First Thursday

Art by Angie Hedman on display at The Artist Within Art on display at The Artist Within Work by Nancy Witte on display at Gallery 308 Art on display at Gordy Fine Art & Framing Co. Art on display at Gordy Fine Art & Framing Co. Art on display at Gordy Fine Art & Framing Co. Muncie Makes Lab Muncie Makes Lab DWNTWN DWNTWN DWNTWN DWNTWN Art Reels Art on display at Rose Court Art on display at Rose Court Art on display at Rose Court

The Artist Within
313 S Walnut

Downstairs - Then, Now, and POW!
The Artist Within will feature the sculptural assemblages of Angie Hedman. Hedman received her BS in Art Education and a BFA in Metalsmithing from BSU in 1998. A few years later she went back and to earn an MA in Metalsmithing from BSU in 2006. Since 1999, Angie has taught Art at Lincoln Middle/High School in Cambridge City, IN. She teaches grades 6-8 general art, and grades 9-12 three-dimensional art. This talented young artist resides in Muncie with her husband and two children. They own Phoenix Design, a small screen-printing business in Muncie.

Hedman says that the work in “Then, Now and POW!” is a collection of past and present experiences and interests.  Each piece tells a story.  Some of the pieces in this collection are about secrets, lies, truth, ex-boyfriends, failure and success.

This particular collection of work was also influenced by Angie’s love of Pop Art, comic books, toys and board games.  She often pairs contrasting objects together.  The artist feels that something magical happens when objects from different genres, decades, textures, and materials merge and "make sense".  She likes to collect small and unusual objects that she often uses in her work. Vintage photographs, copper wire, screws, bolts, text, and paint also make their way in to most of her work.  The work in this collection can be divided into two categories: Sculptural Assemblage Boxes, and Gameboard Purses.  The two are quite different, but still complement each other.  Overlapping themes occur in both. Make plans to stop by for light refreshments and an opportunity to meet the artist.

Upstairs - What’s in Your Garden?
Spring has finally Sprung! In celebration of the much awaited arrival of Spring, the Artist Within is hosting a “POP-UP” Community Art Exhibit in their upper level gallery.  Local artists of all ages and skill levels have been invited to exhibit their 2-Dimensional answer to “What’s in Your Garden?” This non-juried exhibit will be on display June 5-28.  Most work is for sale and the participating artists are encouraged to be on hand for the First Thursday festivities from 5-8pm on Thursday June 5th. Please make plans to come support all who have been generous enough to share their artwork.

Cornerstone Center for the Arts
520 E Main (2nd floor)
Students Endeavors

Join Cornerstone Center for Arts for First Thursday on June 5,  2014, for an opening reception and art show featuring two Cornerstone student artists, Tambra White and Wendy Carpenter. Their combined show will feature works of acrylic on canvas, landscapes, odes to nature, and watercolor pieces. The opening reception will take place from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The gallery will be on display throughout the month of June.

Wendy Carpenter lives cozily in Yorktown with her husband of almost 23 years, two of her three children, and spoiled Shih-Tzu mix, Jax. Along with her art work, she is also enjoys the spotlight, acting in many of the district’s local theatres.

Carpenter learned her artistic style from her great-grandfather and remembers their time painting landscapes together fondly. Most of her works are comprised of acrylic on canvas, but she also enjoys dabbling in watercolors.

Tambra White began her career in special education, rather than art. After teaching for over a decade, she transitioned to become a stay at home mom for her two children and husband of 17 years.

White first discovered her talent during a class at Cornerstone Center for the Arts. At first White only mirrored her instructor’s work, but eventually created her own style and branched out to a variety of different media and content, her favorite being trees.

The Art Gallery is located on the 2nd floor of the building. It will continue to exhibit and promote the artwork of Cornerstone students and instructors, local high school and college students, as well as local and regional artists.

The Fickle Peach (21+)
117 E Charles

Our artist is Ron Bell for June. Artist statement: "My work is somewhat traditional in general but I try to add an interesting twist or point of view.  I like to use reflective surfaces, glass for example, to add interest. I enjoy all mediums, probably say oil on canvas is my favorite. Much of my work is realism in nature."

Gallery 308
308 E Main
Old-Fashioned Pop Painter

“An Old-Fashioned Pop Painter” showcasing the talents of New Orleans artist Nancy Witte opens First Thursday at Gallery 308 on June 5. “The exhibition features her favorite themes of hotels, motels, sixties advertising, Coney Island and the sea. The opening reception for the new exhibit will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. The public is welcome. 

Witte says, “I have a definite thing for signs. My dad was a commercial artist for International Harvester, the farm & tractor company, which was kind of funny because he was a total city boy. He worked in their sign division and there were sign industry manuals around the house with different letter type sets that just fascinated me. I could look at those for hours.”

Born in Chicago, she had no formal training; however, she was influenced by both her parents who met   at the American Academy of Art while studying commercial illustration. “There were always good art supplies around the house, particularly Prismacolor pencils.”

According to Witte, she works from both her own digital photos & found images and almost everything she paints is in acrylic.  She states, “I have a love/hate relationship with Chicago; it has definitely fueled my art. Plus I was a vagabond when I was young living in Seattle, Key West, New York, and Alaska.

