Month: July 2012

MOSAIC Gallery hosts weekend reception for local photographer

“Feed Shop,” Pottstown, PA

Local photographer Sharon K. Merkel will be on hand at MOSAIC Gallery, 10 S. Hanover Street in Pottstown, this Saturday, July 21 from 6-8 pm. All are welcome to attend this free reception.

Ms. Merkel’s work is on view now at the gallery along with the paintings of Sharon McGinley in MOSAIC’s latest show, Nurturing Hope.  The show highlights the beauty in nature and in urban spaces, much like a community garden. MOSAIC Community Land Trust, which runs the gallery, built Pottstown’s first community garden at 423 Chestnut Street this past spring. Gardeners are now realizing the fruits of their labor at the garden site.

In the artist’s statement on her website, Ms. Merkel says, “My photographic work looks at my world with a very direct approach. Photography is the art of exclusion – knowing what to include and what to leave out to create the correct balance and narrative.” Her photos of urban buildings and barns often feature intersections with a brilliant sky or a lone tree. Several prints of industrial buildings in Pottstown are included and for sale at MOSAIC Gallery.

MOSAIC receives a standard 30% commission on all art sales, so a purchase not only supports these local artists, but also the community garden, arts, and affordable housing mission of MOSAIC Community Land Trust.

“Electric,” Pottstown, PA

This show is being curated by MOSAIC summer interns Amanda Hoffman and Blake Wrigley, who spent their early years in Pottstown and graduated from Boyertown High School. Blake is a recent graduate of Messiah College and Amanda is a senior art major there.

Nurturing Hope will run through July 28. The MOSAIC gallery is located at 10 S. Hanover Street in Pottstown. Regular gallery hours are Thursday-Saturday from 4-7 pm. MOSAIC’s website is www.mosaiccommunitylandtrust.org. Sharon Merkel’s website is www.skmerkel.com.

 

Memoir and essay-writing class for adults to begin this Wednesday

I’m teaching a writing class through The Gallery School and it begins this Wednesday evening, and it’s not too late to sign up! If you want to try to make meaning out of anything that’s happened in your life – give it some shape, make it resonate for others – and have something to read at the next MOSAIC open mic, this class is for you!

FLASH MEMOIR AND ESSAYS FOR ADULTS with Sue Repko

In this workshop, writers will share short pieces (no more than 3 double-spaced pages) of nonfiction for discussion. Word limits force us to see how every word really does count, and the very short form provides practice in establishing setting and character, scene-building, creating mood and tension, and exploring a theme. Along the way we’ll talk about the submission process and getting our stories out into the world. We will also read and discuss some short nonfiction provided by the instructor. Please bring some of your work for the first class. Writers at all levels are welcome!

Here’s a prompt to get you started: Think back to the closet of your youth, and write an essay about what was inside. Let the contents of the closet become a metaphor for who you were as a child, who you might have wished to be, and who you have become.

Sue Repko is a writer and urban planner, who founded the Positively!Pottstown blog. Her work has appeared in many online and print journals. She recently received her MFA in creative nonfiction from Bennington College.

SUMMER SESSION Begins July 11. Class runs Wednesdays from 6:30-9pm. $140 (member), $150 (non-member). Sign up at The Gallery School website. Got a question? Call 610.326.2506 during regular hours (Tuesday-Friday 10am-4:30pm; Saturday 10am-3pm)

MOSAIC gallery hosts free reception this evening from 7-9 pm

by Sharon McGinley

MOSAIC Community Land Trust is hosting a reception this evening at its gallery at 10 S. Hanover Street to celebrate the opening of its current exhibit, Nurturing Hope. The show features area photographer Sharon Merkel and painter Sharon McGinley. The reception is being held from 7-9 pm. It’s free and all are welcome!

  You may know MOSAIC Community Land Trust for bringing Pottstown its first community garden at 423 Chestnut Street, but MOSAIC also utilizes its office space at 10 S. Hanover Street as an art gallery. This show highlights the beauty in nature and in urban spaces, much like a community garden.

