FRESH DATE DUE TO RAIN! NOW SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 2 2018!!

We’ll meet at 10am and paint for an hour or two. If you want to stay longer, or show up later for light reasons, that’s quite fine! This is a casual, relaxing painting and photography day.

The Blackstone River is an incredibly powerful waterway, going 46 miles from Worcester to Pawtucket, RI. Over that length it drops a full 450 feet in height. This awesome power is what gave motion to the many mills which developed along its length. It’s also what carved out the beauty of the Blackstone Gorge.

The Blackstone Gorge, with the Rolling Dam right above it and the Tupperware Mill right below it, is right on the border of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The Rolling Dam is in Blackstone, Massachusetts while the Tupperware Mill is in North Smithfield, Rhode Island.

Directions and Time
Parking is found at the corner of Staples Lane and County Street in Blackstone, MA.
To find that, search on:

66 County Street
Blackstone, MA

The parking lot is immediately across the street from that house.

Time is 10am to around noon, or you can stay longer.

Supplies
We’ll have tray watercolors, brushes, and paper available. Please bring a water bottle to wet your paints and a small cutting board or something similar to tape the paper to. If you’d like to bring a beach chair to sit on, and snacks / drinks, feel free.

If you’ve never done a plein air paint before, you might read: Plein Air Painting – Preparing for your First Outing.

Please RSVP via our BVAA Contact Form so we know how many paints to bring.

National Park Service page on the Blackstone Gorge

This is just one part of our month-long Celebrating the Blackstone artistic celebration. Be sure to check out all of our events!

This month-long celebration is sponsored by Constellation, an Exelon company.

ASHTON MILLS EXCURSION SAT 8/4/2018 CANCELLING DUE TO RAIN! WILL RESCHEDULE!

You can of course go anyway – just wear a raincoat! :)During its heydey, the Blackstone River was the powerhouse behind the many mills which sprung up all along its length. Town after town boomed due to the jobs and products created at these mills. Many of these large brick structures represented prosperity for the entire town. The mill owners would often build smaller brick houses for their workers.

The Ashton Mill complex is a great representative of what these communities were like. The area was put onto the National Register of Historic Places on November 1, 1984.

Come on out with us to get a solid look at this amazing part of our history! What would it have been like living in the era of the mill? Where all your family and friends worked in the same place and could hang out together side by side on weekends?

ASHTON MILLS EXCURSION SAT 8/4/2018 CANCELLING DUE TO RAIN! WILL RESCHEDULE!

You can of course go anyway – just wear a raincoat! 🙂
Location and Time
The location is now apartments. The address to get there is:
Ashton Mills
51 Front St
Cumberland, RI 02864

We’ll start at 10am – this is a CASUAL event. Carol Frieswick will be on hand at 10am to greet people and answer any questions about the BVAA. Feel free to come whenever you wish and to stay for however long you’re entertained. Bring paints, cameras, notebooks – whatever strikes your fancy!

Across the street is the The Captain Wilbur Kelly House Museum which has great exhibits about the mills.

Note that we have permission to use the bathroom :).

There will be a kite and paper airplane making workshop there as well.

This is just one part of our month-long Celebrating the Blackstone artistic celebration. Be sure to check out all of our events!

This month-long celebration is sponsored by Constellation, an Exelon company.

If you’re interested in painting, drawing, and illustrating, we have the perfect Saturday lined up! It’ll be a great time with laughter, conversation, creativity, and the space to stretch out! It’s an open paint! All are welcome, including the public, family, and friends! It’s free!

If the weather is nice out, we’ll also do an Uxbridge sketch walk. We have the maps all ready. We just need some sunshine!

Note there IS NO YOGA IN THE GALLERY THIS WEEK. So the gallery will close at 3pm.

When:
Saturday, July 28th, 2018
10am – 3pm

Where:
BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Gallery
5 South Main Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569

This is an open paint session where all styles of art are warmly welcome. Whether you’re 12 or 102, whether you’re a new beginner or a seasoned artist, we would love to have you. It’s completely free to participate in the open paint. You can bring your own paints or we’ll have watercolors to share.

