NEXT TRUNK SHOW!!

We are having a trunk show at Rivertown Coffee Co. on April 10th! If you'd like to set up with us, PLEASE e-mail us and let us know at thearthive.al@gmail.com ! We ask that everyone provide their own tables/chairs, but if you absolutely cannot find one, let us know & we'll try to help out.

Thanks!

March Artist of the Month

Meet our March artist of the month (as well as one of our founding members), Maggie Crisler.

Tell us a little about yourself (name, affiliations, etc.)

My name is Maggie Crisler and I am a photographer & graphic designer. I graduated from the University of Alabama last May with a degree in graphic design & advertising. I moved back to Florence after 4 years in Tuscaloosa to marry my sweetheart. I'm also a barista at Rivertown Coffee Co.

What materials do you commonly use in your art (and why)?

As far as photography goes, I work mostly with my Canon 30D and Photoshop. I have an old 35mm Minolta that I still play around with from time to time. For design work, I like to stick with Adobe Illustrator. I also like to hand-print some of my design work and prefer either linoleum blocks or screenprinting. I love the slight variations and imperfections that result from hand-printing things.

Describe your artistic style and/or approach.

People are most definitely my favorite subjects. I tend to talk a lot when I'm shooting...I feel it makes my subjects more comfortable. The more comfortable they are, the more natural the photos...and the closer I can get (which works well for my composites). I love shooting close so I can capture every detail possible. When designing, I spend most of my time manipulating type. I took a typography class when I was a junior in college and it ruined me. I'm a type freak now. I love design that is clean, simple & straight-forward. I suppose I feel the same about photography as well.

What influences your art?

People. The way they move, look, act, dress...everything. People fascinate me.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your art?

I want them to see the beauty in the subject the same way that I do. I want them to notice all the little details that I do, and even some that I may have missed.

What do you do when you're not making art?

A fairly sizable part of my time is spent doing things for the Art Hive. I can usually be found at Rivertown - working or not working. I enjoy spending time with my husband and our Scottish Terrier, Simon...we're pretty hooked on The Office and Arrested Development. I love sewing and cooking. I spend a good deal of time with friends as well.

How can someone contact you if they are interested in purchasing your art?

My website has contact info on it...please visit. www.magpie-photo.com or you can follow my blog: magpiephoto.tumblr.com

Upcoming events!

Hello everyone!

We wanted to inform you all about a few upcoming events that we would like you to participate in! We are having a general interest meeting this Thursday (Feb 25th) at 5:30 p.m. in the Visual Arts Building Rm 121 at UNA. We will be providing a few light snacks, information about what we are doing, what you can do to get more involved, and we will be there to answer any questions you may have. We know this is short notice, so we are also planning on having another general interest meeting at 5:30 pm on Thursday, March 11. It will also mostly likely be in the Visual Arts Building, but we have to get the date approved first. If the location changes, we will let you know.

We have a Draw-a-thon in the works! The date for this will be March 5th- March 6th (First Friday continuing into Saturday). This will be a 24 hour drawing event from 7 p.m. to 7 p.m. The cost will be $5 per person. Bring your friends & family and let's draw! We will have some materials provided, but you can also bring your drawing materials of choice. The money raised will go towards supplies to make this event happen and also to help us raise money to go towards our building. This event will be located at The End which is located at 106 South Pine Street Florence, AL, 35630.

Thank you all for your interest and support. If you have any questions, please e-mail us at thearthive.al@gmail.com

Next Trunk Show!

We're having our first trunk show of 2010!!! Come out & see us at Rivertown Coffee Co. next Saturday. We'll be there at 10am. Live music from Rhyal Knight, McKenzie Lockhart & Alexander the Great starts at 5!

Also, we'd like to thank everyone that helped or came out & supported us at our donation day at Wal-Mart last Saturday. Thanks to your generous contributions, you've brought us closer to the amount we need to start renovations on our building.

Artist of the Month (January/February ): Abraham Rowe

Here's our January/February artist of the month, Abraham Rowe. Stop by Rivertown Coffee Co. and take a look at the work he has on display.