Like a garden nestled into a congested city block, the spiritual paintings of Sharon McGinley contrast with the graphic urban photos of Sharon Merkel to embody the hope and vitality of an urban garden.

In her artist’s statement, photographer Sharon Merkel says of her work, “The images explore the place where man and nature meet. I am fascinated with this intersection, the place where each affects the other.” Her photos of urban buildings and barns often feature intersections with a brilliant sky or a lone tree.

Sharon McGinley’s paintings include bright colors, whimsy, and nature on a biblical or essential level. “I explore the inner-connectedness of all things, the impermanence of earthly life and the joys and sorrows we experience on our journeys,” she says.

Primary Colors by Sharon Merkel

MOSAIC receives a standard 30% commission on all art sales, so a purchase not only supports these local artists, but also the community garden, arts, and affordable housing mission of MOSAIC Community Land Trust.

This show is being curated by MOSAIC summer interns Amanda Hoffman and Blake Wrigley, who spent their early years in Pottstown and graduated from Boyertown High School. Blake is a recent graduate of Messiah College and Amanda is a senior art major there.

Nurturing Hope will run from July 4-July 28. All are welcome to an opening reception on Friday, July 6 from 7-9pm; reception sponsored by LointerHOME; food provided by Grumpy’s Handcarved Sandwiches. The MOSAIC gallery is located at 10 S. Hanover Street in Pottstown. Regular gallery hours are Thursday-Saturday from 4-7 pm.

Composting workshop to be held at MOSAIC Community Garden

Mark your calendars for Saturday, July 14th @ 423 Chestnut Street, Pottstown, 9am – 11am  

EVERYONE IS WELCOME

The Wonderful World of Worm Composting…

Our first presenter, Laura Washington, is going to talk about how to turn kitchen scraps, junk mail, cardboard and even dryer lint into rich, dark nutrient soil for your garden – otherwise known as vermicompost!  Learn the in’s and out’s, do’s and don’ts, and the many benefits of using this innovative “recycling system”!

Laura is a member of the Mosaic Community Garden and she is a Homestead Herbalism and Lifestyle/Weight Management Specialist.

Our second presenter, Scott Winter, is a BIG compost enthusiast and interesting experiences.  Scott’s going to talk about how to make a home composter out of things everyone will have lying around the house.  

Here’s a tantalizing tidbit about Scott’s background:

Growing up in rural Oregon, we had a compost pile for as long as I can remember and taking out the compost was one of the less popular chores in the house when my sister and I were kids.  After we grew up and moved away, I didn’t think much more of composting until I went to work for Sunriver Utilities LLC in central Oregon at the age of 28.  It was there that I had the pleasure of working on a pilot composting project with multiple benefits to the community that was paid for through a grant from the 2000 National Fire Plan.  The goal was to helps prevent forest fires through ladder fuel reduction, improve air quality, enhance the areas poor soil quality, reduce materials going to landfills and reduce the cost of disposal for yard waste and bio-solids from the waste water treatment plant.  Within a year we were operating year round producing class A compost in the heart of the Deschutes National Forest.  It has been eleven years since we cleared the land and filled our first bag of compost and I still miss being there, but life sometimes takes you where you least expect it to.  So when life hands you lemons, you turn them into compost, right?  One great thing about living in Pennsylvania is that the climate is good for gardening compared to what I was used to in Central Oregon.  Now I compost mostly just to support my other hobbies, but composting has become one of my hobbies in the process.  Making compost is easy, but I believe making good compost is a craft that comes in many forms.  

We’ll have cold drinks and light snacks on hand – Hope to see you there!!

 

 

 

Pottstown Parade set for tomorrow at 10 am; ride your bike in it!

 Pottstown’s 4th of July Homecoming Celebration is described here. The Festivities Schedule is here. There’s plenty to do all day and night downtown and at Memorial Park, capped off by the region’s biggest fireworks. Pottstown’s Independence Day parade is a true home town tradition, and the experience of being in the parade, seeing friends and families three-deep along the parade route, is an incredible experience. Thank you to Tom Carroll for info on how you can be in the parade!!

