September guest artist - Paulette Lagana

Join us for our next meeting at the Concord Library on Tuesday, September 12, 2017 (1-3pm). Bring your latest work for our monthly mini art show!

Paulette Lagana is our guest artist whose art in watercolor, acrylic, colored pencil and mixed media is on display at the Delta Gallery in Brentwood, the Blackhawk Gallery in Danville, as well as several other art centers in the East Bay. Paulette is a certified instructor of a technique called "Pocket Sketching" that was created by Kath Macaulay.

Pocket Sketching is a portable, compact, quick sketching technique, ideal for travel. Using a water-soluble pen and watercolor paints, everything fits into a fanny pack so you can create a memory on the go. No experience needed - with Pocket Sketching, the world becomes your studio!

"I’m inspired by my life’s adventures, by the seasons, by my own sense of wonder and whimsy, and by being open to the stimulation of my surroundings. For me, painting was a secret place in my heart that I was afraid to enter for most of my life. Then in 2000, I found a teacher and my life changed with the tip of a brush. Painting is the place where I find endless possibilities to see the world and to express myself."

Our fall schedule is here - take an art class with us!

We are thrilled to announce a brand new partnership with the I Heart Art studio in Pleasant Hill!

The studio owners, Abby and Amy, have created a wonderful space for their art programs for kids and adults. CAA will rent their studio two nights a week for our own art and craft classes that are geared for adults of all skill levels. Try something new just for the FUN of it!

We have a fantastic line-up of affordable and creative one-night classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays this fall, taught by some super talented local artists. You're going to want to sign up for absolutely everything!

The studio address is 15 Vivian Drive, right off Contra Costa Blvd. (next to Jack in the Box).

Advance registration and payment is required.  Each class will have a minimum requirement to avoid cancellation, so sign up early.

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE VIA PAYPAL.

Each class you select requires a separate PayPal transaction. You can also mail a check to CAA (PO Box 641, Concord 94522), or pay in person at a meeting or other CAA event.

Here's our schedule at a glance - visit our Classes page for details and registration!

Tuesday 9/5:  Shading Abstract Forms with Colored Pencils - Amy Eikner

Thursday 9/7:  Painting Handmade Soap - Deena Sheranko

Tuesday 9/12:  Mixed Media Bookmaking - Joani Share

Thursday 9/14:  Monoprinting with a Gel Plate - Michaele Ignon

Tuesday 9/19:  Make a Halloween Wreath - Liz Roberts

Thursday 9/21:  DIY Bath Bombs - Deena Sheranko

Tuesday 9/26:  Paper Mache Sculpture - Amy Eikner

Thursday 9/28:  Gestural Sculpture with Foil - Manon Jodoin

Thursday 10/5:  Pocket Sketching 1 - Paulette Lagana

Thursday 10/12:  Pocket Sketching 2 - Paulette Lagana

Tuesday 10/17:  Creating Textures with Watercolor - Manon Jodoin

Thursday 10/19:  Stamping Fun - Handmade Greeting Cards - Liz Roberts

Tuesday 10/24:  The Art of Social Media for Self-Promotion (for artists) - Lisa Fulmer

Thursday 10/26:  Printing Your Own Collage Papers - Michaele Ignon

August guest artist - LorriMarie Jenkins

Join us on Saturday, August 12th (1-3pm) at the Concord Library for a super fun, hands-on demo with Lorrie Marie Jenkins.

LorriMarie and her husband love to travel - she says she would go crazy if she couldn't create some type of mixed media art during her time away. So she developed a "traveling collage" kit that she can play with anytime, anywhere.

With magazine pages, pre-cut images, gel pens and glue sticks, she will show us how to compose interesting collages on small substrates - all supplies will be furnished, so come have some creative summer fun with us. Everyone is welcome - see you there!

Come to our Ice Cream Social!

Click here to download and print!

Buy yourself some ice cream and support your local arts!

