Presidents Letter

Greetings!

We are heading into the last month of this extremely busy season! The Upcycle Festival at Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge is this week, and is our last major event. It will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, April 1 & 2 from 9 AM 4 PM each day. Four Guild artists will be selling their work: Jay Lana, Bobbi Robertson, Dale Webber, and myself. There will be make-and-take tables where you can make your own upcycled art, and the Guild will have an information table where we will be distributing material about the Guild and recruiting new members. Please come to show support for the Guild, and to enjoy this wonderful event. If youd like to help out at the last minute with either the Guild table or the make-and-takes, please contact Toni Ory or Trudy Sampson, or just stop by and pitch in! Wildlife Drive will be open as well. Our final business meeting of the season will be held on Saturday, April 18 starting at 12:30 with refreshments. This is a fun meeting where we will be exchanging small gifts that we actually get to keep! Unlike our Dirty Santa Gift Exchange in December, no one will be taking gifts away from others. If youd like to participate, just bring a small, wrapped gift. It does not have to be handmade. We will also be installing our Slate of Officers for the 2015 - 2016 season. After the meeting we will have an informal Buy-Trade-Sell event. You may bring work or any related items to sell or trade. For instance, I have been cleaning out my studio, and I have many stands and jewelry displays that I no longer need and are cluttering up my space. Since we are often our own best customers, this is a great way to sell our work. Please keep in mind that the Guild has a summer exhibit coming up in July at the Sydney and Berne Davis Art Center in downtown Ft. Myers: Fun and FunKtional. If you are a snowbird, you should consider leaving work with a friend who is willing to bring it to Receiving, and who is also willing to pick it up when the exhibit closes. Details, dates, and paperwork will be distributed later this Spring. Please note that we will not be accepting Waivers unless they are signed by the participating artist. Anne Dalton, Esq. has advised us that we should not accept Waivers that are signed by others. Please keep this in mind when planning your entry. Many thanks go out to Anne for her informative and educational presentation on copyright infringement and fair use defense at our March meeting. Im so grateful for Annes advice. The Guilds position remains steady on this issue: we want original art work from our fabulously-talented artists in our exhibits! Each prospectus will include details of this policy. I hope you all enjoy the beautiful month of April, and Ill see you at Ding Darling! Warm Wishes, Lorraine

Southwest Florida Fine Craft Guild Business Meeting, March 21, 2015

President Lorraine Capps called the meeting to order at 1:00pm. Minutes of previous meeting were approved unanimously. New members and Guests: Guest Anne Dalton and new members were welcomed. Winners Circle: Rose Young won Judges Award, Phil Krym won 2

nd place, Tania Begg won 3

rd place. Our Guild won 3 out

of 4 awards in the 3D category. There is a breakout committee is working on improving Craft Bash. We will need your ideas for the event and ideas for a new name also. Any thoughts are welcome. Cypress Lake High School and FCGU awards were given out at their receptions. Scholarships for summer camps at Big Arts, Alliance and CCAS scholarships are still coming up. New members Luncheon: Dee Cooper has agreed to host the New Members Luncheon at her house. This event gives new members a change to meet and greet the board members, ask questions and become comfortable with the Guild. Event is on April 25

th. Board members and new members need to

RSVP to Phyllis Rieser. Election of officers: Kathy Erickson presented the Slate of Officers for 2015-2016. Lorraine Capps for President; Francine Gerson, Nancy Giffin, Toni Ory, Gloria Winer for VP Committee; Lynn Ondercin for Secretary; Dee Cooper for Treasurer; Marsha Bisson, Jim Sobol for Directors. Slate of officers was elected unanimously. Lorraine thanked new Chairs who have joined the Board.

