Issue #1 September 2012

Newsletter

Some members who do not use the internet or e-mail are being left out when it comes to the 'news' and events of our art society and gallery! So it has been decided to start up a Newsletter and do a mail out to members.

Any feedback or contributions will be most gratefully accepted!

As you may be aware we have a dedicated few who keep the place running and we'd like to find ways to increase the number of active members.

President: Lea Ambrum-Stevens

Secretary: Diana Burns

Treasurer: Rosalie Andre

At present we have 30 members 'on the books', some needing to pay their annual fees which fall due on 1st April each year. Some members live away from the area so can't participate on a daily basis. We appreciate them remaining as members and will try to keep all informed!

Kids Art SocietyThe $2.000 Pozible Crowdfunding 'Cooktown Art – Evolving' Project raised together with $3,100 from RADF is now being utilised.

Our first kids art session on Saturday 1st

September 9:30am – 12:30pm was attended by 13 enthusiastic kids! At Cooktown & District Country Show we handed out registration forms to a lot of interest.

Since then a Blog and Facebook Group for 'Kids Art Society' – the name the kids wanted for our year long project – has been put on-line and we have had more interest from parents and kids wishing to register.

www.cooktown-kids-art-society.blogspot.com.au

Cooktown School of Art Society

Newsletter

Page 2

As part of the project we are funding art supplies for Wallaby Creek Festival to create banners, masks and a variety of kids art during the festival.

We are also funding the Endeavour Christian College for art materials to assist in their Art Classes.

During upcoming school holidays we'll have 'Pop-Up Art Sessions' by members. Anyone in community who has a Blue Card and would like to run art sessions contact us for information.

General MeetingAt 1pm on Monday 3rd September we held a General Meeting in the Cooktown Library. Apologies to any members who were not informed! We hope to address this through our newsletter and by using a phone tree to contact all members in future. Diana will be doing up the minutes of the meeting. Topics discussed include: Gallery - keeping doors open, roster, admin paperwork. new bar fridge, catering/housekeeping supplies in bulk. Main entrance, door in front. Storage space

Events. Barra Project, Dare to Wear Wearable Art, Cooktown & District Country Show Stall & Raffle. CIAF. Pozible Cooktown Art - Evolving Project Kids Art Funding/Spendng so far - Wallaby Creek, Christian School, Art smocks.

Plans for 3013 - 35th Annual Art Exhibition & SilverAnniversary defered. Eclipse Nov 14th - open as usual. Brollies Group - changed to Share Skills Bank - Tracey Cass to facilitate.

Art Workshops 2013: Graham W Smith - Acrylic Saturday 27th & Sunday 28th April 2013 at a cost of $1,450.00 – will book.

Fundraising. Applications open RADF - apply for art workshop G W Smith, Wearable Art July and one more activity to be decided. Cook Shire Communtiy Grant 2012 - Wearable Art awaiting payment. Volunteer Grant App - Air Con & Petrol $4.984.82 – done 25 July - response by October. Gambling Community Fund/ Reef Casino Grant

done 31 August for Shipping Container $5,214.00 – plus need a quote from Cooktown Sheds to fix to posts

Membership - how to increase & current financial members list. Defered. Any ideas welcomed.

CSAS Accounts / Balances / AGM - ongoing.

Website / Blog / Facebook - Web total cost $194.25

New Business. Gay Mcdonald, Secondary meeting - no need. Lets have a Newsletter - Faye to do. Suggestion Box? - use Communication Book in gallery. Data base, computer backup - not discussed. Forms and Finances - not discussed. Jean Haack – agrees with most of recent decisions. Diana Burns - ?report on Kids Art monies - done. Waratah Nicholls - Disabled access ramps project in gallery ?15th of September - agreed. Tracey Cass has nominated the Gallery to apply for 2 x $1500 via RADF applications over the next 12 months & 3 if we like. Betty Clarke - re mini art exhibitions with possibly 3 sections - defer until 2013 Planning Meeting. Next Meeting date to be decided.

Anything Goes Verandah StallsMorning of Saturday 8th September a Verandah Market for anyone who wishes to sell off any items at all – non members $10 for space. Some money from sales to gallery.

Bank AccountsMembers will be pleased to know we remain 'in the black' with $24,115.96 in three bank accounts.

Of course some of this is reserved for Pozible Cooktown Art – Evolving and Kids Art Sessions and must be spent according to the funding and project outline.

Still we have enough to 'pay the bills' for now and of course are always looking for ways to raise more funds.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Page 3

Painterly PresumptionValue or tone is one of the most important elements in drawing and painting. If you take value to mean light and dark seen as a scale with varying shades of gray arranged between black and white then tonal values are what makes a painting 'talk' rather than the colour.

Though colour is one of my favorite things no matter how much colour you put in a picture, if the values are incorrect, it will make no difference.

Often colour distracts our eyes from seeing the tone or value. Value is important to composition and can also be used to create the illusion of space.

To create a 'picture' on a two-dimensional surface, as in drawing and painting, and have it appear three-dimensional, the artist must create an illusion. For example a circle becomes a ball using transitional values, moving from dark to light. Broken values cause us to see texture in a drawing or painting.

Mostly lighter values appear to be “closer” to the viewer, and darker values tend to “recede” from the viewer. This helps the artist create illusions of space in two-dimensional works of art.

Breaking your subject down into grayscale and tonal values is the best place to start when beginning a painting.

It helps you to:

1. establish the composition,

2. create interesting shapes, and

3. acts as a guideline for values as you start to apply color.

If you start with a preliminary sketch using a grayscale you get an idea about the composition. You can manipulate the values to your satisfaction or do several sketches with different ideas.

Photo-editing software that enables you to change the photos into a grayscale version is the good place to start.

So have a look at your tonal values by taking a black and white photo of your painting and see if the impact is there. Do you need to increase the range of tones?

You may find your paintings need a lift – do an exercise by doing an entire painting in shades of grey from white to black.

Time and time again when entering a gallery, the painting which stands out from the crowd is the one which has a strong design and value pattern.

When trying to see values if you squint you will see value patterns. You lose all the detail and to some extent the colour leaving the values.

Every color can produce a variety of tones; how light or dark these are depends on the color. It's important to realize that tones are relative, that how dark or light they seem depends on what's going on around them.

A tone that's obviously light in one context may seem darker in another if it's surrounded by even lighter tones.

Here's what that master of color Henri Matisse had to say (in his A Painter's Notes, 1908):

"When I have found the relationship of all the tones the result must be a living harmony of all the tones, a harmony not unlike that of a musical composition."

So is it time we harmonised? By Maggie_P

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Page 4

Art Sales!This last fortnight we have had some paintings SOLD at the gallery! One for $400 by Jessie White – 'Abstract In Purple! Well done Jessie!

Also sold were 'Contrast' and 'Inner Eye' by Faye Pini.

Maybe sales are looking up!

Cooktown School of Art SocietyElizabeth Guzsely Gallery125 Charlotte StreetPO Box 385Cooktown Qld 4895

To:___________________________________________

___________________________________________