Knitters, Crocheters, Weavers, Stitchers, Fiber People of all types! The good old Douglas UCC knitting crew invites you all to join us at their masked, outdoor, bring-your-own-chair-and-refreshments-and-projects meetups on Wednesday afternoons at the Retreat House backyard, beginning April 21 at 1pm! If you wish to receive reminders of those meetups and alerts when the weather looks too difficult to meet, join this group's mailing list by emailing Julie at julie@douglasucc.org

Blue Star Barns in Saugatuck will be holding curated markets at  this summer. For an idea of what last years markets looked like, there are many pictures on both our Instagram and Facebook pages “Blue Star Barns”.
Many questions can be answered by reviewing the vendor application pdf (below) or feel free to contact
Joe & Amy Aernouts of the Blue Star Barns
3483 Blue Star Hwy, Saugatuck, MI 49453
bluestarbarns@gmail.com
Amy: 616.836.4886
Joe: 616.836.4566

Need frames? Call Betsy York at 510.504.2155 in Saugatuck.

If you’re looking for a way to grow your clientele & connections but not ready for a storefront, you’ve found your place. Contact bluestarbarns@gmail.com or (616) 836-4886

March 23, 2021 from 7 to 8 PM 

• Contact Phone (269)857-8241
  

Kim Zahnow, a professional photographer whose specialties include portraiture, will offer a live Zoom webinar where she will be showing some of her work, offering helpful tips through discussion and Q&A. Bring your questions and expect to accomplish great things!
To sign up, send your name and contact information to info@sdlibrary.org. Click on the Zoom link to join: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81191779322?pwd=UG9UbzV2TU4yWkxOMzhvMHJMdDJTQT09 
This class is offered as part of our upcoming community exhibit, Unmasked, which will feature cell phone portraits. If you want to participate in the exhibit, but don’t feel confident in your photography skill level, join us for this free class.
The session will be recorded for later viewing, and will be posted on the Library’s website.
In partnership with the new Saugatuck-Douglas-Fennville Arts Initiative and made possible by a grant from West Shore Aware

Scroll down to view the new courses! Visit https://winslowartcenter.com/online-course-catalog-winter-spring-2021/ or click the button below.

Join fellow artists at Ox-Bow for our upcoming Spring Saturday Series art workshops!
Ox-Bow is offering 3-session workshops in Collage/2D, Screenprinting, and Mosaic. Each workshop will meet on March 20, March 27 and April 3. They will be held indoors, in our studios, with all COVID mitigation protocols in place.
Find all details and registration info here: https://www.ox-bow.org/spring-aom
Please reach out to carcta@ox-bow.org with any questions. 

Did you ever come across the soothing paint-along art shows of Bob Ross? Maybe you'd like to try painting along, but lack the supplies to make it happen? This program by the Saugatuck-Douglas District Library [SDDL] is for you!

Here's how it will work according to Hannah Mason of the SDDL:
"On Saturday, March 6, you'll pick up your paint-along kit from the Library during our open hours, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. The kit will include an 8" by 10" canvas, all the paint colors you need (acrylics, not oils), and a couple of brushes. There is a suggested fee of $5 to cover materials.
At home you'll need to set up a place where you can both paint and watch a screen, and gather some simple supplies such as water and rags.
At 3 p.m. the same day you'll be invited to join a Zoom meeting in which we'll watch an episode of Bob Ross's show, and paint along with him to create "Snowy Solitude". If the timing is not convenient you can also find the show on YouTube and paint along at another time - we suggest you not wait too long, though, as the paints are liable to dry out.
We expect the program to take about an hour, and look forward to having you join us to create your own little 'masterpiece' (results may vary)!
Please call 269-857-8241 during open hours (see website) by Thursday, March 4, to reserve your spot. Supplies are limited and registration will close when all our kits are spoken for."

Click the button below to visit Royce Deans' website.

Check out these classes for artists of all ages.

The book titles are arranged in chronological order starting in March, 2021.

MARCH – “I Always Loved You” by Robin Oliveira – Beautifully written with period details featuring Mary Cassatt and her complex relationship with Edgar Degas. Mary was famous for her paintings of intimate bonds between mother and child. Included are Berthe Morisot and Edouard Manet.  Cassett was a dear friend of Abigail May Alcott, Louisa’s artistic sister and the basis for the Amy character in Little Women.  Born 1926, Allegheny, Pa. died 1926. She went to Paris alone in 1866 to study and pursue her art.  In 1877 her parents and sister Lydia joined her and they lived together in an apartment. In 1893 she was invited to show in Chicago by Bertha Palmer creating a large mural for the Women’s Building at the Chicago World’s Colombian Exhibition.

APRIL – “The Highwaymen: Florida’s African-American Artists" by Gary Monroe.  Not a novel.  There were 26 African American landscape artists in Florida in the Fort Pierce area. They sold their work door to door and along the highways from 1950s through 1980s.  They used the same colors and their subject matter was very much the same. The style is very distinctive. They also painted in various stays in prison. You may want to explore them on the internet or see if the library has books on this culture.

