progression of her work. 

Zara states that she has a passion for art history, and that she has been greatly influenced by Van Gogh, de Kooning, and Rothko.  She describes her style as leaning toward expressionism.

Zara is a very well rounded individual involved in many interesting extracurricular activities at school unrelated to art.  She is a Tour Guide at Historic Williamsburg and is the Chief Justice of the Undergraduate Honor Council at her College.  With respect to the latter, she is one of twenty-four elected Justices on the Council.  As Chief Justice, she is in charge of the Council, which enforces the school’s honor code by adjudicating cases involving alleged student misconduct.  Zara has gained valuable experience through this position, including learning how to be a manager and how to use advanced computer programs.

Could her position as Chief Justice on the Honor Council mean a possible legal career for Zara?  Probably not, as her first love is art.  She is considering a career as a full-time artist, as an art teacher, or as a member of the Art or History Departments of a museum.

All are encouraged to visit the Gourgaud Gallery to view Zara’s work.  The show runs from August 5^th – August 28^th, with the Artist’s Reception on August 5^th from 6PM – 8PM.  The Gallery is open Monday through Friday (9AM – 4PM), and the first, third, and last Sunday of the month from 1PM- 3PM

Additional information and sample paintings are available on Facebook on the Gourgaud Gallery fan page:

https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068

                                                     SAMPLES OF ZARA'S PAINTINGS

Note from Judy Buckley: the current show at the Gourgaud Gallery

Hi,
Been meaning to send you both this, if you want to add it to the web or a note in the Cranbury Press.
Jim Gerberich took some pics and I've asked him to send some to you Lorraine.
The opening was a huge success despite the torrential rains, folks said 50 people showed and I sold 9 pieces.

I was proud to donate an extra 10% of sales to a family in Missouri who was very hurt by the destruction down there. (20% goes to Cranbury Arts Council)
Attached and below is a little something about them, if you want to add it to anything.
Thanks again for all your support, the show was a success because your support and artful words.

judy

Along with 20% of sales going to The Cranbury Arts Council,

another 10% will go directly to the Lamar Family of Joplin, Missouri.

Ginger Lamar was at her daughter’s graduation on May 22, when the tornado flattened her two-story home and left only one wall of a closet standing. Her two pets were found safely under the ruble with an injury of only a broken leg. The family was able to retrieve only one photo album from living in their home of twenty five years. Ginger works at Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce.

Contacts can be made at: Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, 320 East Fourth Street Joplin, MO 64801 Attention: Ginger Lamar (personal)

(I do not know Ginger personally, but was moved by the photos of the devastated area and inquired through the Joplin Area chamber of Commerce.)

NEW EXHIBIT FOR JULY AT THE GOURGAUD GALLERY

NEW EXHIBIT FOR JULY AT THE GOURGAUD GALLERY

By Bob Gilbert

Judy Buckley  "French Fields'

Judy Buckley  "Peru Street"

Judy Buckley  "The Bay"

The new exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery opening on July 8, 2011 features the paintings of Cranbury resident Judy Buckley.  The show is entitled “Travels – Recent Paintings 2011 – Near and Far”.

I had the pleasure of previewing the exhibit, which includes a variety of landscapes.  There are bodies of water, farm fields, countryside, and marshes, all with dramatic representations of the sky.  In one painting, the outline of a Ferris wheel can be seen on the distant horizon line of the beach.  A Ferris wheel is probably the most impressive, striking, and unique structure associated with beach resorts, and the painting really captured that.

But there are more than landscapes.  One painting is a view from within a church looking out.  It captures some of the interesting features inside the church and the appealing scene outside.  Paintings looking out on something always catch my attention.   

Judy has a BA degree in Art from Georgian Court College, Lakewood, NJ, and has studied art in New York City as well.  She worked for a period in the art department of a New York City advertising agency, but now spends her time painting as well as teaching art at Princeton High School, the Middlesex Youth Center, and the West Windsor Arts Council.