Join us on Wednesday evening, July 12th at Baskin Robbins in downtown Concord for an ice cream social.

Download and print the above flyer and present it to our friends at Baskin Robbins any time between 5pm and 7pm when you're ready to buy your ice cream. 

They will donate a portion of your purchase to the Concord Art Association, which goes toward our fundraising efforts to open a nonprofit community art center and co-op art gallery.

Bring your ice cream over to the fountain in Salvio Pacheco Square. Several artists will be painting, sketching and snapping creative photos while we're there. Everyone is welcome!

"New Works" Summer Show at aRt Cottage

New Works Summer Show

The Latest & Greatest from CAA Members

July 5-28, 2017 

aRt Cottage - 2238 Mt. Diablo St. Concord

Tuesdays through Fridays (11am-5pm) & Saturdays (1-5pm)

Saturday, July 15   1-4pm

Wine & Cheese Artist Reception

Over 50 works of art from 18 member artists are on display for the month of July in our favorite little local historic farmhouse, aRt Cottage. 

Paintings, photography, handmade gifts, prints and greeting cards - landscapes, flowers, people abstract and digital - there is something for everyone. 

Look around for the love of art, buy a gift for someone special, or treat yourself to something new!

Join us at the Artist Reception for live music, a glass of wine and creative conversation.

CLICK HERE to download a flyer!

Participating artists include Amy Eikner, Anamilena Ayala, Cathy McNutt, Catherine Hensiek, Julie Limberg, Kathy Robinson, Laurie Mansur, Lisa Fulmer, Michelle Mattea, Monica Meza, Pat Calabro, Pat Viera, Phyllis Brady, Renaye Johnson, Sandi Sherwood, Sandy Leonard, Sharon Petersen, Stella Advani and Yumiko Nishizawa.

Plein air painting and sketching at St. Mary's College

It was a bit cloudy and chilly, but our group of artists enjoyed painting and sketching on the St. Mary's College campus in Moraga. Here are some works in progress...check the Activities page here on the blog and join us at one of our next plein air excursions.

May Mini Art Show

1st Place - ATC Box by Catherine Hensiek (mixed media)

2nd Place - Freshly Picked for You by Betty McBride (watercolor)

3rd Place - View from Carquinez Strait Drive  (acrylic)

Untitled by Mary Frances Crabtree  (oil)

For the Love of Trees by Amy Eikner  (acrylic)

The Abyss by Lisa Fulmer  (acrylic)

April Mini Art Show

1st Place:  Crocket Street by Cathy McNutt  (acrylic)

2nd Place:  Tulip Magnolia by Sharon Petersen  (watercolor)

3rd Place:  Moonlit Path by Lisa Fulmer  (acrylic)

In Progress by Pat Calabro  (acrylic)

Jess and Chuck's Garden by Renaye Johnson  (acrylic)

Glacier Stream by Karen Nakkerud  (oil)

May meeting with Mark Jezierny this Saturday!

We're meeting on a Saturday in May - not Tuesday! Join us on Saturday, May 6th at the Concord Library (1-3pm) for our general meeting - the public is welcome.

Mark Jezierny will demonstrate oil painting techniques - he's a crowd favorite! Mark received a BA in Liberal Arts from Saint Mary’s College, then got his Masters of Fine Arts Degree in painting from the San Francisco Art Institute.

"Mark paints primarily in acrylics or oils on canvas. His paintings of Northern California landscapes, buildings and industrial scenes are done with both brush and/or palette knife. He creates an impressionistic style with an approach that is unconventional yet boldly realistic. He uses color to convey mood, atmosphere and perspective with an energy that depicts the overall spirit of the subject matter. Texture and shading are effectively used to emphasize the form, density and richness of natural and man made objects."  —Walter Mast, artist

Mark teaches for the Mount Diablo Adult Education program and he offers small group plein air painting classes, as well as private art lessons. 

If you missed our Spring Art Show...

