art gallery
St. Thomas' Parishioner Art Show
Art Exhibit with James Weiss, John C. Rodgers Jr., Jim Schaefer, Mike Werner, Daune Marie, and Julie Phillips.
“Dream” by Mike Werner
Exhibit November 10 to January 11
Artist Reception, Blooming Peace Open House and Art Auction
Saturday November 23 from 5-7 pm.
Community Dinner at Scoogi's following the reception. RSVP HERE by Nov 22 for dinner
(Pay your own way; Scoogi’s is located a few minutes from Whitemarsh Learning at 738 Bethlehem Pike, Flourtown)
Whitemarsh Learning & Wellness Center
7020 Camp Hill Rd,
Fort Washington, PA 19034
Visit the St. Thomas Parishioner Art Show
with James Weiss, John C. Rodgers Jr., Jim Schaefer, Mike Werner, Daune Marie, Julie Phillips
Artist Reception, Blooming Peace Open House & Art Auction open to the public
Saturday, November 23, 2024 from 5 - 7 PM
Whitemarsh Learning & Wellness Center
7020 Camp Hill Rd., Fort Washington, PA
Meet the Artists
Reach out to any artist directly to arrange a personalized journey through the exhibition and for purchases.
25% of all sales will be dedicated to supporting Whitemarsh Learning Center, ensuring the continuation of their invaluable community programming.
Julie Phillips
(267) 530-5059
I was trained by a professional artist to paint silhouettes and tinsel paintings. The silhouettes are a form of reverse glass painting. Some people are also familiar with the cut paper version. All were popular from the late 18th century to the mid 19th century, with the Regency period in England and the Federal period in America being the height of popularity. If you look carefully in any movie based on a Jane Austin novel you will see them. In "Sence and Sensibility" Mary Ann is shown drawing one.
I have demonstrated them at many Mid-Atlantic historic sites, and taught them to a children's summer camp at Peter Wentz homestead nearby.
Jim Schaefer
My subject matter has centered around water-related material - seascapes, beach scenes and underwater views. My current work is of underwater scenes based on photos I took while scuba diving in various locations.
I began drawing and painting as an undergraduate architecture major at the University of Pennsylvania and continued at Penn as a graduate student in the masters of fine arts program. Primary influences on my work were realist painters Neil Welliver and Rackstraw Downes, both of whom taught at Penn. When I began painting I was drawn toward ocean subject matter. I have an intuitive love and understanding of oceans and beaches based on long childhood summers at the Jersey shore.
James Weiss
James Weiss is an art historian and performance artist. He holds graduate degrees from Williams College (M.A. 1983) and Yale University (M.A. 1988). His performance work has storytelling at its core, and often involves found objects. His first public performance was Spring Training (1992) at the Yale Art Gallery. His most popular performance piece is Smyth Stories (1995), a series of sweet and sorrowful stories, which tell the story of his boyhood friend, Smyth, who died from AIDS. Camera Obscura, presented at The Cleveland Performance Art Festival, (1998) and at The Philadelphia Fringe Festival (2002), is an installation artwork about voyeurism that stands on its own, but is a space in which the artist can perform. Weiss has also written two musicals, collaborating with Mickey Leone: Found Objects (2003) and The Appraiser (2024).
Since 2017, Weiss has served as the Director of The Barn at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, in Fort Washington, PA, leading more than 120 volunteers, raising money for charities by selling donated items. The Barn funds numerous outreach projects, locally and globally, including the local food pantry, The Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard. Since 2001, the Barn has partnered with APP (Agua Para el Pueblo) in Honduras to install gravity-fed water systems in remote villages. Weiss has also travelled to Malawi to work with GAIA (Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance) in the village of Mtengowatenga.
John C. Rodgers Jr.
I am a sculptor. My formal training has been that of a sculptor. I am also an object maker and as such I often find myself more aligned with those artists trained in the crafts disciplines. I am keenly interested in building sculptures that have a high level of craftsmanship. In the design phase of each sculpture I strive to work with the juxtaposition of curved and straight edged forms. For the construction of my pieces it has long been my goal to create and to join dissimilar materials in a unique and different way. I enjoy the challenge of joining older found objects with newer more heavily manipulated and fabricated materials. I create an aesthetic in which the clean contemporary feel of metal is softened and warmed by the rich hues and textures from exotic woods found around the world.
