October, 2009 saw the fully formed Berkeley Arts Council Board of Directors begin to develop plans. The stated goals of the Berkeley Arts Council are to champion the arts in Berkeley County, to support practicing artists and local art organizations, to encourage economic development through the arts, and to facilitate the growth of our community into a regional arts destination. We invite you to follow along with our progress and explore the blog archives on our website: https://berkeleyartswv.org/2009/10/
… AND THE NEXT 10 YEARS …
About a month ago Malinda gave us a recounting of how the Arts Council started and where we’ve progressed in the past 10 years. The keyboard has been passed over to me, as the current president, to say a few words about our direction in the next 10 years.
Simply put the main direction is growth. Growth as artists, growth as an organization, and growth of art in our community. A quick check on Thesauraus.com gives 44 synonyms for the word “growth”. What does it mean for the Arts Council?
“Increase.” The first and major direction is membership growth. 2020 will bring a new push to expand our membership numbers. The Arts Council is reaching out to a wider and broader audience. One such example is, this coming February we will be hosting an exhibit of tattoo art. The Council is looking to promote arts of all mediums; visual, performing, decorative, graphic, and written. We need and want everyone, especially our current member, to encourage artists and those who support the arts to join our ranks as members.
“Germination.” An increase of members will increase germination of ideas for new programs and activities. Along with the ideas will come new hands to turn the ideas into real events. Our past 10 years has put us on firm ground for exhibits, but there’s always room for expansion. We have plenty of room to grow in classes, workshops, and “one-shot events”. All ideas are welcome. Please let your thoughts be known.
“Maturation.” Growing older doesn’t necessarily mean a person or organization is maturing. As an organization the Council is working to increase its interaction in the “organizational community”. While not a “lobbying” organization the Council plans to make sure the Arts are recognized as a vital section of a thriving community. Regarding the individual artist, the council plans on developing “drop-in” sessions for artists to gather and discuss topics of their choosing. Interacting together to hone skills or simply build comradery. FYI, we need a name for these type of “get-togethers”. Suggestions anyone.
No need to worry that I’m going to go through all 44 of the synonyms, but I’ll close with, “Rise.” This is the all-important point. An organization doesn’t succeed just because it has a name. It’s rises because there is an interest from its members to support it functions. We don’t have the answers for the next 10 years, but with continued and increased support we will continue to highlight the artistic community of the Eastern Panhandle.
Watch for more specifics. And please send us suggestions at berkeleyartswv@gmail.com.
You can give me a call at home 304-271-8872
Regards,
Anna Howard
President
Berkeley Arts Council
In the Art Works
Curator’s Statement
Making objects makes us human.
It’s in our nature to want to make things with our hands. Before the Industrial Revolution, all things were made by hand and those hand-crafted objects connected the events of daily life to basic materials and the elements of nature.
The making of craft connects the past to the present. Objects once made out of necessity have developed today into sophisticated art and design. Fine craft artists keep culture and tradition alive by using the same basic materials and techniques while interpreting modern-day ideas into beautiful works of useful art.
The power of hand-made objects is not just that they are incredibly beautiful, but they connect us to other times, to other places and most importantly, to other people.
An object that is made by another person’s hand deepens our experience with it and the event for which it is used. We make memories by engaging with hand-made objects and we pass those memories and the objects themselves along to future generations.
Craft is tactile and dimensional; it exists in the real world as opposed to the virtual world to which our society has become accustomed. Hand-crafted objects are the result of physical activity, mastery of medium, focused attention, curiosity, and passion.
I hope you’ll spend time looking deeply at the objects in this exhibit. Consider how they were made, consider what they are made of, consider the traditions they represent, consider the sense of purpose, skill and passion that went into making them. Enjoy their beauty and let them tell their stories.
Annette Verna, October 2019
