ICASI is presenting the Meritage Gala on September 9, a fundraiser the scholarship fund.

Pairing the creative talents of RED DOT Project artists and ICASI chefs, ten artists created artwork for silent auction.

Shown above is Bouquet by RED DOT Project, Linda Hutchinson. Linda says:
The inspiration came from a brainstorming session with Loretta Pagnini. She said, “bright, bold, vegetables, olives, red peppers, wine, basket, bread, copper pots, pasta, whisk, spoons, eggplant, platters, COLOR, lemons, fish, earthenware, carafes.” I responded by setting up a still life on my patio on a sunny afternoon and photographed the set up. I worked from photos.

To pick up tickets and participate in the auction, please contact ICASI.

Art Matters! Scion x-CHANGE is matching donations made to selected arts-based nonprofits by up to $30, 000 this year, and RED DOT Project is proud to be one of the selected 30 non-profits in over 30 cities.  Scion believes artists drive the cultural identity of a city, and that this support provides the necessary workspaces, materials, educational opportunities and support platforms to these artists. The company also recognizes that brand awareness can be more than purchasing ad space… it can be a catalyst for community support and artistic expression.  The Scion x-CHANGE Program connects people, online and on-the-streets, to these featured nonprofits. 

Save the weekend of July 24 and 25 and join us at Phoenix Coffee House on Coventry to drive for x-CHANGE and support your artistic community and plan to hear more in the days and weeks to come.

Chris Zielski’s career began in arts education but bloomed into an exploration of textiles, photography and metal. All these disciplines inform her work today as she creates collages that combine metal, etching and photo transfer. Organic objects — leaves, insects, water currents — find their way into her metal art. So do geometry and geography. One of her favorite commissions was a grid of tiles that made up a map of the Great Lakes, featured here. This work, a commission through RED DOT Project, has led Chris to further explore the creation of maps large and small — and maps are now an important piece of her business, resulting in additional commissions and sales.

Chris uses an electrolytic, environmentally-friendly alternative to acid-based etching. Each metal plate is coated with up to eight layers of acrylic glaze that creates a surface with rich color and a high gloss similar to that of an enamel, but without the use of hazardous materials. Her works reflect the environment and her processes reflect her commitment to sustainable art practices.

More of Chris Zielski’s work can be seen (and purchased) at the Endure collection launch on February 11, 2010, at www.shopreddotproject.org.

ENDURE
RED DOT Project’s first theme-based curated online collection

Featuring artworks by

Robert L. Stockham
Qandle Qadir
Chris Zielski

opens at www.shopreddotproject.org February 11, 2010

Opening preview party at Environments 4 Business
515 Euclid Avenue
February 11, 5 – 7 pm

Call this the era of The Next Big Thing. From cell-phone gadgetry to biomedical discoveries, big-screen TVs to big-industry bailouts, lots of today’s energy, enterprise and attention are focused on what’s going to make tomorrow’s headlines. Which made Red Dot Project wonder: What about the value of what endures?

So next week RED DOT Project launches Endure, our first theme-based curated online collection featuring art by Robert L. Stockham, Qandle Qadir and Chris Zielski. We chose Endure for its importance to the work of our featured artists, both in terms of technique and materials. Canvas, metal and stone – they’re all time-tested. All evoke art and artists that have come before. All depend on the enduring gifts of nature. We also chose Endure for what it means to art and the art-loving community at large. What does it mean to endure in a changing world and a shaky economy? What are the practices that keep our heads above water? Who are the people we count on, the pleasures that matter? Where do we go for sustenance and succor? What are the values that have sustained us in the past, and promise to do so in the future? These questions (and maybe some answers) are hinted at in the works of our featured artists. And as we enter our fifth year, RED DOT Project will continue to explore new ways to help the artists of Northeast Ohio prosper and endure.

Join the Cleveland Sketchcrawl this Saturday, 5 April from 10 am to noon.  Meet at the Arcade (it runs between Superior Ave. and Euclid Ave., about a block or so east of Public Square) at 10 a.m with sketchpad and pen.

 You can catch up on previous crawls at the Cleveland Sketchcrawl blog here.  And at Karen Sandstrom’s blog here.

 One of Karen’s sketches from February at the Cleveland Public Library.

Things I learned today (here):

Leap days, technically known as intercalary days, are calendar corrections. Despite what you have been taught, there are not 365 days in a year. There are precisely 365.2425 days, which means we gain a day every four years. An exception: Century years cannot be leap years unless they are evenly divisible by 400.

In 45 B.C., Emperor Julius Caesar added a Leap Day occurring every four years to the calendar he created. Until then, calendars were a mess.

Leap Night, 6 to 11 p.m. today. A winter fun extravaganza including a winter forest with bonfires, ice-skating rink, snowboard ramp and rail-jam competition, outdoor video-game competition, snowsuit fashion show and food and drink vendors. In a vacant lot at 1100 Old River Road in the Flats, between Main Avenue and Front Street, Cleveland. Sponsored by Pop-Up City.

Seth Chwast  ::  Fantasy Tree Frogs Yellow

RED DOT Project artist, Seth Chwast, was diagnosed with autism as a very young child, and lived for years in a world of roller coasters, haunted houses, and classical music.  A dramatic change came in 2003, when at age 20 he took an oil painting class at the Cleveland Museum of Art.  Seth, who rarely speaks, began describing his world in paint.

Seth has a created beautiful pieces of art that are direct and honest.  He has an amazing story that has been featured on the Today Show in 2007 and 2008.  For more information about Seth and to purchase his artwork, visit www.reddotproject.org

Join the Cleveland Sketchcrawl organized by Karen Sandstrom.

It is this Saturday, October 6, 10 am to noon.  Meet at the old Arcade on Superior Avenue.  RED DOT Project artist, Thomas Roese, will be on hand for encouragement and fun.

More info at Cleveland Sketchcrawl blog

Ten RED DOT Project artists artwork was auctioned off Friday night at Art of Space, an event in celebration of Studio Graphique’s 10 Year anniversary.  Not only did everyone there have a great time, but the artwork was sold to a lively and engaged crowd.

Tricia Lazuka, Lakefront

This auction was like no other.  The artists were paid for their creative endeavors!  Spaces, Cleveland Public Art, and RED DOT Project also were beneficiaries from this event.  Thanks to the artists that participated and Studio Graphique for celebrating their business in grand style!

Join us this weekend for Sparx Gallery Hop and City Artists at Work Open Studios.  RED DOT Project will be featuring the work of Anne Kibbe, Honey Lazar, Tricia Lazuka, Kate Ward Terry, and Chris Zielski.  A great opportunity to shop our flat file drawers for incredible artwork by nearly 100 regional artists.  While you are out, pick up a map to visit the studios and galleries in the Art Quarter. 

This is a great weekend to explore art in Cleveland!