MAY – “The Last Painting of Sara de Vos” by Dominic Smith is the story of a Dutch female artist who lost her young daughter and in grief she secretly begins painting a dark landscape of a girl watching ice skaters from the edge of the woods.  Females were not to be artists and the approximately twenty of the Golden Age in the Netherlands had to sign men’s names to their work. The painting's inheritor in the 1950s Manhattan has a forgery painted.  In 1631 Sara becomes the first woman to be admitted as a master painter to the Guild of St. Luke in Holland.
Other titles include “Girl in Hyacinth Blue” by Susan Vreeland, and “Girl with the Pearl Earring" by Tracy Chevalier. These titles are about Dutch Painters in the 1600s Netherlands.  Two are about Johannes Vermeer who lived and worked in Delft in early 1600s. 

JUNE  – “Renoir’s Dancers: The Secret of Suzanne Valadon” by Catherine Hewitt.  Suzanne Valadon (1865-1938) was a model for Renoir and other artists of the period including Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec.  He was her lover for two years until she attempted suicide in 1888. She was an accomplished painter.  See the painting entitled “Renoir’s Dancer” and you will see Suzanne. She was the first woman painter admitted to the Societe Nationale des Beau-Arts, also the mother of painter Maurice Utrillo.  In the 1890s she befriended Edgar Degas who purchased her work and encouraged her she remained one of his closest friends until his death.

JULY  – “Luncheon at the Boating Party” by Suzanne Vreeland.
Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party painting includes 14 people around the outdoor table in the summer along the Seine. The story is about each one and how difficult it was to get them together to pose many times for the painting. They met on Sundays for two months. It is 1880 and Auguste Renior and the author paint their lives, loves, losses, and triumphs so vividly that “the painting literally comes alive.”(Boston Globe)
                                   
AUGUST  – Now the top selling female artist in the world.  Yayoi Kusama (born 1929) is a Japanese contemporary artist who works in sculpture and installation.  She is active in painting, performance, film, fashion, fiction and other arts.  Her work is based in conceptual art. She is obsessed with repetitions. In childhood she made drawings of pumpkins and her art today is based on that shape. There are approximately 25 books featuring  her work and her hallucinations since childhood enhance her work. Reading about her on the internet will take you hours; there is so much. She is a marketing genius.

SEPTEMBER – “Strapless” by Deborah Davis is the amazing story of the portrait of Madame X by John Singer Sargent. She was a young socialite by the name of Virginie Amelle Avegno Gautreau and the portrait was created 1883-1884. The scandal resulting from the presentation at the Paris Salon in 1884 amounted to a temporary setback for his career in France. She is posing in a black satin dress with jeweled straps that reveals and hides at the same time.

OCTOBER – “Marriage of Opposites” by Alice Hoffman is the story of Jacob Abraham Camille Pissarro, born 1830 on the island of St. Thomas. His mother was from a French-Jewish family from St. Thomas. The father, Portuguese Jewish, was a merchant who came to the island from France to deal with the hardware store.  His father sent him to boarding school in France at age 12. Pissarro is considered the father of the French Impressionism. An incredibly intense and excellent book, “Depths of Glory” by Irving Stone would be a read for someone focused on France and the Impressionist.

NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER SURPRISE!   You might enjoy “Lust for Life” by Irving Stone.

Please RSVP for Zoom Link at: https://www.rhythmix.org/events/demystifying-the-journey/

Here are some courses fellow SDAC members have taken and enjoyed:

From Michael Rippey and Jerry Fresia liked this good for beginners painting workshop:  https://www.fresia.com/painting-workshops/online-painting-course/

From Julie Ridl recommends Sketch Book School: https://sketchbookskool.com/about/
 
Michael Rippey recommends checking out these two painters who have given him inspiration:
John Traynor, https://www.johnctraynor.com/
Jackie Gouveia, https://www.jgouveia.com/index.html

By Dan Scott of drawpaintacademy.com

It has been a strange year. Crazy to think it’s almost over, with only a few months left in 2020.

Artists are lucky in the sense we don’t need much to enjoy the art life, and it’s not easily taken away from us. I could find at least some joy with just a pen, sketchbook, and my thoughts. But, it has still been hard. Impossibly hard for some.
What can you do to keep spirits high during these times? Here are some ideas:
- Reminisce over old work. Compare it to your recent work. Are you improving? How is your style developing? If you had to paint them again, what would you do differently?
It’s easy to forget all that you create. I recently visited my parents' place and saw all my old work stacked up in the corner of the garage. Some from when I was just a child. I had forgotten most of them, but as I saw each painting, I could distinctly remember when, where, and why I painted it. Each painting seems to capture a point in time. I got a warm feeling seeing how far I’ve come. You might get that same feeling.
- Find beauty in nearby places. You don’t need to travel to remote islands or vast mountains for inspiration (though it doesn’t hurt). There’s beauty all around us. It might be the interesting light and shadow patterns created by the tree in your backyard. Or the flowers in your garden. Or the gesture of your partner or pet. And if all that fails to spark your imagination, try recreating famous paintings or paint from reference photos (you can grab some of mine here).
- Try a different medium. If your surroundings are static, invite change through other means. Try watercolors, charcoal, gouache, water-based oils, pen and ink. Mix it up. Personally, I did a few watercolor paintings recently. What a wonderful yet frustrating medium!
- Quick sketch. Keep things fresh and simple. A little bit every day is better than long periods of absence. Buy a sketchbook and try to do at least a page each day. I like to date the corner to track my progress.

