Throughout August, stepping through the door of the Hardy Gallery is all it takes for one lucky person to receive a valuable Door County souvenir.
The Community Mosaic Project: Complete Artworks 2008-2009
In celebration of its 49th year, the Hardy will give each day’s 49th gallery visitor a free copy of the organization’s self-published book, The Community Mosaic Project: Complete Artworks 2008-2009. The exhibit on which the book is based, the Community Mosaic Project, is now on display at the gallery. The book, just released this past year, is a behind-the-scenes look at the Project’s inaugural years.
The Community Mosaic Project, now in its fourth year, connects all members of the Peninsula’s community to the arts, drawing participants from local youth, professional artists, Sunday painters, annual tourists and aspiring artists of all skill levels and ages. This year, 312 6-by-6-inch works are included in the mosaic, including pieces by noteworthy Door County artists Donna Brown, Emmett Johns, Margaret Lockwood, Brigitte Kozma, Sandra Martinez, Carl Mengert, Bonnie Paruch, Charles L. Peterson, Karsten Topelmann, and Rob Williams.
The canvases are available for purchase via a “blind-buy” system: the public is invited to purchase a number correlating to the pieces; however no-one knows which number belongs to which piece. At the close of the exhibit, the individual canvases are assigned numbers, packaged, and shipped directly to patrons. The thrilling part of the process is not knowing which piece will be received! The proceeds generated from the project benefit the non-profit Hardy Gallery.
The Community Mosaic Project: Complete Artworks 2008-2009 was inspired by the overwhelming success of the Project’s first years.
“It quickly became evident that we had a runaway success with this idea,” says Elizabeth Meissner-Gigstead, Executive Director of the Hardy, “but it was a challenge to give the public access to the writings which accompanied the works of art. These statements often help people connect to the works on another level – something that is key to our mission as a community arts organization.”
To that end, the idea for the book was born. It includes a forward by esteemed Door County artist Charles L. Peterson and images of over 650 works of art as well as the thoughts behind the works of art submitted during the first years of the Project.
Community Mosaic Project numbers are now on sale for $25 at the Hardy Gallery in Ephraim, WI. The book is available for purchase at local booksellers as well as at the gallery. An additional list of local and regional book outlets can be found on the Hardy’s website, www.TheHardy.org. Alternatively, books may be purchased by calling the Hardy Gallery office at 920.854.2210, or by e-mailing info@thehardy.org. The cost of the book is $29.95 (plus tax) and all proceeds benefit the Hardy’s operations and programming.
The Francis Hardy Center for the Arts, Inc., also affectionately known as the Hardy Gallery, is a non-profit art organization enriching the vibrancy of the Door County community by promoting and fostering local art. The organization supports initiatives that address the needs of the local artist community, the creative enrichment of local youth, the education of the public, and the promotion of the visual art and artists of the Door County Peninsula. The iconic Gallery is located on Ephraim’s Anderson Dock and is open 10 am – 5 pm daily. For more information about the organization or to purchase a Community Mosaic Project book, please call 920.854.2210. More information can also be found by visiting www.thehardy.org.
The Hardy Gallery is supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts. Canvases for the Community Mosaic Project have been provided by the Artists Guild, a Winsor & Newton Premiere Art Centre and custom framing center located in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin.
BOOK SUMMARY:
Title: The Community Mosaic Project: Complete Artworks 2008-2009
Author: Francis Hardy Center for the Arts, Inc.
Publisher: Interpress, Ltd.
ISBN: 978-0-615-36519-0
7” x 7” soft cover, 244 pp., 650 color illustrations, $29.95 (plus tax)
