Art in Your Eye and the Holmstad team up to "Bridge Generations"

Art in Your Eye and the Holmstad team up to “Bridge Generations”

 The Holmstad presents work by past, present and future Batavia artists

BATAVIA, Illinois – The Holmstad Retirement Community and Batavia’s Art in Your Eye Fine Art Festival are teaming up to present an art exhibition titled “Bridging the Generations.” The event will give the Holmstad an opportunity to show off its beautiful new art gallery space, and the opening will also serve as a volunteer recruitment event for the Art in Your Eye Fine Art Festival, for which the Holmstad is a 2012 sponsor. The art show is collaboration between Batavia High School and the Batavia Historical Society and will feature artwork by Batavia artists of past generations alongside work by current Batavia High school students.  The show will hang in the beautiful new gallery space of the Holmstad’s Town Center Building  at 700 W. Fabyan Pkwy, Batavia, 60510.  The public is invited to the opening reception on Thursday, June 14, 2012, from 5-7:00 pm.

Some of the featured art from Batavia’s past artists includes watercolors by Richard Lewis (1923-1988), an art director for a Chicago advertising company and founder of a 1960’s Batavia art gallery called the Frame Group. It will also include art by Earl Newton (1838-1891) , Vice President of the Newton Wagon Company, who painted two presidential portraits that are included in the Catalog of American Art at the Smithsonian. Other historical art to be included are wood block prints by John Gustafson (1890-1984) ,miniature rooms by Elaine Cannon (1895-1982) work by "self-taught" artist Marge Rundle. (1902-2000), chess pieces by art teacher Peg Bond, and work by Lorraine James. 

The event will also be an unveiling of the 2012 Art in Your Eye Poster featuring the sculpture “To Listen” by Batavia artist, Sharon Sychta. Each year, the Art in Your Eye Festival selects work from a local artist to feature on the poster and then purchases the work to be donated to the City of Batavia’s permanent art collection. Sychta is a founding member of Water Street Studios, and describes herself as a “mixed media sculpture artist”. Sychta’s piece is a sculptural aluminum wire curtain intertwined with wire sculptures of hands, which are signing a message in sign language. Free posters will be given to people who sign up at the event to volunteer at the festival.

The 2012 Art in your Eye festival will be held on August 4-5 at the Batavia Riverwalk at 100.N. Island Ave. The festival features an outdoor juried Fine Art Show, art exhibits, outstanding children’s art activities, artist demonstrations, and continuous musical entertainment on the Art In Your Ear Stage. For more information about Art InYour Eye, visit the festival’s Website at artinyoureye.com.