Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre Petition – A Thank You

The petition launched in January 2008 on behalf of the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre calling on the Egyptian authorities to take action against the rising ground water table that has greatly damaged the adobe buildings of the Art Centre has had an encouragingly positive outcome.

The petition was organised by The Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust, London and signed by some 1700 people from many different countries. It was presented to the Governor of Giza in mid-March. Plans made by the authorities to cover the drainage canal that was causing the devastation were given top priority. Construction work has begun and it is expected that most of the problems will be eliminated by the end of April. Renovation work to restore the buildings of the Art Centre will begin in the summer.

The Wissa Wassef family wish to thank the Governor of Giza and the irrigation and drainage departments for the swift action and most particularly to thank all who signed the petition for your most valuable support.

Ikram Nosshi
Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre

Barbara Heller
Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust London

http://www.wissa-wassef-arts.com/intro.htm

Fall 2008 Textile offering at Penland School of Crafts, Penland, NC, USA

Tapestry and Creative Potential

September 21-November 14, 2008

Instructors:

Peggy McBride, Tommye Scanlin, and Pat Williams

Tapestry weaving techniques are easy to learn yet often take a long time to master. Along the way to mastery, there are many roads to consider in methods and in design ideas. This class will be about both: the known paths to basics of tapestry technique and the creative meanderings where ideas develop. Collaborations among teachers and students will encourage all to delve into sequence and resolution, tradition and innovation. We will explore ways to find and develop personal concepts and images through which to celebrate the nature of tapestry. Instructors McBride, Scanlin and Williams are long-time friends in fiber; over the past twenty-five years they've worked together in fiber art guilds, workshops, and critique sessions. They are eager to share ideas with others during this eight-week session at Penland, one of the most exciting craft schools in the U.S.

Brief bios:

Peggy McBride
Mixed media artist (commissions: Atlanta's Alliance TheatreCompany, Children's Hospital, Federal Reserve Bank); owner, Globe Galleryin Clayton, GA; grants administrator for state's Grassroots Arts Program; creative consultant for non-profit art organizations.

Tommye Scanlin
Studio artist; juried member Southern Highland Craft Guildand Piedmont Craftsmen; professor emerita of art, North GA College & StateUniv (GA); other teaching at John Campbell Folk School, Penland (NC), Arrowmont (TN); American Tapestry Alliance award (2007); works included in several public and private collections.

Pat Williams
Studio artist; juried member Southern Highland Craft Guild; Masters in Art Education; art teacher of fifteen years (public school); American Tapestry Alliance award (2006); exhibited nationally and internationally with tapestry works in private collections.


For more information: http://penland.org/

Workshop Announcement

Tapestry Workshop by Jane Hoffman

Place:
Waugh Mountain Alpacas
Nutrioso, Arizona

Date:

Saturday, August 23, 8:00am to 5:00pm

Sunday, August 24, 8:00 am to 3:00 pm

Skill Level:

Beginning and Intermediate

Description:

Participants--
-will investigate the art of tapestry by learning tapestry techniques.
-weave a sampler using basic tapestry techniques.
-explore the quality of texture by incorporating a variety of fibers in their sampler.

Workshop can include the following:
-warping
-design methods for planning a tapestry.
-slide show
-finishing, blocking, and mounting tapestries

$175 per person - includes breakfast and lunch both days and a tapestry loom for you to keep. Kids 12 yrs and older are welcome (cost for kids is the same to cover materials and food)No special skills or prior experience are needed!
Breakfast and lunch will be served both days of the workshop.
Yarn will be supplied by Jane Hoffman & Waugh Mountain.
The workshop will be at Waugh Mountain Ranch which is located on the east side of Hwy. 180 in Nutrioso, Arizona; just south of mile marker 414 (across from the transfer station)

Visit this link for more info & registration form!

contact:

Dave and Terry Fillipi
928-339-4244
http://us.f593.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=fillipi@cybertrails.com
http://www.waughmtnalpacas.com/

Jane Hoffman, Blue River Studio
j.hoffman@frontiernet.net

http://www.blueriverretreat.com/

www.artistsregister.com/artists/AZ104

Desert Meditations exhibit deadline reminder!