Judy speaks enthusiastically about teaching art.  In adult classes, there is great energy and excitement when a new person begins to paint and discovers the joy within them.  It is contagious!  With high school students, there is discovery, as you never know what is in a person’s mind until they express it in their art work.  Each student brings their own approach to art, and witnessing this helps Judy to keep an open mind and to see things in a new way.

Judy was interested in art as a child, but really got started when, as a high school student, she took lessons from a highly regarded artist in Red Bank, NJ, whom she still remembers fondly as a great inspiration.  Judy is especially grateful to her mom who drove her forty-five minutes each way to attend these lessons.  This is a great example of how a caring parent and an outstanding teacher can make a difference in a person’s life!

Judy paints primarily landscapes, as she enjoys the challenge of capturing the beauty of the places she has seen, whether it be the Jersey shore or some exotic location halfway around the world.  She finds that as her art evolves, she is less concerned with realism and more interested in the play and interaction of color. 

In addition to her own paintings, Judy is displaying paintings by some of her students at the Middlesex Youth Shelter.  These students earn high school credits in Judy’s art class, which is funded by the Cranbury Arts Council.

Additional paintings may be seen on the Gourgaud Gallery Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Gourgaud-Gallery/108657442495068?sk=info

The exhibit can be viewed at The Gourgaud Gallery, Town Hall, 3-A North Main St., Cranbury, NJ 08512.  The Artist reception will be held on Friday, July 8 from 6-8 PM.  The Gallery is open on the 1^st, 3^rd and last Sunday of every month and during regular business hours of Town Hall, Monday through Friday from 9AM to 5 PM.

CRANBURY ARTS COUNCIL CAMP

As hard as it is to believe, summer vacation is right around the corner. If you haven't yet registered your child for camp, there's still time left! We encourage you to send registrations in as soon as possible to make sure your child gets his or her first choice. Below is an update on camp availability:

Woodworking (Grades 1-3) is full.

The following camps have very limited openings:
Grow a Pizza (Gr. K-2)
Percussion, Session 1 (Gr. 2-8)
Robotics (Gr. 4-9)
Movie Making, Session 2 (Gr. 4-9)
Bowls and Pitchers (Gr. 2-4)
Theater 1 (Gr. 2-6)
As of today, all other camps have openings.

Still can't decide? Here's a mini-guide to our other fun and exciting offerings!

Grades K-2 All camps are led by the wonderful Barbara Adams, one of Cranbury School's favorite teachers!Fit Food and Fitness - Learn how to make the most of your summer by staying active and eating great snacks you make yourself!
Paper Making - Have fun with recycling and show off your creative side by making your own, one-of-a-kind paper! Try your hand at making a variety of colorful designs and unique textures!
Kooky Science Concoctions - Do you like to experiment with different things that react in crazy ways? Come on into Mrs. Adams' kooky laboratory and discover weird and wonderful ways to have fun with science!

Grades 1-3
Crafts Around the World - Take a trip around the world with Senora Rodriguez, who was last year's Teacher of the Year at Cranbury School! Learn to make crafts and toys the way children around the world do. You may even learn a few words in a different language! Musical Storytelling - Cranbury's own Dynamic Musical Duo, Mrs. DeAntonio and Mr. Haltmeier, will help you unleash your inner musician in ways you never thought possible! This fun, high-energy camp will give you the chance to use your voice, crazy sound effects, and different kinds of musical instruments to make your own, unique soundtracks that everyone will want to hear! This is Mr. Haltmeier's last year at Cranbury School, so don't miss your chance to spend a week or two enjoying his wonderful talents!

