Our Activites are posted in the Monroe Township Newsletter on line

We are now listed under EVENTS in the Monroe Township e-newsletter:
http://www.monroenjonline.com/index.php/monroe-twp-nj-events-activities
 

Christmas Time Is Here!

OK, we know it’s closer to Labor Day, but the Cranbury Arts Council is getting the Christmas spirit a little early as we proudly announce the second annual Fall production for kids: “A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS.”

Kids grades 2 thru 9 are invited to join our musical production of the timeless TV classic. We’ll need Linus, Lucy, Schroeder, Snoopy, Charlie Brown and a whole assortment of beloved “Peanuts” characters to bring Charles Schultz’s story to life.

Additional songs and dances have been added to make “A Charlie Brown Christmas” a wonderful start to the holiday season and YOUR CHILD CAN BE A PART OF IT!

Attached, you will find a brochure with all the information about our production. Brochures will also be available at the Cranbury Public Library.

Rehearsals begin Wednesday, October 5 and will be held every Wednesday and Thursday from 6:45 to 8:45. The final performance will be on Saturday, November 19. (Think of it as an early Christmas present!) The cost is $250.00 per child with a 10% discount to any Cranbury Arts Council members.

Spots are limited and will fill up early so fill out the registration attached and mail it to:

CRANBURY ARTS COUNCIL

PO BOX 643

CRANBURY, NJ 08512

If you have any questions about the program, please e-mail us at: kidstheatrecompany@gmail.com

So, be a part of a Christmas tradition and join the cast of “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”

In the words of Linus: “This is what Christmas is all about!”

SEPTEMBER EXHIBIT

GOURGAUD GALLERY NEWS

The Gourgaud Gallery has many exciting new events beginning in September 2011.  On Cranbury Day, Sept. 10, 2011, the WINTER WORKSHOP SERIES exhibit opens.  It includes :

Artists’ work from the classes that were offered, including collage, landscapes, and watercolor.

 In the area surrounding Town Hall and the blacktop area behind the Cranbury School, between the hours of 10-4, the Cranbury Arts Council (CAC) will be hosting a sidewalk sale, which will include matted and framed paintings, open gallery exhibit, and Cranstock on Cranbury Day.  Included in this wonderful event, will be live music.

UPCOMING EXHIBITS:

September: “Winter workshop Series” (Sept. 4-25—opening Sept. 10)

October: Photography-Artist Sara Lee Pinder (Oct. 2-30)

November: The Suburban Art Guild (Nov. 6-27)

December: “Cranbury Gardens IX”-works from Art in the Park (Dec. 4-26—closed Christmas Dec. 25)

OPEN CALL FOR JANUARY EXHIBIT ”WINTER LIGHT”.  Applications will be available on web site in the near future: www.cranburyartscouncil.org.

As part of the non-profit CAC, the Gourgaud Gallery donates 20% of any art sales back to the CAC and its programs that support and promote the Arts in our community. The Gallery is located in Town Hall and is free and open to the public Mon- Fri from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. and the First, Third & Last Sunday of the month from 1-3 p.m.  New exhibit receptions fall on the First Sunday from 1-3 p.m, where you can meet the exhibiting Artist(s).  Anyone wishing to exhibit at the Gourgaud Gallery can obtain an application at the Gallery or at www.cranbury.org.  For information on upcoming programs and events, join us on FACEBOOK: GOURGAUD GALLERY, and on the GOURGAUD GALLERY BLOG at www.Gourgaudgallery.blogspot.com . If you are interested in CAC membership or participating in any way, please email us at cranburyartscouncil@gmail.com. 

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.