Daune Marie
I view art-making as a metaphor for life and a spiritual, self-nurturing practice. The intention is not on what "end product" picture is being created, but rather the attention is given to the messages received during the process and seen within the resulting images. My art is heart-focused, soul-centered, and nature-inspired. Several of the pieces in this exhibit were from a series I did on Mother Nature.
Mike Werner
I’m a St.Thomas’ parishioner, former graphic designer, and current high school art teacher. I have taught classes in black & white and digital photography, Art History, and currently focused on digital animation. My exhibit submissions are three original surreal digital prints, focused around my family and their interests. I do offer commissioned surreal prints.
Art Auction in the Entry Exhibit Room
For the first time we are offering an Art Auction! Thank you to The Barn whom donated most of the beautiful artwork available.
Artwork on display in the First Exhibit Room is available for auction.
Bidding is in-person or online: www.instagram.com/WhitemarshLearning
Auction Dates: Nov 23 to Jan 10
The winning bid is a donation to St. Thomas Church to support the Art Gallery at Whitemarsh Learning.
We will contact the winner January 10 to pick up art.
Blooming Peace Open House
We bring you tidings of great joy, BLOOMING PEACE, and goodwill as we open our doors for the first time this holiday season.
We are a NEW and unique STUDIO offering Creative Expression Experience for Well-Being.
We invite you to participate in our STUDIO “SOFT OPENING” CELEBRATION in conjunction with the Parishioners' Art Show reception in the upstairs Gallery on November 23rd from 5 PM to 7 PM.
Time will be set aside during the reception to come check out the studio space, learn about the Blooming Peace mission, meet some of the facilitators, and more.
Can't wait? Visit www.bloomingpeace.com frequently and watch for updates as our website is in the process of being enhanced to feature our event offerings and add online scheduling and payment capabilities.
Contact: dmarie@bloomingpeace.com
Photo: Pre-Opening Chair Painting Project
Past Events
“Bloom” an Intuitive Painting Experience with Kristine Izak
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Cost: $60
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An opportunity to reflect on your goals and dreams in a new way, and to nourish and encourage them to grow!
No painting experience necessary! I designed this course after using a painting session for myself, to help me evaluate where I was and where I wanted to be in regards to a certain aspect of my life. During the session I was able to pinpoint some thought patterns that weren’t serving me well. By the end I felt encouraged and empowered. I was determined to bypass the limiting self-talk that was on replay, holding me back. I have refined the process I followed that day over the past two years into the “BLOOM” class. I am excited to share it and that others will enjoy using it as a self-help tool as I did. The central motif in the painting is a flower, but it will be created in a unique way. I have shared this process many times and I am still in awe at how beautifully each painting "blooms". What is more important though, are the insights and epiphanies gained during the process.
Is this all work and no play? Silencing the inner critic will be the most challenging part of the class! What makes it fun? Playing with paint and color and enjoying the free flow of energy from your body, through the brush to the canvas. It is exhilarating!Register with Kristine by August 1st -
or 215.480.6998
We Are: An Exhibition of Mother Artists
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Artist Reception - June 1 from 6 - 8 PM
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Nine mother artists share the walls in this special collaborative exhibition.
The journey of being an artist and a mother is a testament to the resilience,
resourcefulness and boundless love that define the maternal spirit. It is a journey like no other, marked both by struggle and triumph where the pursuit of art and the joys and reality of motherhood intertwine, shaping what we create. Creating life and creating art expands our hearts and allows us to see the world through a different lens allowing us to create a tapestry of beauty and complexity. We celebrate that richness here.
Artists:
Fay Stanford
Christine Walinski
Shannon Cronin
Alison Lee Chapman
Alison Dilworth
Carole Loeffler
Amy Newman
Maria Ignelzi
Zoe Cohen
Contact the artist directly for purchasing art and private tours of the exhibit:
Fay Stanford
Christine Walinski
www.instagram.com/christinewalinski
www.facebook.com/christine.walinski
Shannon Cronin
www.instagram.com/shannon_cronin_art
Alison Lee Chapman
www.instagram.com/alisonleechapman
Alison Dilworth
www.instagram.com/brainsoulface
Carole Loeffler
www.instagram.com/caroleloeffler
Amy Newman
Maria Ignelzi
Zoe Cohen
Inspiration for this Exhibit: The Mother Artist a book by Catherine Ricketts.