She now lives outside New Orleans in Meraux, Louisiana, on a thin strip of land between the marshes of Lake Borgne & the Mississippi River.  Witte says the light here is fabulous with the sun hitting the water on both sides; it's the best light I've ever painted in...besides Key West.  She added, “A lot the things I have painted are gone, wiped away by Katrina--the Sugar Bowl Motel, the Deep South Motel. I suppose that is natural anywhere, but the sense of change is more marked here.”

Her work has been exhibited at Remembering What Care Forgot: An Exhibition Celebrating New Orleans Culture & Revival at ABC NO RIO New York, the Pilsen Juried Art Fair in Chicago, and the Intergalactic Krewe of Chewbacchus Art Show at Big Top Gallery in New Orleans.

The exhibit will be on display through June 27.  The gallery’s hours are Fridays 3-7pm and Saturdays from 12:30 – 5:00pm.  Admission is free.

Gordy Fine Art & Framing Co.
224 E Main
Summer Invitational: New Modes

Twelve contemporary artists have been invited to exhibit for two months at Gordy Fine Art & Framing. Gallery manager Braydee Euliss selected artists to create “a more contemporary collection.” While the artists work in traditional formats – sculpture, photography, printmaking, etc., they tend to be non-traditional in their application or approach. “This show is a response to our public to help keep them abreast of all art trends,” Euliss explains. “Part of our job as a gallery is to keep patrons excited about the art we hang and install.” While a few of the exhibitors have ties to Muncie or the gallery, none of them are “house artists” – those exclusively represented by the Gordy’s.

Three of the exhibitors, however, did work for the Gordy’s while attending Ball State University.  Seven have direct ties to the university, either as art professors or employees of the BSU Art Museum. Tim McMichael is from Indianapolis and Art Hazelwood is a well-known San Francisco artist. McCauley holds an MFA from Columbus College of Art & Design (Ohio), and is now a professor there.

“I looked for work that excites me, that I would want to have on the wall for two months,” offers Euliss about her collection. “While it is hard to lump these artists into one group, I would suggest that they are all using familiar media in non-traditional ways; a formula our patrons will connect with.”

Summer Invitational: New Modes, will open on June 5, 2014, at 5 PM, as part of the First Thursday arts walk. Light refreshments will be served and several of the artists will be in attendance. A short talk about the exhibit will be given at 6:15 PM, with a question/answer session following. 

The exhibit will close on Saturday, August 2, 2014 at 3 PM.

Gordy Fine Art & Framing is located at 224 East Main Street, next door to Muncie Civic Theatre. For more information, call the gallery at (765)284-8422, or visit www.gordyframing.com.

The Heorot (21+)
219 S Walnut

Heorot will feature Riles Kyuubi, a student at Ball State studying printmaking. Kyuubi will be exhibiting a series of figure drawings that explore, not only contour of the body, but for the artist tap in to memories of places and times.

Artist Statement: "I had never liked figure drawing. I never liked the images that I was left with. They never spoke to me or did much of anything. After taking classes and doing it for years I finally found that I enjoyed looking back and remember the subjects. I would think back on their personality or what it was like drawing that day. Figure drawing for me became a process or remembering a place in time a spiritual portrait of someone I didn't know. In this series I was trying to find something ethereal within each piece. I would take an element and obsess over it until I felt that I could remember the moment, the time, and space for a lifetime."

Muncie Civic Theatre
216 E Main

Why Is the Dog Green?, a documentary about Indiana Plein Air artist Dan Woodson
5:00- 5:30- 6:00
$5 donation

Muncie Makes Lab
628 S Walnut

Muncie Makes Lab at 628 South Walnut Street will feature artwork from Muncie Community Schools art teacher Carol Burt’s K-5 classes, handcrafted furniture from local designer/maker, Mark Kirklin of ROC, and more information on the Hub project at High Street and Main Street adjacent to Hans Heintzelman Hardwood Floors. Work will be displayed in gallery style. Attached are pictures from previous First Thursday exhibitions and details of the Hub project (a partnership between landscape architecture students, Hans Hientzelman, and the Muncie community to landscape the empty lot that will face a newly renovated façade).

Mutual Bank Marble Wall
110 E Charles
Afterhours Art Reels – Big Lebowski

Muncie Downtown Development will host outdoor “Afterhours Art Reels” following the First Thursday Gallery Walk.  The Big Lebowski will be projected onto the Mutual Bank wall on Charles St. at dusk.  Seating will be available on the Fickle Peach patio for guests 21 and up.

Rose Court
125 E Charles
The White River Ruggers

The group will be displaying their highly creative hand hooked rug creations.  Traditional rug hooking is the technique of pulling loops of fabric strips, usually wool through the mesh of a backing, usually burlap, rug warp, linen or monks cloth, to create a pile.  The hook is much like a crochet hook.  The wool may be new fabric or recycled wool clothing that has been torn apart, washed, dried and cut into strips.  The rug hookers often custom dye their wool in order to create the pallet of colors they use, much like mixing paint for a painting. Patterns will range from traditional to contemporary in a variety of styles and intricacy.

Rose Court is looking for artists for the following months: July, September, November, and December. Any artists who would like the opportunity to exhibit at Rose Court during First Thursday are encouraged to email loisgreens3@gmail.com.  We can accommodate most mediums (sculpture artists would need to provide their own tables/pedestals).