- Do the boring things you have been procrastinating. Restock on supplies. Clean up your studio. Fix the lighting. (I think I’m subconsciously writing this for myself.)
- Plan for the next 12 months. Hopefully, it will be better than the last. What do you want to learn? Who do you want to learn from? What weaknesses should you work on? What strengths should you push?
- Catch up on theory. Do you understand what color really is and how we see it? Do you know what makes a composition interesting and inviting? Do you know the light and shadow terminology? This stuff doesn’t require a brush in hand, but can result in vast improvements in your work.

- Use this as an opportunity to take a step back and enjoy your surroundings. "Go do nothing" as Jeremy Mann puts it in this video.
Want more painting tips? Check out my ebook, 21 Easy Ways to Improve Your Paintings.

Click the button below for a PDF from Dan Scott of Draw Paint Academy

Artist Royce Deans is offering online and zoom classes. For more information, visit https://roycedeans.wordpress.com/

An open-air, hands-on exploration of several historical art techniques highlights the August 25 Saugatuck-Douglas History Center's Back-In-Time Garden” behind the Old School House, 130 Center Street, Douglas. The one-hour program begins when the school bell rings at 11 a.m. Public attendance is invited and admission is free. Respecting COVID safety protocols, seating will be
socially distanced and limited to 20 guests. To aid program setup, guests are asked to preregister
online at tinyurl.com/SDHC-TT-8-25 as early as possible. Questions regarding online registration may
be e-mailed to info@sdhistoricalsociety.org.
Attendees will be required to bring and wear masks when entering and leaving the area and during
direct interactions with participants and presenters (masks may be taken off while guests are seated
socially distanced).

Maryjo Lemanski, artist and former owner of Water Street Gallery in Douglas, will present “Back In The
Old Days: Historical Art Techniques”, explaining and demonstrating how early Michigan artists made
creative use of photography, quill pen and ink drawing, letterpress printing, tea bag painting and
rubbings. She then will guide participants who want to try the techniques discussed, at four separated
stations equipped with the appropriate materials. No prior art training or experience is required.

“When I view art work completed in the early 1900s,” Lemanski says, “I am amazed at the level of skill
and high quality of work that was created. These early Michigan artists were challenged with the few
materials available. Their ingenuity and perseverance as well as their artistic talents are still admired
by artists today.”

This Talk is sponsored by SDHC members Bill and Nancy Woods. For more information about the Saugatuck-Douglas History Center, its Museum in Saugatuck and Old School House in Douglas, or its activities planned for the months ahead, visit www.MySDHistory.org.

Pauline "Pauly" Brockington
12/17/1925 - 6/3/2020

Pauline "Pauly" Brockington, 94, of Saugatuck passed away Wednesday, June 3, 2020. Pauly was born and raised in Columbus Ohio. She spent many enjoyable summers at Big Darby Creek in the Hocking Hills of Ohio. Pauly graduated from The Ohio State University, where she met her husband Ned. She was a long time resident of Saugatuck, where she worked at Force's Gifts and Saugatuck Bank. She was very involved in the Saugatuck-Douglas Art Club, Garden Club, and Historical Society. Pauly was a storyteller, through both her writing and painting. She was an active part of a writers group that published "Meanderings" articles in the Commercial Record. She wrote hundreds of stories for her grandchildren about growing up in Ohio, and what it was like to be a child of the depression. She was always happy when she had a cup of coffee, a good mystery book, and a schnauzer in her lap. Preceded in death by husband Ned, son Joseph, and sisters Iris Roper and Shirley Kensinger. Survived by children, William (Suzanne) Brockington of Whitehall, Susan Brockington of Holland, daughter-in-law Catherine Brockington of Saugatuck, nine grandchildren, eleven great grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. A private family burial took place in Riverside Cemetery, Saugatuck. A memorial gathering to be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Pauly's name to Saugatuck-Douglas Art Club Scholarship, PO Box 176, Saugatuck, MI 49453.

SDAC member Susan Day Martell paints in a lush contemporary photorealistic style, deploying close up views of alluring florals in a way that is all her own. Susan Day Martell is inspired by the beauty of her surroundings in her own flower garden in Douglas. Largely self-taught, she has also studied with other contemporary artists around the country. Her medium is both oil and acrylics.

Painting since 2011, in recent years she has been concentrating on honing her skills in photorealism with her animal portraits and floral art. She has been selected for the "Top Twenty" of Holland's Tulip Time Art in Bloom competition for the last three years. Her work has also been selected for many regional art exhibitions and is in private collections around the country.

In Full Bloom
Susan Day Martell
May 28 to July 19, 2020
Solo Exhibition at the Holland Area Arts Council
Lievense Gallery

Now offering private exhibit tours! Call (616)396-3278 or email helpdesk@hollandarts.org to schedule.