October/November News

Letter from the President






The brilliant tones of autumn are here again and inspiring us to go outside and paint. A few of us hardy souls are still en plein air painting on Wednesday mornings throughout October. There was wonderful a turnout for our Annual Meeting held at the Madison Beach Club in Madison. It had all the ingredients needed for a great success- great food, drinks and artists enjoying the event with their spouses and friends. A special thanks to Don Trownsell, our Vice President, for arranging it for us and to Nancy Chapman and Ellen Fabian for coordinating the evening.


Congratulations to us, we have been awarded our IRS 501c3 Non Profit Public Charity status after years of hard work. Ed Burns, Don Trownsell, Joan McPherson and I have spent a considerable amount of time and effort in providing the IRS with financial and organizational details to substantiate their decision to grant us the 501c3 status. MAS had always been a non-profit Connecticut organization, but now we can apply for grants from the state of Connecticut or obtain donations from corporations, organizations or individuals to support our awards, initiatives and programs...


There are a few more events left in 2009. On Saturday, October 17, 2009, we are taking part of the Bauer Park Fall Family Festival by exhibiting paintings of Bauer Park done by our en plein air painters and we will be painting outdoors at the event (assuming the weather cooperates). Also, we have added a new venture of showcasing the elected artist member’s small works of art during November and December at the Peoples’ Bank in Madison (more details inside). Thanks to Sara Nebel for coordinating this show for us. We will be running the Winter Studio again on Mondays at St. Andrews Church in Madison starting in January through March (10 weeks at $80). A maximum of 20 artists ($25 dues must be paid for 2010 and $80 sent to B. Schirmeier, 76 Malabar Drive, Westbrook, Ct 06498).


Our Board of Directors has already started working on next year’s events, and we welcomed aboard two new board members, Patricia Barone and Stuart Lerner (see photo). They were voted in along with our existing slate of board members at the MAS Annual Meeting. Don Trownsell will remain as the Vice President, Joan Mc Pherson as Treasurer, Nancy Chapman and Maryanne Rupp as Co-Secretaries and I will stay on as the President. Maude Schmidt will be our Membership Chairperson, Beth Wardwell will continue to chair Demonstrations and Jay Babina will remain as the coordinator of the MAS Highlights and will coordinate the en plein air painting next year.. Photographs included.


It was decided to dedicate our Member Show in February in memory of Joe Veckerelli, who was a dedicated Board of Director member and a wonderful water colorist. Joe co-coordinated the Members Show last year along with Beth Wardwell and his painting, Chicago won the popular prize. The coordinators this year are: Joan McPherson, Paula Solimene and Patricia Barone. Please let us know if you can volunteer to help support the show.


The Madison Art Society is a very active organization and we are constantly developing new opportunities for our members. The Board decided to keep the 2010 dues at $25. Our financial year runs from January to December, so your dues should be paid by January 1, 2010


Sincerely,


Beverly Schirmeier


President of the MAS


New Board of Directors for 2010


Jay Babina, Pat Barone, Denise Casey, Nancy Chapman, Penny Chittenden, John Copelin, Ellen Fabian, Dick Kennedy, Stuart Lerner, Joan Mc Pherson, Seymour Page, Maryanne Rupp, Beverly Schirmeier, Maude Schmidt, Pat Seakamp, Paula Solimene, Don Trownsell, John Tubb, and Beth Wardwell.


Outdoor Exhibitions


October 17, Saturday – Bauer Park Fall Festival and Art Exhibition and Plein Air Painting (contact B. Schirmeier)


On Saturday, October 17, 2009, the Madison Art Society (MAS) artist's Bauer Park paintings will be on display at the Harvest Festival that is being held in Madison from 11 am to 3pm. Every Wednesday, a group of the MAS artists can be seen painting "en plein air" at various locations along the shoreline. The MAS artist's Bauer Park paintings (one painting per artist) will be on display and they will be painting during the Bauer Park Harvest Festival from 11- 3 pm on the 17th of October (no rain date). The plein air artists need to RSVP Beverly Schirmeier at bschirmeier@yahoo.com if they are planning to participate. The artist must bring their paintings by 10 am and make sure they remove them by 3 pm. Artists will need to sit the show for about 30 minutes that day.






