On Friday, April 3, art6 gallery will host the opening of the Regional Biennial Juried High School Art Competition. Coordinated by gallery member, Mitzi Humphrey, the exhibition will feature the work of current high school juniors and seniors working in all media. This is an opportunity for these students to exhibit work in a professional gallery setting, and cash prizes will be awarded.

This year’s juror is artist Eugene Vango, who will make the final selection for the exhibition and present first, second and third place awards. Vango is a painter and studied at the Art Students League of New York. He received his M.F.A. from Penn State and was chair of the art department of Virginia State University for many years. Vango has exhibited widely and is a popular judge for student and professional shows.

The exhibition runs through Sunday, April 26. For more information, contact art6gallery@gmail.com or visit art6.org.

art6 is a member-run, non-profit art gallery dedicated to promoting and showcasing quality contemporary, visual and performing arts, and offering opportunities for education.

I discovered Virginia’s motto, “Virginia is for Lovers,” to be quite true, in fact. On January 21, 2009, while sitting by the fireplace in our 100-year old farmhouse, my boyfriend of 3.5 years, asked me to marry him!

Michael and I met in May of 2005 when I decided to relocate from my hometown of St. Louis, MO to Richmond, VA. I was interested in pursuing my MFA degree and, although I had applied for the graduate program at VCU in Richmond, I hadn’t been accepted. The strange thing is that, although I was accepted into two other graduate programs (CSU and SCAD), a string of ‘meaningful coincidences’ left me with an overwhelming desire to move to Richmond instead.

I decided to move to Richmond to take undergrad classes at VCU and reapply for the graduate program later. So I contacted the then-head of the metals department, Jim Meyer, and arranged to fly to Richmond to meet with him. I was only in town for a day and a half and had to, not only set-up classes with VCU, but also, to find (and sign a lease for) the place where I would live when I moved half-way across the country.

As fate would have it, the day I met with Jim Meyer at VCU also happened to be the day of the Genesis Design competition held for VCU’s metal/jewelry students at Schwartzchild Jewelers. Jim invited me to the opening and it was there that I met Michael.

Six weeks later, I loaded all of my possessions into a medium-sized U-Haul truck, and with the help of my brother, I made the cross-country trek to Virginia. Michael and I had talked on the phone and emailed almost daily during those six weeks after we met, so when I finally arrived in Richmond at my new apartment, he was there waiting to help me carry my belongings up three flights of stairs in the mid-summer heat.

I am truly blessed to have met my life partner. And I must say, from my perspective, Virginia has definitely lived up to it’s motto: “Virginia is For Lovers.”

Here’s a pic of our wedding rings - one of a kind pieces, designed by C. James (Jim) Meyer himself.

We are getting married in Virginia on May 22, 2010!

♥♥♥MARCH SPECIAL♥♥♥

The entire “CrAzY WiReBaLl CoLlEcTiOn” is marked 15% off in honor of Spring!

The Crazy WireBall Earrings have been one of my best sellers for ten years strong. They are simple and elegant, versatile and unique. Earrings come in Gold, Gold/Silver, Silver, on Posts, with Wires, and now with Hoops, too! So don’t miss out.

Special runs March 20 until March 31.

Today, March 20, is the first day of Spring 2009. After a week of rain, the sun is finally shining, and I, like a cat, want to curl up and bask my bones in it’s warm light. Alas, I am stuck indoors, behind interior walls, the computer monitor the brightest beacon in this room. I’m pretty sure I know what the kitty-kids are up to at home right now, though, and I think of them with envy. Did you know that cats sleep an average of 22 hours a day?!? What a life of luxury! I honestly don’t think I could stand it.

Ruminating on my current fate, stuck indoors on a sunny day, I relate to this quote:

“How long can men thrive between walls of brick, walking on asphalt pavements, breathing the fumes of coal and of oil, growing, working, dying, with hardly a thought of wind, and sky, and fields of grain, seeing only machine-made beauty, the mineral-like quality of life?” ~Charles A. Lindbergh, Reader’s Digest, November 1939

As everyone undoubtedly knows, our economy has been in the tank for several months now. Everyday, there are reports of many large, well-known companies, such as AIG, GMC and Chrysler, Phillip Morris, and IBM, that have experienced a cash-flow crisis, resulting in record-high lay-offs. But what we don’t hear about in the news are smaller companies, particularly art galleries and non-profits.