Grades 2-4Fantastic Physics - Can lemons and potatoes really be batteries? What makes a swing keep swinging after you get off? Why does a popsicle stick float? Popular middle-school science teacher Mrs. Jaworowski will lead you on a hands-on exploratory journey to find our how things in our physical world work!
Science Explorers - Become a science detective and find out how scientists get answers to questions we all want to know! Learn about plants and how they grow, our environment, chemistry, and more, and use scientific methods and experiments to answer some of your own questions!
Animals and Gargoyles - Mrs. Woronczuk's always-popular clay-creation series continues with Animals and Gargoyles. What kind of beasts and creatures can you imagine? A pig with horns? A lizard with feathers? A gargoyle wearing a sparkly party hat? Come get your hands dirty and make something the world has never seen!Cezanne and Seurat - If you like to paint, come join Mrs. Woronczuk as she shows you how to paint in the style of two master painters! Use bright colors, and big brush strokes or tiny dots to make masterpieces ready for framing!Vasarely and Van Gogh - Many people are familiar with the brilliant work of Vincent VanGogh, but not as many know much about Victor Vasarely's amazing work with color and optical illusion. Learn how these artists created unique works, and see what you can create using their techniques!



Grades 3-5
Mask Making - This camp will let you get your hands dirty as you create masks that will dazzle, amuse or even scare your friends a little! Mrs. Woronczuk will open the supply cabinets and let you use clay, foil, Model Magic, plaster, and much more to make just about any kind of mask you can think of!Junk Mail Art - What can you do with colorful ads for inflatable kiddie pools or Sponge Bob party invitations? Do something good for the environment and recycle the bright, colorful flyers that come in the mail every day! Try to make a collage that looks like your friend out of ads for things like soda, pet food, CDs or DVDs, sports equipment, clothing, and more!
Chemistry Camp - Last year's popular Chemistry Camp returns for another year of hands-on action! Use things you'd find around your house to conduct sometimes weird, but always fun, experiments! This is a great chance for younger students to try out some of the cool equipment found in the middle school science lab and use it to figure out what matter is all about!
Grades 4-9
Sewing I and II - Even if you've never touched a sewing machine before, you can learn to sew and make cool things to take home with you by the end of our sewing camp! Beginners can learn all the basics of sewing, and will get good enough with a sewing machine to make things like aprons, tote bags, and even a simple top to wear. Campers with sewing experience will learn more advanced techniques, and will work on more challenging projects. Professional designers, and always popular teachers, Michelle Ferranti and Gina Ricca will give you plenty of individual attention to make sure you'll be proud of your creations!Movie Making - Cranbury School's Teacher of the Year, Tom Nichols, will teach you how to use Apple Computer's remarkable suite of i-Life programs to make incredible movies, music videos, podcasts, and more! Interested campers can have their movies shown in Gourgaud Gallery on Cranbury Day, so be prepared for your big, public premiere!
Wood Working - Spend a week learning how to use a whole range of different hand and power tools to build all sorts of projects out of wood. Try your hand at making a crate guitar, a boat, or maybe some simple furniture. Mr. Stinson will gladly share his vast knowledge of wood-working and his building expertise with you to make your project something special!Jewelry Making - Learn to make your own unique pieces of jewelry to wear or share with friends! You'll learn techniques you can use for a lifetime. At the end of camp, come up with a name for your own jewelry boutique and set up shop to sell some of your favorite creations!Dragsters and Pinewood Derby - If you feel the need for speed, this is the camp for you! Learn all about car design, then put into practice what you've learned by building your own customized CO2-powered dragster. See if your car can set a land speed record for the Cranbury School blacktop, with speeds that might reach 50 mph!
Model Rockets and Airplanes - Our always-popular Model Rockets and Airplanes camp returns, complete with launches that other campers love to watch! Learn all about how rockets and airplanes fly, then design and build your own and test them out!
Inventing and Engineering - This camp features the perfect combination of creating by both computer and hand. Use two exciting programs to help bring your designs to life, then build and test them. Can you build a trebuchet to shoot things across a room? Can you design and build a bridge that you can stand on? You'll never know until you try!
Grades 5-9
Art Intensive Workshops: Acrylic Workshop and Collage Workshop - Spend a full camp day with Cranbury's own art treasure, Mrs. Woronczuk, to learn all about working with acrylics or collage. Each camp promises lots of one-on-one instruction, and each camper will come home with a beautiful piece of art at the end of the day.Rock 'n Roll Studio - Back again for a second year, Cranbury's energetic and wildly creative music team, Mrs. DeAntonio and Mr. Haltmeier, will take campers on a musical journey to become rock stars! Learn all about the creative process behind making CDs, and then make CDs of your own original songs! Form bands, record your songs, and learn production techniques to make your CDs sound great. All instruments are welcome, but no musical experience is required. Don't miss out on your last chance to work with Mr. Haltmeier before he leaves Cranbury School!
Learn, Design, and Build - Princeton High School's popular and energetic Industrial Arts teacher Joe Gargione joins our camp this year with an innovative camp for students who want to learn about architecture. Try out your design skills on an architectural-design program, and design your own unique one-story house. Once your design is finished, make your vision reality by building a model of your house!
Theater II - If you've never tried your hand at acting, this is the place to start! Veteran director and playwright Gary Charwin will show you all the ropes and make sure your acting debut is fun and memorable! Experienced campers will enjoy working with a smaller group than in Theater I, and every camper will be an important part of the final production!