Peoples Choice Awards: A Walk on the Wild Side Peoples Choice Awards went to Dale Eulitz first place, and Alex Chung second place. Alex Chung is taking responsibility for corner case in CCAS. See him if you want to display. New members and folks who have not shown there yet will have the opportunity to show. Membership Update: Kathy Erickson reported that there are 100 members, one new member and 89 paid up members. Breakfast for the Arts: The next meeting will be hosted by us on Thursday April 16 at 9 AM at CCAS. We still need volunteers to help with food and coffee. We are asking Alex Chung to do raku to show attendees an interesting demo. Ding Darling Report: Toni and Trudy Sampson reported that we will need many more volunteers, for both the Make and Take tables and the Guild information booth. They showed the sock bunny and soxtopus. Theyll also be making a t-shirt tote bag. If you have clean socks or t-shirts, please bring them to CCAS and put in brown cabinet or bring to event if you are coming to volunteer. Shifts are 8:30am to 1:00 pm and 12:30pm to 4pm. Well be helping kids make and take crafts and one person will be sitting at the information table, handing out flyers and talking to people about the Guild. SBDAC EXHIBIT: The exhibit will be in July, no dates yet. Reminder: Bring items to buy, trade, sell to next meeting. Also bring small gift to exchange. Program: Anne Dalton, Esq.

Respectfully submitted, Lynn Ondercin, Secretary.

2015

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1 Ding Darling Upcyle Art Fest 9-4

2 Ding Darling Upcyle Art Fest 9-4

3 Passover begins at Sundown

4

5

6 Receiving at Co-op Gallery 10-1

7

8

9 Reception at Co-op Gallery 4-6

10 11

12 13 14 Art Council SWFL-Genl meeting and Installation lunch 10-2; $25 charge; RSVP to Sandra Mark

15 Yom Hashoah begins at Sundown Holocaust Remembrance Day

16 Breakfast for the Arts, CCAS, 9

17

18 SWFFCG-AT CCAS: BOARD MEETING 10:30 BUSINESS MEETING 12:30 Installation of Officers Buy/Sell/Trade Gift Exchange

19 20 21 22 Earth Day

23 24 Arbor Day

25 NEW MEMBERS LUNCHEON, DEE AND JOE COOPERS 12:00 CAPE CORAL

26 27 Receiving Mays Bouquets CCAS 9-12

28 29 30

2015

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

31 1 2

3 National Pet Week

4 Receiving at Co-op Gallery 10-1

5

6

7 Reception at Co-op Gallery 4-6

8 Reception Mays Bouquets, CCAS, 5-7

9

10

11 12

13 14 15

16 BOARD MEETING AT CCAS 10:30

17 18 19 20 21 22

23

24 25 Memorial Day

26 27 28 29 Removal, Mays Bouquets, CCAS, 9-3

30

Congratulations go out to three Guild members who won awards at an exhibition at the Englewood Center for the Arts. The exhibit, Textile & Fiber Art will be open to the public

in the Loranger Gallery through April 3rd:

First Place: Rose Young, Old Weavers Never Die;

Third Place: Judith Anderson, Great Blue Heron; and

Merit Award: Pamela Richardson, Boatman Crossing.

Congratulations also go out to three Guild members who won awards in the 3D category at the Art Councils Biennial Winners Circle Exhibit:

2nd Place Phil Krym for Another Surprise; 3rd Place - Tania Begg for Kreighton = Octopus;

Judges Choice Roselyn Young for Gone With The Wind.

John Merchant won second prize in the News-Press Poetry Contest, and hell be reading his poem at the Sanibel Library on April 1 at 3pm. You may read Johns poem Linda-Linda in todays (3/29/15) issue of Tropicalia in the News-Press.

Jacqui Smith has the following items for sale. Please contact her at: concepts15@aol.com if you are interested:

GLASS SUPPLIES: $50 Beetle glass system (like new but some markings for inches as guides added by me) This tool was a godsend for cutting angled and straight strips accurately. $30 Small Circle Cutter (like new) Heavy duty carbide wheel cuts 1/2" to 5" glass circles GLASS TOOLS: $5 Grozing Pliers $5 Glass breaking Pliers ergonomically correct $3 Glass breaking Pliers regular HEAT SET OIL PAINTS AND EQUIPMENT: $30 Genesis Heat Gun still in box new $15 Genesis Heat Set Oil Paints.(4 1 0z jars and set of 10 small misc. tubes) $10 Plastic Palette for Genesis Heat Set Oil Paints CERAMICS BOOKS: $5 Handmade Tiles by Frank Giorgini $5 Ceramics A Potter's Handbook by Glenn C. Nelson $8 Handbuilt Ceramics by Kathy Triplett $10 Ceramics for Gardens & Landscapes by Karin Hessenberg POLYMER CAFE MAGAZINES 2004 70 2007: $30 for 14 issues of Polymer Cafe