You are invited!

Bring your bicycle, skate board, roller skates or scooter to the Dana Parking lot, Keim St and Center Ave. on July 4th by 9:45a.m. and support Bike Pottstown. Roll in the parade and be part of the fun! If you need a bicycle for the event, stop at TriCounty Bicycles, 256 High St and see John for a nifty, yellow Bike Pottstown beach cruiser.

The event is FREE and fun will be had by all – guaranteed!

One more note…

To do your part and help cover the cost of the fireworks, which are enjoyed by thousands from around the region, please consider making a donation to:

Make your check payable to Independence Day, Ltd., and send to:

MaryAnn Peters

Pottstown School District

230 Beech St.

Pottstown, PA 19464

 

Independence Day celebration at Juan Carlos: Complimentary margaritas today & tomorrow

All this just in from Juan Carlos Fine Mexican Restaurant…

Join us today Tuesday July 3 and Wednesday July 4 for “Independence Day” celebration.

Complimentary margaritas.

Tuesday 5-9pm
Wednesday 5-8pm
Please contact us via email or by phone for reservations.
Have a safe and memorable holiday!

Ron R. Garza
Chef/Owner
Juan Carlos Fine Mexican Cuisine
235 E. High Street
Pottstown – Pa – 19464
Phone:484/624-4931
jc@jcmexicanfood.com

MOSAIC Gallery art show opens July 4th in downtown Pottstown

by Sharon McGinley

 If you’re in town for the parade tomorrow, check out the new show at MOSAIC Gallery, 10 S. Hanover Street, from 10am-1 pm. (Disclosure: I work for MOSAIC as part-time Executive Director!)

Are you an art enthusiast who is interested in supporting local artists? Do you want to take part in Pottstown’s growing arts scene while helping to boost the local economy? Then come and check out Pottstown’s very own MOSAIC Gallery.

Opening this 4th of July, MOSAIC presents Nurturing Hope, a show featuring area artists Sharon Merkel and Sharon McGinley. You may know MOSAIC Community Land Trust for bringing Pottstown its first community garden at 423 Chestnut Street, but MOSAIC also utilizes its office space at 10 S. Hanover Street as an art gallery. This show highlights the beauty in nature and in urban spaces, much like a community garden.

Like a garden nestled into a congested city block, the spiritual paintings of Sharon McGinley contrast with the graphic urban photos of Sharon Merkel to embody the hope and vitality of an urban garden.

In her artist’s statement, photographer Sharon Merkel says of her work, “The images explore the place where man and nature meet. I am fascinated with this intersection, the place where each affects the other.” Her photos of urban buildings and barns often feature intersections with a brilliant sky or a lone tree.

Sharon McGinley’s paintings include bright colors, whimsy, and nature on a biblical or essential level. “I explore the inner-connectedness of all things, the impermanence of earthly life and the joys and sorrows we experience on our journeys,” she says.

Primary Colors by Sharon Merkel

MOSAIC receives a standard 30% commission on all art sales, so a purchase not only supports these local artists, but also the community garden, arts, and affordable housing mission of MOSAIC Community Land Trust.

This show is being curated by MOSAIC summer interns Amanda Hoffman and Blake Wrigley, who spent their early years in Pottstown and graduated from Boyertown High School. Blake is a recent graduate of Messiah College and Amanda is a senior art major there.

Nurturing Hope will run from July 4-July 28. All are welcome to an opening reception on Friday, July 6 from 7-9pm; food and drinks are sponsored by LointerHOME. The MOSAIC gallery, located at 10 S. Hanover Street in Pottstown, will be open from 10am-1 pm on July 4th during the Pottstown Homecoming Parade.  (Rain date is July 5th.) Regular gallery hours are Thursday-Saturday from 4-7 pm.

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