Grades 6-9
Fashion Design and Merchandising - Do you have an eye for color? Do you always know which accessories look best with your outfit? Do you want to know more about how a clothing line is developed? International fashion designer Gina Ricca will show you what it takes to design your own line of clothes, from special occasion outfits to bathing suits and everything in-between! Enjoy a field trip to Manhattan to learn about design at a design house, explore fabrics and trims at specialty stores, and tour the museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

Still have questions? Our camp brochure and registration forms are available on our web site (http://www.cranburyartscouncil.org/CampCover.html). We're also happy to answer any questions by e-mail (cranburyartscouncil@gmail.com).

We hope to see you in July!

CAC Camp Staff

June exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery-A Touch of Glass

NEW EXHIBIT AT GOURGAUD GALLERY – “A TOUCH OF GLASS”

By Bob Gilbert

The new exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery for the month of June 2011 features watercolor paintings by a talented group of artists known as “Watercolorists Unlimited”.  As suggested by the title of the exhibit, “A Touch of Glass”, the subject matter of every painting includes some object with glass.

I viewed the exhibit in advance of the opening on June 5, and what struck me immediately was the beauty of the work, which illuminates the room.  Watercolor is pleasing to the eye, especially when in the hands of experienced watercolorists who know how to use it.

As claimed, each painting depicted subject matter containing glass – a portrait of a woman wearing eyeglasses, light filtering through a window, drinking vessels, flower vases, and more.

Concerning Watercolorists Unlimited, Lisa Walsh, a longtime member informs me that the group is comprised of approximately twenty watercolor artists who collectively select a different subject to paint each month. The members paint that subject independently, and then assemble once per month at a member’s home to critique each other’s work.  The topic for this month’s show is a good example of the subjects chosen.  But sometimes a technical issue, such as painting something with texture, rather than painting a particular object, is the topic of the month.

Lisa notes that being part of the group helps members improve their painting skills thanks in large part to the critique of fellow members, who provide helpful feedback and even solutions to technical issues.

Watercolorists Unlimited has been together for approximately twenty years, with a few original members still in the group.  The group exhibits their work at four or five shows per year, including the annual show at the Gourgaud Gallery.

I certainly enjoyed this exhibit and I believe that you will too.

The show runs from June 5 through June 26, and can be viewed Monday through Friday during business hours, and the first, third, and last Sunday of the month from 1 PM – 3PM.  Make a visit!     

Alice With Glasses
by Karen Bannister

                                                         

April Morning
by Lisa Walsh

Ruby
by Bernice Fatto

The Red Lantern
Barbara Cox

                                                        

NEW SHOW AT THE GOURGAUD GALLERY

Gourgaud Gallery

June 5 • 1–3pm, Meet the Artists Reception, Touch of Glass: Watercolorists
Unlimited, through June 30, The Gourgaud Gallery, Cranbury Town Hall, 23A North
Main Street, Cranbury, ggcchair@cranbury.org. www.cranbury.org.