We've had a busy summer at art4..., between our regular customers, friends and family visiting from out of town, and especially due to our art classes. Jess, our supremely talented and extremely likable employee, taught each of our seven different classes, ranging from oil painting to sculpey to art & the environment. The feedback we got from the kids (and parents) has been tremendous. We are looking at different opportunities for classes throughout the year and will keep you posted.

I am really excited about all of the cool stuff going on at art4... First of all, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our Sticks hand painted, handmade furniture. I remember seeing Sticks years ago (can't remember where) and fell in love with all of their products. Little did I know then that one day I would open a gallery and that we would be privileged enough to carry their line. If you have never seen this fabulous, customized furniture, you should check out their website at www.sticks.com, although you'll definitely want to stop by the gallery when it arrives to see it in person.

I'm also really excited about our upcoming online store. It's a ton of work to get it up and going, but we're determined to do it right. Luckily, our fabulous web designer (Lisa Cohen from Artemis group) is a genius and has been very helpful in getting us moving on this. Not sure when we'll be up and running but will keep you posted.

Other exciting news is that we are hosting an exhibit, "Remembering Fred: The Art of Fred Counsel". We have been working closely with Fred's niece, Judy Counsel Vipond, (a well-respected artist in our community as well) to put together a fitting tribute to one of the greatest artists from our region. This will be the last public showing of Counsel's work. Judy has told us that there are pieces (all originals) with prices starting at $80, as well as oil paintings that have never been shown before. The exhibit will be up from August 20th thru Sept 30th, with an opening reception on Thursday, September 10, from 5:00 - 7:00 pm.

Lots more coming up, but need to put my girls to bed.

Peace & Love-
Sue

gratitude

I am grateful that I have Jody Christen as my business partner.
I am grateful that we have Jess as our employee.
I am grateful that my mom helps out at the gallery once a week.
I am particularly grateful that she does this for free. :)
I am grateful to our many wonderful, loyal customers.
I am grateful that so many new people find us every day.
I am grateful to Vince Duffy, our graphic designer, for his creativity and boundless talent
I am grateful to Lisa Cohen (www.artemisgroup.com) for designing our fabulous website (www.art4gallery.com. I am also grateful for Lisa's tremendous generosity.
I am grateful to all of our talented artists.
I am grateful that I love what I do, every day.

and the livin' is easy...

Ah, Summertime... I love it! I am not really good with routine and schedules, a challenge for a woman juggling a business and raising two young daughters. I just love the freedom that summer offers--no school, no dance class, no hebrew school, no skating lessons...

This is our second summer at art4... and so far, things have been great. This past Thursday was our first Downtown LIVE summer concert and it was a terrific night. How cool to have a band playing live music outside, people milling around on the street...the atmosphere was alive and exciting. I think this is going to grow into something pretty special for the area and I'm really excited about it. Diahann Mosier, a tremendous artist from Huntington, PA (and a new friend of mine) was outside working on a very cool, very interesting self-portrait, which generated a lot of interest and attention. We had a lot of first-timers to the gallery, which makes any event worth its effort. All in all, it was a great night and I'm really looking forward to the next one, which will be on July 16th!

This Friday will be our first Open Mic Night. I'm curious to see who that brings out:) I'm hoping that it's something that we can do on a regular basis, whatever that ends up meaning. Should be a good time, so if you're around, stop by.
Then, on Saturday, we're having a trunk show by Jewelry Designer Rachael Adamiak. Her work is incredible. Jody and I first saw her jewelry on a buying trip, purchased several pieces, and sold them as soon as we put them out! She lives in Austin, but is a Pennsyylvania native. We're really excited to host this. If you like contemporary sterling silver jewelry, you'll want to see hers.

Peace, Art, and Love,
Sue

Things have been great at the gallery lately. It seems like everyday, we get more and more people stopping by. For many, it's the first time they've been in, which is especially fun, because they are typically pretty effusive about art4... And then we have our regulars, many of whom we didn't know before we opened, who are now our friends.

In addition to new people coming in, we also have received lots of new products. Two weeks ago we brought in these fabulous bags from Renee's Hardware and sold all of them already! Oh--and the salad bowls we just got are incredible. They will be perfect for a wedding gift, or I'm sure we'll have customers who won't be able to resist buying one for themself.

