NEXT MEETING: WEDNESDAY 23RD NOVEMBER 2022
FENCIBLE LOUNGE, UXBRIDGE RD, HOWICK (NEXT TO THE HOWICK LIBRARY).

AGM & Christmas Gathering

President’s Letter

Hello members,

Our next club night will be held on Wednesday, 23rd November and will be our last for the year. The first item on the agenda will be our AGM. This will be a short formality followed by our End of Year/Christmas Party. This is always a really fun night so it would be great to have you along, especially for our newer members. This is an informal opportunity to mingle with other members and to make new friends. Please bring a plate of food to share. Wine and juice will be provided. We will also have our traditional Table Setting competition, so put your creative hats on and design a fun/beautiful/silly table arrangement.

Pop-up Exhibition at Howick Information Centre:
Last Saturday we had an exhibition in the Howick Information Centre during the Howick Markets. It was a great success, with loads of the public coming through, and good sales. Thank you so much to those who brought along their work and for those who manned the desk. I was especially happy to see so many new members exhibiting their work for the first time. Good on you! It takes courage to put your work out into the world for criticism and judgment, so well done!

Bruce McLaren Village Exhibition:
Our next exhibition event will be at the Bruce McLaren Village on the first weekend of December.

The Village has put in a lot of effort to promote this, and after so many cancellations over the past two years due to COVID, they are very excited to finally host us. 10% of our sales will be donated to the Village’s nominated charity which, for this year, is the Fred Hallows Foundation. A very worthy cause indeed. So, let’s do our best to support this event and show them the amazing talent of our Howick Art Group members!

The exhibition will continue over Saturday and Sunday from 10am-3pm. We will need lots of volunteers to help cover the roster during this event, so please step forward.
Please bring your easels and paintings on Friday, 2nd December at 1pm. If you are new and do not
have a display easel, still bring some paintings along, as there should be spare ones you can use. If you are going to be away, but would still like to exhibit your work, please email me, and we will make arrangements. Bruce McLaren are going to a lot of effort for this event, so I would love for us to have as many paintings on display as possible. Please ensure your paintings have swing tags and labels with the name of the painting, medium and price. Also ensure your paintings, frames and glass are clean.
If you have any questions about this event, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Dates for the Diary:

Wednesday, 23rd November – AGM and End of Year Party

Sunday, 27th November – Changeover at the Cottage

2-4th December – Exhibition for members at Bruce McLaren Village, 795 Chapel Road, Howick Friday, 2nd – Set up at 1pm in the lounge at the Bruce McLaren Village.
– Cocktail evening opening 5pm-6pm (please RSVP).
Saturday and Sunday exhibition open to the public from 10am-3pm.

Sunday, 18th December 12:30pm – Cottage Gallery closes until next year.

Friday, 6th January 2023 – Cottage Gallery reopens

Wednesday, 22nd February 2023 – First Club Night of the new year.

Stay safe, and happy painting.
Elise De Silva

Our 2023 committee members are:

President – Elise De Silva
Vice President – Merv Appleton
Secretary – Carina Sim-Smith
Treasurer – Liz Payne
Membership – Amanda Gleason
Gallery & Library – Janice Skinner
Committee – Jennie Henry

Off committee member is:
Website & Library – Wendy Oey

COTTAGE REPORT 

This is my last report for the year so let me begin by saying ‘Thank You’ to all members who bring their artwork to support the monthly exhibitions. A very big ‘Thank You’ goes to those who do duty on a monthly basis, those prepared to fill in on short notice and to the spouses who do duty even though they are not members. I am grateful to all of you. There are people who I must mention by name as they make my job of running the cottage so much easier. Pat Nielsen, Wendy Oey and Barry Harrison, you are stars! Patricia Aley your Green Fingers are paying dividends as the garden is really starting to look great, thanks so much.

Our last changeover date for the year is SUNDAY 27TH NOVEMBER. This exhibition stays up for
December and January (changeover 29th January) and will be a good exhibition to support. The SOLO ROOM WILL BE OPEN TO THE GROUP FOR THIS PERIOD and will have the theme ‘MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY ART’. This means working members can bring an extra painting for the Solo Room. It also means I will be looking for members to do duties on the Fridays. Thanks to those members who have already offered.

The Gallery closes for Christmas and New Year and so will close at 12.30pm on Sunday 18th December and will open again on Friday 6th January.

Let me take this opportunity of wishing you all a Blessed Christmas and may the New Year be filled
with Creativity.

Take care

Janice Skinner
(535 9190 or 02102368667)

For those of you who may be new to the group, the Solo Room is available for any working member to book. It only costs $40 and means you have the whole room to yourself for the month. This is a great way to have your own exhibition. There is a board in the cottage, and all you need to do is add your name to the month that you would like to exhibit. I highly encourage members to take advantage of this unique benefit. – Elise

 

GALLERY RULES (FOR ALL TOO READ)
ORIGINALITY – (New Zealand copyright law and excerpts taken from Landscape Painting Inside and Out by Kevin Macpherson)
Many artists are not aware that painting from a photograph taken by someone else is copyright infringement. The same goes for painting from another artist’s painting. Photos or paintings by others may inspire you to see a subject a different way, but please do not copy them. To do so is illegal. Copying a painting can help you grow as an artist, but the results should never leave your studio. If working from someone else’s photograph the painting must be so changed that it is unrecognisable as a copy. Copying paintings of the Old Masters is allowed as copyright falls away after they have been dead for 50 years but the original artist must be acknowledged on the artwork.
When putting your signature to a painting, it means that you are the sole artist. No work that has been worked on by a tutor should be entered in a competition or sold. No work that has been done at a workshop from the demonstrator’s photo, or that the demonstrator has worked on, should be put up for sale.
For your own work, find and research your own subjects, including taking your own photos. Make it your view, your idea. Herman Melville said: ‘It is better to fail in originality than to succeed in imitation’.
FRAMED PAINTINGS AND PAINTINGS ON STRETCHED CANVAS – Are to be written up in the Painting Register at a cost of $2. Paintings are hung for one month but can be hung again after a waiting period of at least 4 months.
PRICE – All works including miniatures and unframed items must be for sale and 20% commission added on.
FRAMING – Artwork must be soundly framed with the correct rings and cords attached ready for hanging. The correct picture framers tape must be used. No badly damaged frames will be accepted.
LABELLING – Put your name, title, medium, and price on a card (swing tag) affixed to the back of each painting.
UNFRAMED WORKS – All unframed Watercolours must be mounted and covered in plastic or cellophane. All these works must have stickers on top of the plastic, stating title, name, medium and price. These paintings must be entered into the Miniatures/Unframed register (no cost) and they can stay in the gallery for a period of 6 months.
MINIATURES – These works should be no higher than 7”. A card stating title, name, medium and price must be affixed to the back. These paintings must be entered into the Miniatures/Unframed register and can stay in the gallery for a period of 6 months. There is no cost in hanging miniatures in the gallery.
Janice Skinner – Ph 535 9190 (021 023 68667)

 

CRAFTS FOR THE GALLERY

We are able to display ceramics,  glass, pottery, woodwork and sculptures.  Any of our working members who are involved in the above arts please bring your creations to the next changeover.  The cost to display for the month is $2 per item and 20% commission must be included in your pricing.