Homer Jubilee to Feature Art, Music, and Dance

The Homer Courthouse Square will be host Saturday to talented students and professionals from throughout north Louisiana when the Claiborne Jubilee returns to its home after a year’s absence. Cydni’s School of Dance students will perform followed by Miss Bossier Parish, Cyd Hutson, who will lead all interested participants in learning various dance and “Let’s Get Moving” activities. Gospel musician Johnny Parrish will perform at 10:30 and Charles Etta Johnson’s ensemble, The Faithful Eight, will perform at 11:30. The Piney Hills Harmony Chorus will sing at noon followed by Pat and Christina Gladney. A variety of vendors will be on hand during the day selling everything from children’s furniture, porch swings and mayhaw jelly to jewelry and clothing. Several artists will be offering their work for sale as well as entering the competition for art prizes.

Judging will begin at 11 am for works in the following categories: painting, drawing, photography, and other works; for the following groups: ages 7 and under, 8-12, 13-18, adult amateurs and adult professionals. Entrants should have their works registered and placed in the appropriate areas by 9 am.

In addition to dance activities various hands on children’s art projects will be featured led by Lisa Giblin.

Throughout the day there will be a silent auction featuring the chairs created for the “We’re Saving a Seat for You!” fundraiser. Plan now to join in the festivities to begin your Memorial Day weekend celebration. For more information contact Cynthia Steele at 318-927-2566.

SAC Encounter

Nick Bustamante is this week's featured Summer Arts Camps teacher. Nick is a familiar face for NCLAC: he teaches every summer in our 2D classes. This year he'll be at our Homer and Ruston 1 camps, prepared with exciting new projects including mixed media robots and an underwater mural. Nick is both an art educator and a professional working artist. He is an Associate Professor of Studio Art at Louisiana Tech, and he has an active national showing record. Some of his recent exhibitions include There's No Place Like..., in Tennessee, and Small Works Exhibition in California.

Be sure to pre-register for camp in order to guarantee your child's spot. Call us at (318)255-1450 or download our Registration PDF at the bottom of your screen.

The dates/locations are as follows:

June 20-24       Homer               Homer City Hall

June 27-July1  Ruston1             Lincoln Parish Library

July4-8              Farmerville       Assembly of God

July 11-15          Ruston2             Lincoln Parish Library

July 18-22         Arcadia              United Methodist

July 25-29         Jonesboro         United Methodist

Drama Warehouse: Moving Up, Not Out

NCLAC has partnered with the Northeast LA Adult and Family Literacy Consortium (NELAFLC) to bring our annual Drama Warehouse workshop to Bernice at the end of the month. The primary goal of this partnership is to break Union Parish's 40% dropout rate through dramatic activities that boost confidence and promote literacy.  Allie Bennet, local actress and owner of Stitchville, is our teacher for the program.  Using the fundamentals of theatre, she will work with the student/parent pairs in an effort to increase communication and build toward a final performance to which the participants may invite family and friends. Drama Warehouse will run through the end of May.

Member to Exhibit

Joli Livaudais Grisham, owner of Livaudais Studio, is proud to present her newest body of work titled "Meditations", on Thursday, April 7th, during Monroe's Downtown Gallery Crawl. "When I look around me at the marvelously balanced creation of the universe, I see a wheel of creation, maintenance and destruciton grinding endlessly, a ravening machine, terrifyingly pure in its lack of creation, maintenance and destruction grinding endlessly a ravening machine, terrifyingly pure in its lack of concern or gentleness. yet, it is also beautiful, orderly, a profoundly synchronized web of vibrating particles.  Meditations are my conceptual explorations o the mysteries of the machine--the deeper spiritual truth that connects us on the wheel of life and unifies reality."

Her fine art incorporates her interest in psychology and explores the relationships between people and the constructs we use to interpret the world around us, and has been exhibited in the South and Southwest regions of the U.S.A.  Joli is currently enrolled in the MFA program at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana.

Claiborne Jubilee is Saving a Seat for You!!

The Claiborne Jubilee is asking area artists to transform donated chairs into individual masterpieces which will then be auctioned to raise funds to bring Swamp Gravy to north Louisiana.  Each decorated chair will entitle the donor to one ticket to the play, The Big Picture, performed by the internationally known Swamp Gravy Theatre Company from Colquitt, Georgia, May 14. If you are willing to take on this creative opportunity as an artist or if you have a chair, bench, ottoman or any other type of seat to contribute to the cause, please contact Cynthia Steele at 318-927-2566 or email stee848@bellsouth.net.  The Jubilee will arrange for a pickup or delivery at your convenience.  Several chairs are on hand now, so if you want to select from among these and do not have one already handy, please let us know.

Decorations are limited only to the artist's imagination.  Some will be painted, others embellished with wood burning designs or decoupage.  Let's show the folks from Georgia just what an artistic community we have in Louisiana!

Sarah Albritton's Artwork on Display

The works of regional self-taught artist Sarah Albritton will be on display at the Lincoln Parish Library Event Center.   An opening reception to honor the artist will be on Sunday, March 20 from 3-5pm.  The exhibit will be on display from 9-5pm M-F (and by special arrangement) until the end of April.  The exhibition was curated by Susan Roach (Coordinator of Technical Writing & Professor of English at Louisiana Tech) & Peter Jones (Professor of Art at Louisiana Tech).  To learn more about Sarah Albritton and her artwork read the in-depth section below.  SARAH ALBRITTON

 Albritton’s paintings dating from 1993 to the present represent important memories from her youth in the Ruston area and symbolic statements of her religious philosophy and spiritual vision. Albritton's work  includes a rich variety of narrative paintings that depict her personal experiences of childhood and later adult life.  Instead of idealizing the past in a nostalgic manner as many memory painters do, Albritton's paintings often depict painful personal memories or complex philosophical issues.  Her memory paintings selected for this exhibit from the On My Way catalog will feature the underlying stories and commentary for the paintings in the artist's own words, as recorded by folklorist Susan Roach and edited by Roach and Albritton.  Also showing will be newer works from 1999-2011, many of which are smaller but continue with Albritton’s life story.  After major surgery in 1999, she began to paint in smaller formats.