“The only reason you’ll want to put down Ricketts’s lyrical tour de force is to make more art.”—Sarah Sentilles, author of Stranger Care: A Memoir of Loving What Isn’t Ours The Mother Artist, by Philadelphia writer Catherine Ricketts, weaves memoir with studies of the art and lives of modern and contemporary women artists who had children. Highlighting 20th-century artists like Ruth Asawa, Elizabeth Catlett, and Alice Neel, as well as contemporary Philadelphia artists like Alison Dilworth, Aimee Koran, Becky Suss, and Mickayel Thurin, The Mother Artist debunks the myth that to be an artist you must give up a family life, demonstrates the very real challenges facing women who aspire to rise in their disciplines, and explores the humanizing vision that caregivers bring to the making and shaping of culture. Rachel Yoder (Nightbitch) calls this book “brilliant and open-hearted,” while James KA Smith (editor, Image) writes, “Read this if you're a mother and an artist, to be sure; but read this, too, if you're human and hope for a different world.” Learn more about the book at www.catherinedanaricketts.com/book, and find the author on Instagram at @bycatherinericketts.
Women Making Marks with Melanie Goldner, Maura Matthews & Molly Graver
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Artist Reception - Thursday April 4 from 6 PM to 8 PM
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Women Making Marks with Melanie Goldner, Maura Matthews & Molly Graver
Exhibit from April 3 to May 3
Artist Reception - Thursday April 4 from 6 PM to 8 PM
With artistic backgrounds and the world around us for a muse, we are connected by names that start with “M”, Motherhood, Springfield Township and a love for “Making Marks”.
Mark making describes the different lines, dots, marks, patterns, and textures we create in an artwork. It can be loose and gestural or controlled and neat. It can apply to any material used on any surface: paint on canvas, ink or pencil on paper, a scratched mark on plaster, a digital paint tool on a screen, a tattooed mark on skin…even a sound can be a form of mark making. Artists use gesture to express their feeling and emotions in response to something seen or something felt – or gestural qualities can be used to create a purely abstract composition. (reference)
For those seeking a more intimate experience, private tours are offered upon request. Feel free to reach out to the artist directly to arrange a personalized journey through the exhibition.
For purchases, reach out to the artist directly. 25% of all sales will be dedicated to supporting Whitemarsh Learning Center, ensuring the continuation of their invaluable community programming.
Artists' Statement Though our painting styles are different, our intentions are rooted in the same appreciation for the act of creating things. From washes of watercolor on wooden panels to asemic writing on vintage paper and patches of oil paint on canvas, we love the energy, movement and process of making art. In talking about our processes, we all make the same sweeping motion with our arms, as if conducting a symphony of color. The notes of our marks stem from years of art appreciation and making.
Melanie Goldner
Sustained by the natural world around her, Melanie Goldner of Lafayette Hill has had a lifelong love affair with art. She grew up outside of Philadelphia and was inspired by artists in her family, such as her mother, sister, grandmother, as well as by works shown at the Barnes Foundation and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. These inspirations guided her experiments over the years with pottery, painting, drawing, and sculpture. Melanie shares her joy and solace in making works of art from nature's energy and spirit. Her abstract watercolor paintings are made with Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors and birch wood panels. She also does paintings in high flow acrylic paints, which encourage long, fluid strokes of expression to create vibrational art. She offers viewers a moment of grace and ease as they view the paintings illustrating Mother Nature’s expressions.
Contact
Melanie Goldner
(610) 574-0311
https://www.instagram.com/true.gal
Maura Matthews
Maura has been painting since high school, when she first learned about color, composition and contrast from her teacher Walt Bartman. She says, "for me paintings are like puzzles to be solved and those three components keep me plugging away!" She sells original and commissioned oil paintings, exhibits her work at local businesses and leads painting classes for children and adults. You can find her painting and teaching at the Pigs Alley Gallery, named for the street in Fairmount where she once lived.
Contact
Maura Matthews
Pigs Alley Gallery
806 Bethlehem Pike
Flourtown, PA 19031
267.258.6073
Molly Graver
Molly is a mixed media collage artist. She uses a lot of asemic writing in her work inspired by her 20 years in Graphic Design. She enjoys pairing vivid colors with black and neutrals for a vibrant effect.
Contact
Molly Graver
(347) 804-6834
Exhibit|Teach with Us
We host art classes, group and solo exhibits. If you have an idea for a show or wish to be apart of a collaborative show or art classes the first step is to fill out the Artist Application and we'll follow up to provide complete details.