There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.

BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Art Gallery Information

Feel free to show up for some or all of the day to paint. Some come for just the morning, some for the afternoon, and some for the entire time. There are several options on the same block to grab lunch if you’d like. We also bring in a pizza and those who want slices chip in a few dollars.

Ask with any questions – we’d love to have you join us!

Here’s a selection of the art available at the Grafton Inn in July 2018! Let us know if you’re interested in a piece!

The artists include Bonnie Frederico, Bob Evans, Carol Freiswick, Bill Witherell, John Randall, Linda DeFeudis, Carol Dandrade, Bob See, and Lisa Shea.

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Visit the Grafton Inn at:
https://thegraftoninnma.com/

NOTE: This class will focus on still life. Bring what you’d like to paint and your light and Carol will see you there!

Oil paint has been the medium of choice for a wealth of famous painters. Leonardo da Vinci. Claude Monet. Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Paul Cezanne. There is just something spectacular about the beauty of oil paint which captures the eye and the imagination.

Whether you’re a raw beginner or an experienced painter, this oil painting class will take you to the next level. It’s full of personal hands-on advice and a warm, welcoming atmosphere!

Talented painter Carol Arnold teaches a monthly oil painting class at the BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Gallery! Carol is a member of Richard Schmid and Nancy Guzik’s Putney Painters! All levels of painters are welcomed with open arms. The focus will be on drawing, edges, values and color. These are areas which a beginner can practice and an advanced student can hone to perfection.

Carol makes these classes fun and inspiring, while supporting you to the next level of your growth!

This monthly class meets on the first Thursday of every month from 6-9 pm.

Cost:
The maximum class size will be 10 students, to ensure plenty of hands-on time for each one.
If there are only 1 or 2 students registered for a class, the class will be cancelled.
If there are 3 or 4 students, each student pays $20/hr for the class = $60 total.
If there are 5-10 students, each student pays $15/hr for the class = $45 total.

Invite your friends! Share the news! The more students which attend, the less you pay and the more fun it is to learn from each other.

When:
Thursday, August 2, 2018
6pm – 9pm

Where:
BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Gallery
5 South Main Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569

There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.

BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Art Gallery Information

This class is open to the public. It is open to all ages and to all levels of painting ability.

Please make sure you register beforehand so we know how many to expect. Carol will send you a supply list to get you started.

To register, please make sure you email: carol@carolarnoldfineart.com

To learn more about Carol Arnold and to view her painting gallery:

https://carolarnoldfineart.com/

Follow Carol on Facebook!

Carol Arnold Fine Art on Facebook

Our July 2018 monthly meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 17th from 6:30-9pm at the Uxbridge Community Gallery, 5 South Main Street, Uxbridge, MA.

This meeting and workshop is free and open to the public. No experience is necessary. The fun of our workshops is that we all try new things we’ve never done before.

The topic of this hands-on workshop is:

Topic: Boosting Creativity II
Moderator: Lisa Shea

Our meetings cover BVAA organization business from 6:30-7:00pm and then go into the workshop part of the evening.

This workshop will be a fun adventure. We’ll have a number of different items on hand for you to work with. You can play with whatever one you want. You could also bring paints / etc. to create in your own way.

We will have:

Scratchboard
These are the boards which are a solid color, often black, and then you scratch away that top surface with an Xacto blade. This reveals the color or colors beneath. The owl in the banner is an example of this style. Please bring an Xacto blade if you have one.

Calligraphy
We will have a collection of calligraphy pens – both the cartridge style and the dip-in-ink style – for you to explore with. We have four different books on calligraphy and several of us are familiar with calligraphy. We’ll show you how it’s done!

Illuminated Letters
These are the lovely initial-caps letters which are often at the start of a calligraphy manuscript. They also can be standalone works of art. We’ll have predone letters you can trace or you can be inspired by those to draw your own styles. You can then watercolor in the colors.