Here is a letter that I recently received from Gallery5:

“For the past four years Gallery5 has introduced to Richmond an entirely new concept in the presentation of cutting-edge art and creative live performances. From the critically acclaimed “Disrobed” and “Disrobed 2” – the highest-attended art openings in Virginia history; to the “Carnival of Five Fires” – three nights of art, entertainment, and ribald revelry; and hundreds of unequaled exhibits, performances, and socially-conscious presentations, programs and campaigns throughout the years, Gallery5 has been the beacon of hope and creativity for thousands of emerging artists and entertainers.

Gallery5 now finds itself in a very precarious position. The tens of thousands of loyal volunteers, artists, performers and guests who have combined to make Gallery5 one of the most popular art destinations in Richmond, have also been responsible for the wear and tear to the building that now must be addressed, without the necessary funding to do the work.

Without an immediate influx of adequate funding to address this serious situation, Richmond will lose this valuable historic resource. Gallery5 has always been a labor of love, operated and maintained entirely by volunteers. It is our hope that the thousands of visitors who have been treated to a cacophony of unique sights and sounds each and every month will now come to our aid so that Gallery5 can continue to provide quality, innovative and enriching art, entertainment and exhibits to patrons for years to come.

Our goal is to raise $175,000 to maintain both the historic building and Gallery5, we need your support! All donations, monetary or in-kind, are tax deductible. Even the smallest donations are appreciated.

A few of our critical needs:
-Roof repairs
-Exterior
-Interior Water Damage
-Replacement awnings
-Electrical upgrade
-Heat and Air Upgrade
-Floor Repairs (Sanding, Repainting, Refinishing)
-Painting (Interior and Exterior)
-Equipment Repair and Upgrade
-Cleaning Services
-Gas Line
-Mac Computer for Office and Internship Program
-Musical Equipment

Gallery5 currently pays over $4,000 a month for its utilities, mortgage and insurance. This does not include monthly licensing, taxes, maintenance and other professional services.

We are now placing Gallery5’s future in the hands of our loyal supporters and friends. If you are in a position to assist us, all of our faithful volunteers will be eternally grateful for your unselfish support for this Richmond icon.

How do I donate:?

You can make a donation via check, money order, credit card or paypal. If you would like to make an in-kind contribution, please email gallery5@gallery5arts.org
Click HERE to make a donation via PayPal.Please enter what you would like to see your donation go towards.

Checks can be made payable to “Gallery5” and mailed to:

Gallery5
200 West Marshall Street
Richmond Virginia, 23220

If you would like to make a donation over the phone with a credit or debit card, please call 804-644 0005 or email gallery5@gallery5arts.org

We had a little excitement over the weekend about two weeks ago. We were hit by the first major snowstorm in Richmond in nine years. In what ultimately amounted to about 5 inches of snow and ice, the power outages and school closings were widespread.

We had just sat down to eat our homemade brocolli cheese soup on Sunday night, when the lights went out and the comforting hum of the furnace died. We live in a 100-year old farmhouse on about 30 acres of field and trees. We have a well for water that uses an electric pump and we heat with oil, which again requires electricity to work. To make a long story shorter, when the electricity goes out, all those wonderful modern-day comforts like running water, heat, and light, no longer exist!

Intensified by the darkness, the snowstorm was beautiful, enticing us to bundle up and wander in the drifts. On the walk back to the dark house, we were pelted by needles of ice rain, then shocked by the violent crack-cracking of our cedar tree, threatening to fall through our bedroom window. It was quite a tense (and shivery) evening. Needless to say, we slept in the back bedroom that night under no less than nine blankets.

The best part of the two-day power outage was being able to use our fireplace to keep the house warm. Normally, we don’t use it on ice cold nights, because it can be counter-productive with the backdraft sucking the warmth out of the rest of the house.

The worst part of the power outage was losing Sharkie, one of our tropical freshwater fish, who we adopted from our Scottish/Aussie friends before they moved back to Melbourne. Poor little Sharkie, may you Rest in Peace. It was 8 degrees outside, by the way, a record low for Richmond.

And I must admit that it did kind of suck that when the power was finally restored, our pipes had frozen and burst in the upstairs bedroom. A waterfall emerged, seeping through the ceiling onto the furniture downstairs. Luckily, my Sugar was savvy enough to suspect this may occur and he shut off the water before any real damage accumulated. I’m so lucky to have such a smart Sugar when it comes to matters of the home. Did I mention, he fixed the broken pipe, too?

The most ironic part of our ordeal was that only five days later, Richmond experienced an 80 degree heat wave! With all the thirst-quenching water from the melted snow, the daffodils bravely poked their heads out of the soil. And I bravely put on a pair of shorts for the first time this season.