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS: Farlow, Jeffrey (Jef), Fiber , (212) 493-9263; 15560 Sonoma Drive, Fort Myers, FL 33908; jef.fiberart@gmail.com. Jef is a member of Common Threads, and heard about the Guild from her quilting friends. Fitzgerald, Kathy, Glass (stained & mosaics), (201) 956-0977; 1824 Birmingham Blvd., Port Charlotte, FL 33980; kathan55@aol.com. Kathy Erickson recruited Kathy when Kathy E. was demo-ing at Wild Child Gallery! Holt, Lindy, Jewelry (lapidary and PMC), (239) 225-5252; 5848 Silvery Lane, Ft. Myers, FL 33919; contactlindy @gmail.com; www.silverylanestudio.com. We welcome Lindy back to the Guild! Its wonderful to have you! Kathy Erickson also recruited Lindy while she was at Wild Child! Kathy has been busy!

MEMBERSHIP UPDATE:

Membership now stands at 102 with 91 artists paying dues. Please be sure to check out our web-site: swflfinecraftguild.org. Make sure your contact information is up to date and correct. If you should have any changes to your address, phone numbers, or email address please let Kathy Erickson know right away at: pineneedleart@gmail.com. The new Yearbook 2015-16 will be printed during the summer and we don't like to make changes at the last minute. New member applications are available for download on our website or can be obtained at meetings. If you should meet an artist that you feel would like to join our group, invite them to a meeting and give them an application. Recruiting is every member's job.

CO-OP ART GALLERY UPDATE:

April Receiving is Monday, April 6 from 10 AM 1 PM. Please

arrive by 12 Noon in order to complete the process by 1.

The April Reception is Thursday, April from 4-6 PM.

NEW MEMBERS LUNCHEON:

The third annual New Members Luncheon will be held on

Saturday, April 25 at 12 Noon at Dee and Joe Coopers home in

Cape Coral. The Board of Directors hosts an informal

luncheon to welcome and get to know our members who have

joined since the last luncheon in April of last year. If you have

not responded yet, please contact Phyllis Rieser at

prpsych@aol.com asap.

SLATE OF OFFICERS:

The Slate of Officers for the 2015-2016 season was voted in

by the membership at the March 21 meeting, and will be

installed at the April business meeting:

mailto:concepts15@aol.comcallto:212)%20493-9263mailto:jef.fiberart@gmail.commailto:kathan55@aol.comhttp://contactlindy%20@gmail.com/http://contactlindy%20@gmail.com/http://www.silverylanestudio.com/http://swflfinecraftguild.org/mailto:pineneedleart@gmail.commailto:prpsych@aol.com

President: Lorraine Capps VP Committee: Francine Gerson VP Committee: Nancy Gray-Giffin VP Committee: Toni Ory VP Committee: Gloria Winer Treasurer: Dee Cooper Secretary: Lynn Ondercin Director: Marsha Bisson Director: Jim Sobel CCAS GUILD CASE:

