March 22, 2012 – The Art League

June Travel Workshop: Provence by Car

March 22, 2012

The Art League is hosting two lavender-themed travel workshops this summer: Susan Abbott’s popular trip to Provence, France, and closer to home, a plein air painting workshop with Bobbi Pratte following the Pennsylvania Lavender Festival. The weekend trip (June 23–24) will include painting time in lavender fields, a tour of the fields, and a five-course lavender luncheon.

The New York Times wrote of domestic lavender: “If I can’t get to the lavender fields of Provence, in France, Willow Pond Farm in Fairfield, Pa., will do just fine.” Visitors will be going to Willow Pond, near Gettysburg, which grows over 70 varieties of lavender and celebrates their blooms in June.

The workshop with start with a demo at 9:00 am Saturday. Bobbi’s lesson will address issues related to plein air painting — when you’re presented with a huge, sweeping landscape, where do you start? How do you decide what to paint? Drawing on the picturesque fields and surrounding views for inspiration, painting will continue with plein air sessions on Saturday evening and Sunday. Saturday will include the farm tour and five-course luncheon.

The workshop price is $225, including the luncheon fee. Optional (and limited) lodging is also available. For more information and to register, visit the travel workshop page!

New Art In City Hall Exhibit Opens

March 22, 2012

Next week’s Art In City Hall, a juried exhibit of artwork on display in Alexandria’s City Hall, is the latest exhibit in a long partnership between The Art League, Del Ray Artisans, the Torpedo Factory Artists Association, and the Alexandria Commission for the Arts. Since the first show, in February 2006, the shows have hung twice a year in City Hall, sharing works of art with the community and giving artists a new venue for exposure.

The upcoming show, running March 26–September 14, was juried by Ali Ringenburg of Principle Gallery and features artwork from each of the collaborating organizations. The juror awarded four $200 prizes, one from each of the participating organizations — the winners are pictured above.

The partnership with the city, which supports the project by providing space and promoting local art, also works to make the arts accessible to people who visit City Hall. Two exhibits go up each year, each hanging for about six months.

The exhibit can be viewed on weekdays, 8:00 am–5:00 pm, on the second floor of City Hall (310 King Street). The opening reception for Art In City Hall is May 21 at 5:30 pm.

powers-simple view-1* — “Simple View” by Catherine Powers received an honorable mention.

Interns Needed for Summer Art Camp

March 22, 2012

Enjoy art or working with kids? The Art League needs interns for Summer Art Camp! The weekly art camps, running June 18–August 24, feature a different syllabus each week and a new art project each day for children ages 5 and up.

Interns will assist instructors, help set up and coordinate classes, and evaluate the effectiveness of classes offered. Interns are trained and directly supervised by the camp coordinator.

College credit is available for summer-long internships. Only six spaces are open, so interested candidates should send their resume and letter of interest, including any experience with teaching or children, to Ali Wunder: aliw (at) theartleague.org, or call the school office, 703-683-2323, with any questions.

The Art League — a multifaceted, non-profit visual arts organization — operates a gallery, school, and store and is stationed in the historic Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. More information about Art Camp is here.