Tell us a little about yourself (name, affiliations, etc.)

My name is Abraham Rowe, I am a professional freelance photographer and father of two young sons.

What materials do you commonly use in your art (and why)?

I really love all things photography from pinhole photography to film and digital. I find myself drawn to good architecture and furniture design as well as cooking. I am also beginning to learn the value of keeping a journal/sketchbook.

Describe your artistic style and/or approach.

My basic approach is to document the history of everyday life. In doing that, it is my job to look at something, pull the essential elements out of it, and package it in an beautiful and interesting way.

What influences your art?

My surroundings are a huge influence on my work. A series I am working on right now is strongly influenced by observing the way my children play and how they view the world. Also, seeing the work of Robert Rausch, Billy Reid, Natalie Chanin, Gary Baker, Audwin McGee and so many others from The Shoals and knowing that it is possible to reach the world from Florence, Alabama is a huge source of inspiration for me.

What do you want the viewer to take away from your art?

Art in it's most basic form is the sharing of ideas. It is my goal to keep the dialogue going in a visually interesting way.

What do you do when you're not making art?

I spend most of my time staring at a computer screen and chasing my kids. I also like to drink coffee and spend time outside, but not usually at the same time.

How can someone contact you if they are interested in purchasing your art?

Check out my website: www.abrahamrowephotography.com for all of my contact information.

Newsletter for January!

Welcome to the New Year! Thank you all so much for your interest in what we are doing with The Art Hive. This is our first official newsletter and we just want to update you on what we are doing and our progress with this up and coming artist co-op.

Here are a few topics we want to share with you.


Fundraising

At this moment we are in fundraising mode. We have some great ideas in the works for January and February, and will let you all know details. We are aiming for two big fund raisers a month, at least until doors are open.

*Our big fundraiser for the month of January will be at the Walmart in Florence. We will be standing outside asking for donations and spreading the word about what we are doing. If you can donate any time to this project we would be very appreciative.

The dates of this event are January 22 & 23 (Friday and Saturday). The times are yet to be known and depend on how many volunteers we can get to help out. If you are interested PLEASE reply to this e-mail and we can let you know the times. This event is also weather permitting (so if we have a huge rain or snow storm we will reschedule).

We would also like to thank you all who have come out this past year and supported us. Your donations have been put to good use thus far, but we still have a long way to go to reach our goal.


Our Mission

As most of you know, our vision is to bring workspace (private and communal) to professional and up and coming artists in the Shoals area. Along with this, we want to provide a gallery space for people to buy and sell local art work, and also to provide workshops to the community. We also want to offer this building as a venue for music and theater productions. We want our space to be your (the arts community) space.


Needs

We have already been given a gracious donation, a building! We will start working on the building soon. It needs to be brought up to code and has a lot of work that needs to be done to it. Right now we are looking at 6500 square feet to fix up.

A few of our needs for the building are...

- A plumber and licensed electrician

- 8ft and 14ft 2x4's

- People willing to come out and help with construction

- Working supplies (hammers, saws, nails, etc)

- Any monetary donations would also be very helpful (which will go towards utilities, insurance, and building supplies)


Artist of the Month

Our Artist for the month of Jan/Feb is Abraham Rowe. His work is currently hanging up at Rivertown Coffee Co. in downtown Florence, come and check it out! Also check out our blog at www.thearthive.org, where there will be information about our artist up soon!

If you are interested in being our artist of the month or hanging up your art work inside of Rivertown Coffee Co, let us know! Reply to this e-mail for more info.

Please feel free to e-mail us any time with questions! We'd also love to hear from you if you have a desire to volunteer your time and are willing to invest into bringing this vision into it’s fullness. Thank you again for your time, support and interest.

Happy New Year from The Hive!

Hey guys!

Sorry it's a week late, but we'd just like to say Happy New Year!

After taking a break for the holidays, we are back in action.

Be on the look-out for updates about fundraisers, events, and a general interest meeting sometime in February!

-The Art Hive