The Guilds display case is located in Building 2 of CCAS. CCAS retains 30% of the sales, so work should be priced accordingly. New members and members who have never shown in the case before should take advantage of this opportunity. Contact Alex Chung at alexchung 20032003@yahoo.com to reserve your spot. The Board has decided that beginning in April of 2015, each April will be new members month in the case. New members and members who have never shown will be able to put one piece in the case for that month. We want to continue to encourage new members and members who have never shown in the case to take advantage of this opportunity so that we can have fresh work and more people participate. April 2015: New Member Month: Jeanne Gregor; Zdenka Fiala, Pam Richardson May 2015: Available June 2015: Available July 2015: Available August 2015: Available September 2015: Available October 2015: Analilia & Randy Clay November 2015: Edie Limbright December 2015: Zdenka Fiala DING DARLING COMMITTEE NEWS: The Upcycle! Art Fest at JN Ding Darling NWR on Sanibel will be held on April 1 & 2 from 9:00am to 4:00pm inside the Education Center. The profits support the Ding Darling Wildlife Society to provide environmental education to the public. There are currently 21 artists participating using repurposed materials, including four Guild members (Lorraine Capps, Jay Lana, Bobbi Robertson, and Dale Weber.) The Guild will have a covered informational table outside to provide membership and sponsorship information on both days. Trudy Sampson is once again heading up the project tables making reusable tote bags from tee-shirts and sock animals (bunnies and "socktopi") from plastic bags and clean socks. We have been working hard to have a good working relationship with the Refuge to allow us future opportunities to promote our artists. Please try to attend to show support for both the Guild and the Refuge.

ALLIANCE FOR THE ARTS: Many opportunities exist at the Alliance for both members and non-members. Check their web site for further information: www.artinlee.org, or call 239-939-2787.

1. 29th Annual All Florida Juried Exhibit, June 5-29, 2015, more information will be available on their web site as the exhibit approaches.

2. Dog Days, Member Exhibit, August 7-29, 2015, more information will be available on their web site as the exhibit approaches.

NAPLES ART ASSOCIATION:

Petite Pursuits, 60 Inches and Below, Small Works Show:

Members only; Receiving, Monday, April 20, 2015.

For more information about these exhibits, go to

www.naplesart.org or call 239-262-6517. Memberships start

at $75.

VISUAL ARTS CENTER OF PUNTA GORDA:

Primavera, means Spring: Bold, Fresh, and New. Primavera has

no other specific theme, and is open to all types of 2D and 3D

media. Both members and non-members are welcome to

submit work. Receiving is Friday, April 24 from 9 AM 12

Noon. The Prospectus can be found on the VACs web site:

www.visualartcenter.org.

Advertising Committee: We are in need of a Chair and committee members. Art Council Delegate: The Art Council Delegate goes to most Art Council meetings (November through April), and reports to the membership all Art Council and Co-op Gallery news and developments. The Delegate also collects information for the Art Councils biennial Winners Circle Exhibit, presents it to the Board for approval, and provides that information to the Art Council. Buddy System: Established members who are active in the Guild are assigned to a new member and make themselves available to explain all facets of Guild activities, answer all questions and concerns, sit with new members during meetings, and generally help them become informed and feel comfortable as quickly as possible. There is a pool of people to pull from when new members join, and we had can always use more.

mailto:alexchung%2020032003@yahoo.commailto:alexchung%2020032003@yahoo.comhttp://www.artinlee.org/tel:239-939-2787http://www.naplesart.org/http://www.visualartcenter.org/

Recruiting Committee: We are in need of a Chair and committee members. Please contact Dave Sampson at davesamp@comcast.net to discuss volunteer needs and assignments.

GUILD SUMMER 2015 EXHIBIT: Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center (SBDAC) July, 2015. Fun & FunKtional. Please note that the theme for this exhibit has changed due to a similarly-themed exhibit at SBDAC in June.

HARBOUR VIEW GALLERY: Harbour View Gallery Seeks Monthly Featured Artists. They currently have openings for 3-D artists for months in 2015, including some months during peak season. This program offers artists a place to show and sell their designs to the public for a one month period. During the month, the gallery features these two artists on the website, in local magazine

publications, and hosts a wine reception in their honor. Serious applicants can obtain more information about the benefits and requirements of Monthly Featured Artist by contacting the gallery at: art@harbourviewgallery.com Please use "Artist Opening" as the subject of the email to ensure your message gets prompt attention An application can be obtained on our website: www.harbourviewgallery.com.

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mailto:davesamp@comcast.netmailto:art@harbourviewgallery.comhttp://www.harbourviewgallery.com/