Japanese / Chinese calligraphy
I have a Japanese / Chinese calligraphy kit with two brushes. I can show you how it works and then people can take turns creating lovely letters.

String Art
String art is a ton of fun! You’ve probably seen the photos we’ve been posting from our workshops. If you’ve missed them, stop on by tonight to give it a try!

Monoprints
Monoprints are a mindful, meditative way of creating one-of-a-kind works of art. You do your “painting” – usually a abstract – on a Gelli plate with is a flat surface. Then you press a piece of paper onto it to create that painting. It lifts off much of the ink but not all. Then you can do a second work on the Gelli plate based on that left behind paint.

All are welcome – this is open to members and non-members. Feel free to bring along a friend! We’d love to see you there to try some new things and explore your creativity!

Ask with any questions!

Our meetings are supported in part by grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

If you’re interested in painting, drawing, and illustrating, we have the perfect Saturday lined up! It’ll be a great time with laughter, conversation, creativity, and the space to stretch out! It’s an open paint! All are welcome, including the public, family, and friends! It’s free!

We don’t have a feature chosen for this Saturday. If there’s something you missed from a past workshop that you’d like to try, let us know!

If the weather is nice out, we’ll also do an Uxbridge sketch walk. We have the maps all ready. We just need some sunshine!

Note there IS NO YOGA IN THE GALLERY THIS WEEK. So the gallery will close at 3pm.

When:
Saturday, July 21th, 2018
10am – 3pm

Where:
BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Gallery
5 South Main Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569

This is an open paint session where all styles of art are warmly welcome. Whether you’re 12 or 102, whether you’re a new beginner or a seasoned artist, we would love to have you. It’s completely free to participate in the open paint. You can bring your own paints or we’ll have watercolors to share.

There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.

BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Art Gallery Information

Feel free to show up for some or all of the day to paint. Some come for just the morning, some for the afternoon, and some for the entire time. There are several options on the same block to grab lunch if you’d like. We also bring in a pizza and those who want slices chip in a few dollars.

Ask with any questions – we’d love to have you join us!

Celebrating the Blackstone

a community artistic exploration of the Blackstone River

For hundreds of years the Blackstone Valley has been defined by its river. Native Americans treasured it for a safe means of travel through thick forest. The Industrial Revolution puts its currents to work powering mills all along its length. In modern times we can still see remnants of the Blackstone Canal and its many locks.

Throughout the month of August 2018 we’ll provide a wealth of ways for you to explore your creativity, get in touch with the history of our beautiful landscape, and have some fun.

Here’s just a few of the events we’re planning. Dates and times are subject to change as we finalize the schedules. Be sure to check back for more details as we get closer!

Sat Aug 4:
Ashton Mills Casual Plein Air / Photography
Ashton Mills, Cumberland RI – 10am

Sun Aug 5:
Photography Workshop with Bob Evans
Millville Canal Lock, Millville MA – 10am

Sat Aug 11:
Sketching Workshop with Jo Ellen Reinhardt
River Bend Farm, Uxbridge MA – 10am

Sun Aug 12:
Watercolor Plein Air Workshop
Blackstone Gorge, Blackstone MA – 10am

Wed Aug 15:
Light Painting Workshop
Millbury Bike Path, Millbury MA – 7:15pm

Sun Aug 19:
Millbury Bike Path Photography Workshop
Millbury Bike Path, Millbury MA – 10am

Sat Aug 25:
Painting Workshop with Mike Graves
River Bend Farm, Uxbridge MA – 9:30am

Sun Aug 26:
Millbury Bike Path Workshop 2
Millbury Bike Path, Millbury MA

Where else should we go along the Blackstone River? Let us know! What else should we do that is art-related and Blackstone River related?

Here’s a map to get you started:

Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor

We then had an open art show, free for community participation, to celebrate all the art we’ve created.