Holiday Small Works Show - MAS Elected Artists at Peoples Bank


MAS artist member, Sara Nebel, is coordinating a holiday small works show at the People's Bank in Madison for the months of November and December. You must be a MAS Elected Artist Member and be in good standing (dues paid for 2009). You can submit one framed painting about 5 x 7 or smaller (maximum external frame size about 8 X 10). To become an elected artist member - you must have been a paid member of MAS at the time of a juried show and be accepted in to two juried shows within a 5 year period of time. If you are not sure of your standing, contact our Membership Chairperson, Maude Schmidt.






Receiving: Sara Nebel, MAS artist member, will meet you along with your painting approximately 5 X7inch or smaller image that is framed (external frame size around 8 x 10 maximum) on Monday, November 2, 2009 at 9:00 - 9:30 a.m. at Peoples Bank on Route One, Madison, CT. Make sure the piece is ready to hang with an appropriate frame and your name, address, phone number, title, medium and the price is included on the back of the painting. Please RSVP your interest as soon as possible to Sara at saranebel@yahoo.com. We need to get a feeling as to how many are going to bring their work.


Pick Up: Saturday January 2, 2010 from 9 to 10.






MAS Holiday Show - Fill out and attach to the back of the artwork






Artist: ______________________


Address: ____________________


Town and Zip: ________________


Phone: ______________________


Title: ________________________


Medium: _____________________


Price: ________________________






Winter Studio – January 4, 2010 Start Date


MAS will be coordinating their Winter Studio again this year on Mondays for ten weeks at the St Andrews Church in Madison CT starting January 4, 2010. The cost will remain at $80 for the ten week session and classes are not held during school vacations or Madison school snow days. Artists can work from two still life setups or from their own work from 9 -2 pm and then the artists hold a self critique session for an additional hour to one and half hours. Maximum class size is 20 artists; please send the $80 fee to Beverly Schirmeier, 76 Malabar Drive, Westbrook, CT 06498. Your dues for 2010 ($25) must be up to date (MAS PO Box 1383, Madison, Ct 06443).






Key Dates for 2010 – Member Show and Juried Show


Member Show


Receiving- Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 9:30 am – noon
Reception- Friday, February 5, 2010 at 5 -7pm
Critique- Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 1:30pm - Jack Broderick
Demonstration/Lecture - Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 6:30 pm - Fred Biamonte lecture
Pick Up Work – Friday, February 26, 2010 and Saturday, February 27, 2010 from 9:00 - Noon




Juried Show - David Dunlop Juror


Receiving- Saturday, May 1, 2010 at 9:30 am – noon
Reception- Friday, May 7, 2010 at 5 -7pm
Demonstration/Lecture – Sunday, May 16, 2010 at 1:30 pm - David Dunlop
Guilford Poets League and Artists – Reception on Thursday, May 20, 2010 at 6:30 pm
Pick Up Work – Friday May 28, 2010 and Saturday May 29, 2010 from 9:00 am to Noon




2010 MAS Dues


The dues for the Madison Art society will remain at $25. Our financial year runs from January 2010 to December 2010. We currently have 212 members and hope that all of you plan to renew your membership and enjoy all of our program activities and shows. Please send your dues to our membership chairperson, Maude Schmidt at MAS, PO Box 1383, Madison, CT 06433. If you are going to participate in the Winter Studio please send the dues for 2010 along with your studio payment of $80. It is important that you update your address, phone number and include your email address. Much of our communication is now being done via email to provide you with up to date information and to reduce our costs. Also, let us know in what capacity you would like to volunteer during the year (Receiving, Reception, Hanging Shows, Obtaining Art Show Awards, Sitting, Jury Show Day Helpers, Demonstration Set Ups, Coordinating Outdoor Shows, etc.). Also, MAS needs a Publicity Person.