 Albritton’s work has also been shown at the Masur Museum of Art, Monroe, La., the Louisiana State University Museum of Art, Baton Rouge, La., the Louisiana State Museum, Presbytere, New Orleans, and the African American Museum, Dallas, Texas, and at the Stella Jones Gallery in New Orleans, and most recently, the Zigler Museum of Art in Jennings, just to name a few.

Her painting career began in 1993, when she was invited by NCLAC to participate in a fundraiser where celebrities painted and auctioned their paintings. After the event, she began painting stories from her life first written in her unpublished autobiography. This led to her first exhibition in Ruston at La. Tech 1996, and then a traveling exhibition and catalog, On My Way: the Arts of Sarah Albritton. Albritton's narratives in her memory paintings contribute to local history and present a view of the African-American experience and culture in the rural South, according to the curators.  While she sometimes paints community events such as baptisms and church homecomings, Albritton's paintings also depict painful memories of hardships and abuse, racism, or visions of hell.  Paintings such as Mama, Don't Send Me Away, Lonely Road, and Bridge over Troubled Water show the young girl in her blue skirt struggling to make her way through the poverty and precariousness of southern African American family life in post-Depression years. Albritton’s written or transcribed oral stories often accompany her paintings to reveal their complex narratives.

Stitchville to Host Spring Break Camp

Locally owned store Stitchville will be hosting a Spring Break Camp for students.  The day camp will be held Wed, March 30. 9:30-3:00.  The camp fee is $65 and includes all supplies.  The camp is led by Allie Bennet, Stitchville owners, and crafting expert.  Allie has extensive  experience working with children and was one of last year's Drama Instructors for Summer Arts Camp.  Below are brief description of the projects.  Guranteed to be SUPER cute!! Sewing project: Easter Basket bag- Cute little bag, perfect for Easter egg hunts and carrying all sorts of Easter goodies!

For our yarn activity we will be making Easter Egg friends. Create a fun Easter friend using yarn, felt, and a little imagination.

Each child should bring a sack lunch.  Call 318-255-6446 today.  Limited space available.

NCLAC Member to show at Livaudais Gallery in Monroe

NCLAC member Joshua Chambers will be exhibiting at the Monroe Downtown Gallery Crawl on Thursday, February 3rd, 5pm-9pm, with an Artist Talk at 6pm.  Joshua will be exhibiting in NCLAC member Joli Livaudais Grisham's, Livaudiais Gallery, the title of the show is "Lots of Monkeys Smoke Cigarettes"

When asked about his work Joshua responded;

“Storytelling is a manner in which to explore the self, and empathize with others. The stories I create are meant to be honest and entertaining, as I pull from personal life to construct symbolically heavy scenes. Much like a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ book, I want the viewer to have an active role in establishing the chronology and meaning of each story.”

Joshua received his MFA from Louisiana Tech, and his prints and paintings have been featured in national and international exhibitions and collections, as well as appearing in publications of New American Paintings, Studio Visit Magazine, and Creative Quarterly. He is currently the Curator of Education and Public Programs at the Masur Museum of Art in Monroe.

Livaudais Photography Studio & Art Gallery is located a half block south of DeSiard at 122 South Grand in Monroe, LA. For more information, call Joli at (318) 791-0307, or visit www.livaudais-studio.com.

Valentine Art Show

Art Innovations (112 W. Alabama, Ruston, LA) will be hosting a number of artists on Friday, February 4th 5-9pm and Saturday, February 5th 10-5pm who will be on hand to help you pick out the perfect Valentine's Day gift for your special someone.  Scheduled artists are as follows:

• Lori Barnes- Nature Photography, Cards
• Todd Cloe- Wooden Rings
• Bonnie Ferguson- Handmade Soap & Crochet Hats
• Adrian Dean Gipson- Paintings
• Stephanie Hart- Photography, Cards
• Dorene Kordal- Beads & Jewelry
• Sarah Youngblood- Hemp Jewelry

They will also be selling Brownie Boxes filled with the most delicious brownies!  Small $4.00 or Large $6.00.

For more information call 318-255-1800.

Painting Parties @ Art Innovations!!

On Wednesday, December 22, Art Innovations (112 W. Alabama) will be having a painting party from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.  The cost will be $30 to paint a 16 x 20 canvas.  There will be two compositions to choose from, one with a Christmas theme and one of nature.  All supplies are provided.  Food and drink are welcome, but must be brought by the participants.  You do not have to part of a group to participate.  Space is limited, so call (318) 255-1800 or (318) 237-2653 to make reservations.

Beginning January 4, 2011, we will be hosting painting parties on Tuesday afternoons from 2:00 to 4:00 and Tuesday nights from 7:00 to 9:00.  Participants will choose a composition prior to paint day and reserve their space.  Various canvas sizes are available from small to large and prices vary depending on the size of the canvas.  Individuals and groups are encouraged to come paint their own masterpieces.