We continue to plan events. One of the reasons that we do so many events is that it's a way to bring new people to the gallery and introduce them to art4... The other reason is that I'm an event planner by nature, and can't help myself! So, if you're anywhere nearby, we hope you'll plan to come to at least one of our events.
I'm especially excited for Downtown LIVE! It's a series of outdoor concerts that will be held on the diamond on the third Thursday of the month throughout the summer. We'll kick off our first one next Thursday, June 18th with the band The Killer Boots. Along with the music, we will have Huntington artist Diahann Mosier creating live art right outside the gallery. Also, stop by art4... for a chance to win a free gift! Event is from 6:00-9:00.

We are also excited to be hosting an Open Mic Night on Friday, June 26th. Here's your chance to perform for a live audience! Singers, musicians, poets, comediennes--the stage is yours (for about 5 minutes). Event will begin at 8:00 pm. BYOB

Hope to see you soon!

admission

To call myself a workaholic doesn't feel exactly right (it's that "work" word that gets me). But, I must admit that I think about the gallery ALL THE TIME. I can't stop myself (not that I try to). I'm not complaining-- I love thinking about it, planning things, coming up with new ideas...
The key to our success is to get people in the door. Once they have been to the gallery, we feel pretty sure that they'll be back. They don't always buy something on their first visit, but it plants the seed. So, three months later when they need that perfect gift for their niece's bridal shower, they'll remember to come visit us.
So my job is to get people to come here. And the way I do this is to plan events that will draw them in.
One of the events that we're working on is Downtown LIVE! Taking our Third Thursday to the next level, we will have live bands on the Diamond throughout the summer. Plans are in the works, but mark your calendars for June 18th, July 16th, &
August 20th. I'll be sure to keep you posted.
Also just decided that I want to host a Women's Poker Game once a month. (I haven't even told Jody about this one.) I'd like to put together an event for singles, but haven't come up with the right idea yet. Any suggestions? We seem to be getting more requests for Adult Art Classes, so keep your eyes open for that as well.
In the meantime, if you read this in time, we are having a Ladies' Night tomorrow
(3/21). Stop by for a Mojito and to see all of our cool new stuff. We will be donating a portion of sales that night to Penn Mont Academy.
That's it for now. Peace.

We are in the full swing of things here at the gallery. Rick, our favorite UPS driver, stops by regularly with packages filled with fabulous purchases that we made. It's so exciting to receive the inventory; even though we chose the items, we don't always remember exactly what we ordered, so there's always an element of surprise.
Now that our birthday is behind us, we are booking our calendar with more parties and events. First and foremost, we are hosting an opening exhibit for Woodbury artist, Brice Miller. Brice's medium of choice is graphite and his work is incredible. We almost always have to let people know that these are actual drawings, not photographs. The show will be up throughout the month of May, with an opening reception this Saturday evening, May 9th from 7:00 to 9:00.
We are also participating in "Paint the Town Purple", a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Different Relay for Life teams will be setting up booths on Allegheny Street and will be selling items to raise money for their teams. This event will take place on Saturday, May 16th. We will be making a donation to Team Ozmosis in honor of Todd Sparks, so any purchases made that day will benefit the ACS.
Lastly, on Thursday, May 21, we are hosting a Ladies Night at the gallery. We have decided to donate a portion of sales that evening to Penn Mont Academy (a fine institution of which I am an alumni!). So again, stop by for a fun evening with your friends and partake in some great shopping (we have terrific teacher gifts, great things for graduations, weddings, etc).
So whether you stop by for one of our many events, or just stop by during our regular hours, we'd love to see you here!
Have a great weekend-
Sue

Come Celebrate With Us

Just a quick reminder that we will be celebrating art4...'s first birthday this Wednesday, April 24th. If you're anywhere nearby, please stop by. We'll be having cake and champagne, and will have live music from 5:00 - 7:00 by Jackson Monsour. A portion of our proceeds from sales that day will be donated to American Cancer Society in honor and in memory of Todd Sparks.
Happy Day-
Sue