Muddy Creek Artists: Gifts From the Arts Show and Sale Opens Thursday

Walking through last year's Muddy Creek Artist Guild's Gift from the Arts Show made my husband nervous. He held tight to our checkbook as I browsed. But we went back a couple of times and I kept circling a collage piece by Susan Lennon. It was a sunny paper collage of purple dragonflies.

I was sad when I came back and the piece was no longer on the wall.

But it showed up at our house on Christmas morning. It hangs beautifully in our living room.

The show is back this year, with all new, all original works from 60 artists from the Muddy Creek Artists Guild. This is the third annual December show for the guild, whose artists all live in South County.

The art showcased includes just about every kind imaginable. Glass, jewelry, batik, textiles, paintings, sculpture, photography, metalwork, paper crafts and cards, furniture and more.

Last year they added student art and talks with the artists. This year, they are adding new artists and special events, including two book signing events with South County authors.

The show will take place Dec. 1-4 and Dec. 8-11 in the former Blockbuster tenant space at South River Colony Main Street (189 Mitchells Chance Road) in Edgewater.

Once again, the space has been transformed into a holiday gallery. It promises to offer the best collection of local art at the guild's biggest show of the year.

Here are some of the highlights:

• Meet the Authors Night: Lynn Abercrombie and Valerie Ormond, 4 to 7 p.m., Dec. 2. Abercrombie, a Shady Side resident, will present a compilation of her husband, the late Tom Abercrombie's work: Traveling the World for National Geographic, a tale of high adventure to little known places.
  Valerie Ormond's book, Believing in Horses takes readers on a journey of the the main character's involvement in saving horses. Both authors will be on site for autographs and their books will be for sale.
• Meet the Artists Reception, 4 to 7 p.m., Dec. 3
• Southern and South River High School Art Student’s Reception, 1 to 4 p.m. Dec. 4
• Ladies Night – Gary Harmon Jazz and Holiday Songs, 4 to 7 p.m. Dec. 8 
• Music by Coastal Flats, 4 to 7 p.m. Dec. 9
• Artists Reception With Hugh Cassidy and Friends, 4 to 7 p.m. Dec. 10
• Dance From The Nutcracker and People’s Choice Awards, 1 to 4 p.m. Dec. 11

The show will be open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. They will take cash, check, Mastercard and Visa.