Top row:  Pat Viera, Luciano Roque, Caroline Gomes
Middle row:  Manon Jodoin, Ambrozya Dae, Liz Roberts
Bottom row:  Rashmi Rajesh, Donna Langner & Deena Sheranko, Laurie Mansur

...then you missed a lot! Seventeen artists had work to sell - original art, prints, cards, handmade crafts and more. It was a perfect day to gaze at beautiful art and shop for unique gifts and home décor.

Clockwise from top left: Luciano Roque, Pat Viera, Rashmi Rajesh, Manon Jodoin, John Nicolini

Several of our artists also donated their work for our prize drawings - proceeds go to our fundraising efforts to open a nonprofit community art center and artists' co-op gallery. We'd are so grateful for the generosity of these artists above, as well as Catherine & Bill Hensiek, Cathy Hanson, and the Bridges Salon.

Thanks to all the pasta lovers!

Nearly 60 of us basked together in the warm glow of The Old Spaghetti Factory's private dining room in downtown Concord. We drank wine, ate lotsa pasta and shared our collective love of the growing arts scene here. Thanks to everyone who came out to support - this fundraiser got us even closer to our goal so we can open a nonprofit community art center and artists' co-op gallery soon!

Fish prints!

CAA members try fish printing

Now who doesn't love a good fish printing party? At our April meeting, Ronna Leon shared loads of great information about all the different types of printmaking - her knowledge is very inspiring.

Ronna's sample plates and prints

After Ronna's presentation, she brought out her school of silicone fishies and we got to play. After brushing each fish with acrylic inks and paints, we pressed thin paper on top to make a print.

April meeting - printmaking with Ronna Leon

Our guest artist for the meeting on April 11th is Ronna Leon, who currently runs the printmaking workshop for Arts Benicia. She teaches etching, collagraphy, woodblock and monotype printing, as well as photo transfer and other mixed media techniques. Ronna has worked as a printmaker since the 1970’s and her work has appeared in numerous small shows both in the US and abroad.

In her presentation on Fine Art Printmaking, she'll share examples of many of the forms modern fine art prints take, as well as the plates and tools used to make them. After her lecture, you can try your hand at creating a small gel plate print.

CAA members and the public are welcome - join us at the Concord Library on Tuesday, April 11th at 1pm. Bring your latest work to display in our mini art show - and if you have surplus art/craft supplies you'd like to donate (new or gently used) for our artist flea market fundraising, bring those along too!

March Mini Art Show

1st place:  Crue by Manon Jodoin - watercolor

2nd place:  Napa Vineyard by Bev Kenyon - watercolor

3rd place:  Universal by Lorri Marie Jenkins - mixed media

Women's March by Pat Calabro - acrylic

Art Show by Cathy McNutt - acrylic

Boats by Lupe Jimeno - watercolor

Patsy's View by Renaye Johnson - acrylic

Riding Shotgun by Saundra Lyle - charcoal

Making marks with Michaele Ignon

Michaele Ignon was our March guest speaker - she showed us how she uses a gel plate to create monoprints. She walked us through the materials and tools she likes to use, including hand-carved stencils, cut-outs for masking, styluses and stamps. We discovered lots of creative household items that make wonderful marks in the paint on the plate, like a slice from a long pool noodle or the round end of a chopstick.

After she demonstrated a few techniques, everyone got a chance to create their own monoprint design.

Michaele also introduced us to the idea of printing on deli wrap to create collage elements. Deli wrap for sandwiches, which you can get at the bigger cash & carry food stores, has the perfect weight, surface and transparency. It's right between tissue paper and wax paper.

Above is a pear she painted on a canvas, and below is the same pear after she collaged pieces of deli wrap that she printed with a variety of marks and colors. We loved how the torn papers blended right in to the canvas.

Click here to view or download more details from her presentation. Click here for her recipe to make your own gel plate, or you can find brand name gel plates at any art supply store.