Greetings to all!

Seasons are changing in both hemispheres of our beautiful planet, and the time is quickly approaching for Desert Tapestry Weavers' 1st year anniversary and our first members' online exhibit!

This is a reminder for all members... please consider entering a work that represents your interpretation of the theme Desert Meditations. Also, our first newsletter of the year will be published at the same time, so please consider submitting an article... introduce yourself if you haven't already; let us have a peek of what's on your looms, what you just cut off, or what you are planning; if you don't have a tapestry to submit for the exhibit write about your desert meditations to inspire all of us!

Here are the details again:

The show’s title, Desert Meditations, was selected because it is inclusive of all things desert. Whether you interpret it as a specific thing or place, or as an abstract tapestry reflecting a mood or sense of place, it does not matter. All entries are welcomed.

Format:

~jpeg or gif format (include file name in your email, please!)

~name and size of tapestry, plus materials used

Some specifics:

~all entries will be accepted
~there is no size constraint

~the work can be current or from the past

~include a short statement (200 words or less) about the tapestry

Deadline:

Files are due to Lyn (desertsonghart@yahoo.com) by May 1, 2008 so the show can be posted by our first anniversary, May 22, 2008.

Happy weaving, everyone!

Tohono Chul Park is seeking submissions by Southwest artists for an upcoming exhibit:

Artful Insects and Inspired Arachnids
May 22 – August 17, 2008
Free Artists’ Reception: Thursday, May 22, 5:30 – 7:30pm

We are surrounded by a universe of fluttering moths and butterflies, hovering dragonflies and honey bees, industrious harvester ants and paper wasps, lacy web-making spiders, and a plethora of other insects. Quite simply, as we hustle about our daily routines, we often do not notice the various bugs and spiders that are denizens of our environment. Perhaps they get our attention when we get bitten by one or when they have munched the leaves in our garden. And yet, if we take a closer look at the complex beauty of the six- and eight-legged critters—their artful camouflage, their delicate, iridescent wings—and the various roles they play—as they pollinate plants which feed the planet and loosen and fertilize the soil-- we may gain a greater appreciation of these diminutive creatures.

This group exhibit will focus on a wide range of paintings, drawings, jewelry and beadwork, works in clay, fiber, metals, mixed media, and photography inspired by the insects, spiders and creepy crawlies primarily from our region. From realistic renderings to artful fancy, the diversity of artworks helps us all to be aware of and look a little closer at the tiniest creatures in our world and see them a little differently.

Tohono Chul Park, where nature, art and culture connect, is a not-for-profit organization located in a residential setting in northwest Tucson. The Park is a 49-acre desert garden with a charming 75 year-old restored adobe building providing space for changing displays. It has an active art and cultural exhibits program and a family-oriented audience. Gallery hours are 9:00 am-5:00 pm daily. Our website is http://www.tohonochulpark.org/.


Submissions accepted: through April 8, 2008; No Entry Fee; No limit on number of works that can be submitted.

Slides, photos or CDs of completed work may be submitted by mail to: (Please include SASE)
Vicki Donkersley, Curator of Exhibitions
Tohono Chul Park, 7366 N. Paseo del Norte, Tucson, AZ 85704

Or digital entries will be accepted by email to: vickidonkersley@tohonochulpark.org

Please print the form below and mail with your entries or reproduce the form and send digitally.

Entry Form

Artist’s Name:_____________________________

Address:_________________________________

City/State/Zip:____________________________

Phone: (_____)______________ email:_________________

Submitted by: Mail______________ Email___________ Date submitted_________

Type of Media submitted: Slides_________ Photos__________ CD_________

Digital__________

Number of entries: ___________

Title: ________________

No. Images: ___________

Medium: _____________

Size (H x W x D): _______

Please include short statement about your work as it relates to the theme of the exhibit with your entry form.

