The Van Wert County Courthouse

Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024

Opening reception scheduled

 By Hope Wallace

Dedicated Duck Derpy committee member Bradde Hamman painted a large, yellow duckie on the side of his downtown business Open Minded in a show of support for the upcoming rubbie duckie fundraising derby taking place at the Wassenberg Art Center on July 11. (Photo submitted.)
Dedicated Duck Derpy committee member Bradde Hamman painted a large, yellow duckie on the side of his downtown business Open Minded in a show of support for the upcoming rubbie duckie fundraising derby taking place at the Wassenberg Art Center on July 11. (Photo submitted.)

Our 59th Annual June Art Exhibit opens this Saturday, June 13 at 6 p.m. with a free, public opening reception. Awards will be presented at 7 p.m. The Dan Smyth Band of Fort Wayne will play. The Dan Smyth band has a jazz background, which has created a unique sound that is somewhat less mellow. They play all over the region and numerous places in Fort Wayne and are hard to pin down! For free music, art and food…speaking of food- we will be serving free, grilled brats and all the fixins, potato salad, cole slaw and ice cream, generously donated by Van Wert’s favorite Rocky Top! A cash bar will be available and we will fire-up the fire-pit. This exhibit is brought to you by Van Wert Federal Savings Bank.

A one-time chance at working with a fabulous photographer and lecturer from Ohio State University is quickly slipping by. Our Brownie-in-Motion camp, scheduled to be held June 17, 18, 19 for ages 8–15 and will feature a life size and operational Brownie Camera. A camera, you can literally walk around in, was built by Stephen Takacs, Columbus. He will be bringing this one-of-a-kind invention, a model of one of the first point and shoot cameras, the Brownie. This camera obscura takes giant photos and also serves as a darkroom. Youth can learn some of the basics of photography from the ancestor of their phone camera, using the brownie. Pinhole cameras, learning to photograph with just the sun and students will even learn a few darkroom techniques. You can read more about Stephen on this online article: http://www.lomography.com/magazine/278681-an-interview-with-photographer-stephen-takacs. Give us a call if you would like to reserve your child’s spot. Cost is $40 members and $45 non-members. Time is running out!

Summer Camp II! Our second summer camp will be scheduled this year from July 21–23 for ages 6–15. We will be exploring perspective with chalk and photography, Native American art through by examining our Faces of Little Bighorn Collection and making artifacts. We’ll be making crazy illustrations by melting crayons and study children’s author and illustrator, Shel Silverstein. Ages 6-10 10–noon, ages 11–15 1–3 p.m. Sign up soon this goes fast! Costs are $30 for art center members, $35 regular.

Needs-based scholarships can be made available if a young person wishes to participate in our camp. Please contact the director.

Want a chance to win $1000, $400, $100 or some fabulous prizes? Buy a duck! If you happened to notice a large yellow duckie painted on the side of Van Wert’s Open Minded on Main Street, and wonder, why? There is a reason! The First Town Creek Duck Derpy (yes, that’s “derpy”) is scheduled during Eats on the Streets/Art from the Fort on July 11. The Wassenberg Art Center has paired up with Main Street Van Wert and we are planning a dual-bash extraordinaire, which will take place on July 11! Not only will we feature works by neighbor artists from Fort Wayne, we’ll be shutting down Central Avenue and pretty much taking over the entire block! Art from the Fort, which begins at 2 p.m. will showcase work from five prominent Fort Wayne artists Gregg Coffey, Mindy Penneycoff, Terry Ratliff, Joel Fremion and Gary Travis. Proceeds from the Duck Race benefit the art center, Main Street and the Van Wert Robotics Team. To purchase a duck(s) please contact the Wassenberg at 419.238. 6837, Main Street, Open Minded, The Embroidery Coop, or a Robotics Team member. You may also purchase online at: http://www.wassenbergartcenter.org/announcements/duckderpy

Begining at 4 p.m. five gourmet food trucks based out of Fort Wayne, will be setting up shop on Central with tasty delights ranging from Mexican, brick oven pizza, Cajun and cool desserts. Music inside and out provided by Dan Dickerson and the Harp Condition, Van Wert’s d.j. Real Human Robot, and later on in the evening, The One-eyed Show. A large beer/wine garden will be set up in back of the art center. Art activities for young and young at heart and we’ll have various kinds of performers from music to magic on every corner. Eats on the Streets & Art from the Fort; experienced new forms of food, fun and art. Open to the public and ZERO entry fee.

If you haven’t heard of TOES they are known as a rock-n-roll band with diverse musical influences that range from the Allman Brothers Band and the Black Crowes, to the Eagles and Johnny Cash, The One-Eyed Show’s sound spans many genres. Within a single performance, TOES often runs the gamut of rock, bluegrass, funk and the blues — all the while maintaining an improvisational styling.

The One-Eyed Show have parlayed three studio albums and high-energy live performances into supporting acts for: Zac Brown Band :: Umphrey’s McGee :: 21 Pilots :: New Riders of the Purple Sage :: Derek Trucks Band :: Shooter Jennings and the Triple Crown :: Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe :: Dickey Betts and Great Southern :: Jerry Garcia Band :: Sam Bush Band :: David Nelson Band :: Fareed Haque :: Hot Tuna :: Dark Star Orchestra :: The Code Talkers with Col. Bruce Hampton :: Garaj Mahal :: The Recipe :: Ekoostik Hookah :: Charlie Hunter Trio :: Cyro Baptista and on and on. You do not want to miss this, besides, we’ve taken care of the ticket price!

Our ongoing watercolor class continues on Tuesday mornings from at 10 a.m.–noon and the instructor is Pat Rayman. Persons are encouraged to jump in anytime and the class is sold in monthly increments. $35 for members and $40 for non-members.

For more information on exhibits or to sign for classes and events visit wassenbergartcenter.org. The Wassenberg Art Center is located at 214 South Washington Street (former Van Wert Armory). We can also be reached by telephone at: 419.238.6837, email: info@wassenbergartcenter.org and our website is: wassenbergartcenter.org.

 

 

 

POSTED: 06/10/15 at 12:30 pm. FILED UNDER: What's Up at Wassenberg?