This month-long celebration is sponsored by Constellation, an Exelon company.

To see what we’re doing in 2019, visit:

Celebrating the Blackstone – July 1 to 31 2019

If you’re interested in painting, drawing, and illustrating, we have the perfect Saturday lined up! It’ll be a great time with laughter, conversation, creativity, and the space to stretch out! It’s an open paint! All are welcome, including the public, family, and friends! It’s free!

Our special feature for this Saturday will be Carol Arnold on hand from 10am to noon. Carol is a stunning painter – check out her website. Be sure to like it!

https://www.facebook.com/Carol-Arnold-Fine-Art-185963048652091/

Carol will be there from 10 to noon.

If the weather is nice out, we’ll also do an Uxbridge sketch walk. We have the maps all ready. We just need some sunshine!

We are still trying to find someone to be in the gallery from noon to 3pm. We’ll update this page if we find someone, but for now the hours are:

When:
Saturday, July 7th, 2018
10am – noon

Where:
BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Gallery
5 South Main Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569

This is an open paint session where all styles of art are warmly welcome. Whether you’re 12 or 102, whether you’re a new beginner or a seasoned artist, we would love to have you. It’s completely free to participate in the open paint. You can bring your own paints or we’ll have watercolors to share.

There is a TON of free parking immediately next to this building. It is fully and easily handicapped accessible.

BVAA Alternatives Uxbridge Community Art Gallery Information

Ask with any questions – we’d love to have you join us!

NEW DATE! MARK YOUR CALENDAR! We have rescheduled this event to Saturday, September 8th 2018. Come on out and join us! 9:30am – 11:30am!

Our instructor for this workshop is the talented Jo Ellen Reinhardt! This one-day sketching workshop provides an opportunity to quickly capture the beautiful area of River Bend Farm. After a complete sketching demonstration, Jo Ellen Reinhardt will guide you along as you capture your beautiful surroundings. All media are welcome. Demonstrations will be with Aquarelle Graphite Pencils and water.

River Bend Farm is a beautiful location alongside the Blackstone Canal in Uxbridge. There’s a lovely walking path, several bridges, along with ample turtles and other wildlife.

River Bend Farm Website
287 Oak Street
Uxbridge, MA 01569

Saturday, September 8th, 2018
9:30am – 11:30am

FREE!

To follow along, Jo Ellen recommends:

USEFUL:
· Sketch book
· Faber Castel Graphite Aquarelle Pencils HB – 8B
· Kneaded Eraser
· Aqua Flow brush filled with water
· Viva Paper Towels – non-textured
· Lawn / Stadium Chair or portable stool

OPTIONAL:
· View Finder or Compose-it-grid
· Hat
· Sun screen
· Bug Spray
· Camera
· Easel
· “Wet-Ones” or wipes
· water for drinking

Please let us know via our contact form if you’re planning on coming, so we know to wait for you. If you need help with supplies, let us know. It’ll be a great morning of learning about sketching and exploring our Blackstone River history!

This is just one part of our month-long Celebrating the Blackstone artistic celebration. Be sure to check out all of our events!

About Joe Ellen:
Classically trained modern realist and co-founder of the New England School of Fine Art, Jo Ellen Reinhardt’s work has been shown in many prestigious museums, galleries, and exhibitions throughout the North East. Although best known for still life and portrait painting, she also enjoys creating other genres such as plein air landscape and figurative works.

Jo Ellen received her classical training at the New School of Classical Art. She is a signature member of the renowned Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, Academic Artists Association, and the Copley Society of Art. Moved by her passion for realistic art, she recently co-founded the New England School of Fine Art, located in historic Worcester, Massachusetts. The school is dedicated to preserving and promoting traditional methods of drawing and painting.

In addition to running classes and creating new works at NESFA, she also enjoys passing her knowledge onto the next generation via her position as Adjunct Professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

https://joellenreinhardt.com

This month-long celebration is sponsored by Constellation, an Exelon company.