Checklist:
Entry form
Slides or photos identified with artist name and title/or jpegs on a single CD
A self-addressed, stamped envelope with enough postage for return of mailed materials
Short statement about the work as it relates to the theme

Questions:

Contact Vicki Donkersley, 520 742-6455 x218
or email: vickidonkersley@tohonochulpark.org

If works are offered for sale, Tohono Chul pays artist 60% and keeps $40% commission. Works do not have to be for sale. Sales are handled through the Museum Shop. All work must remain on display until the end of the exhibit. Work is insured while on display at the Park.

Artists Call to PEACE

Inspired by collaborative projects like the Aids Memorial Quilt and Sonya Clark’s Beaded Prayers Project, we invite you to help create the “Countdown to PEACE.” Presented in calendar format, the project will begin with March 19, 2003 (the day the war in Iraq began) and will end when the war ends. At this point we are into the fifth year of the war; the calendar format allows us a way to measure the full extent of the war and gives us a visual sense of its continuing scope.

tapestry woven by DTW member Lyn Hart was used for the first exhibit postcard

CRITERIA

Each calendar month will be its own presentation board made up of 4-inch squares, 7 across and 5-6 rows down. Each entry will represent one day of this war. We are inviting artists to send us entries that are no larger than 4-inches square, no deeper than l inch, and no heavier than 2 pounds. Limiting size will make display feasible. Work that is included in this project will become the property of the project. The entries will be permanently attached to the “calendar” pages for ease of transporting.

Any media is acceptable. Remember that since only one side of the work will be seen, 2-D approaches are preferred, however clay or metal works done in relief (for example) will also be accepted. Please adhere photographic images or paper entries to foam core or cardboard cut to size. And with all entries, please indicate the TOP of the work.


We intend for the project to be POSITIVE in nature. We are mainly interested in your personal VISION OF PEACE. Please do not use imagery and/or text that is specific to any government officials or policies. Please keep the focus on PROMOTING PEACE rather than on decrying war.

Entries that do not meet the criteria in terms of size or content will be returned to the sender.

WHAT TO DO

Download the Entry Form (PDF), print and fill out all information requested. Send your work, along with $10. PER ENTRY; the entry fee is non-refundable. Make checks payable to “Countdown to Peace.”

Mail your entry and check to:
Countdown to Peace, PO Box 145, Ayden, NC 28513

Money collected from the entry fees will be used STRICTLY to defray the costs of display materials, promotional information, shipping, and insurance.


Our website: http://pages.suddenlink.net/w2la_design/peace/index.htm is up and running. It will provide information on current developments and will also give participating artists a link to their websites. Our first exhibit was November 2007 at the Mendenhall Gallery on the campus of East Carolina University. Included in the exhibits will be 1. an alphabetical listing of all contributors with the day, month, and year where each entry is displayed and 2. a chronological listing of entries along with artist’s name.

Happy New Year to All!

Please take a few minutes of your time to read the following message about the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre that was forwarded to us by Barbara Heller in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. Also, please note that the Barbara Heller who wrote this is not the same person as Barbara in Canada!

URGENT

To all friends of the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre:

I am writing to you as I know you will be concerned to learn that the survival of the Art Centre in Harrania, for whose adobe workshops and galleries Ramses Wissa Wassef won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1983, is seriously threatened by rising water.

To view dramatic photographs and to read a report about the damage please visit www.wissa-wassef-arts.com/petition.html

The trustees of the Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust, a charity registered in the United Kingdom which in 1985/86 and 2006 organised a series of highly successfully exhibitions of the tapestries in the UK, plan to present a petition to the Governor of Giza and other authorities in Egypt.

Please lend your support to this call for urgent action to ensure the survival of the Art Centre and of the tapestry weaving experiment which continues to delight and inspire thousands of people thoughout the world. Any further help you can give by urging friends and colleagues to sign the petition would be greatly appreciated. All signatures will be added to the 300 collected at the recent exhibition of new tapestries for sale held in London at the end of 2007.

Barbara Heller, Trustee & Secretary of the Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust

Please sign the on-line petition by 10th February 2008 at
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/on-behalf-of-the-ramses-wissa-wassef-art-centre-egypt.html