VCCA Program Director Craig Pleasants is among the Fellows in residence in Auvillar, France. He has been asked to create a sculpture that will reside on the hill above Moulin à Nef. Between sourcing materials at the Recyclage Metaux and welding and pouring concrete, Craig has been working from dawn to dusk since late August, but with friends and the Auvillar community pitching in to help, it's been a labor of love - and a perfect metaphor for this artwork. A tribute to the strong arts connection VCCA has generated between Auvillar, France and Amherst, Virginia, Coeur de Mon Coeur , which is based on the heart's mitral valve, is slated to be completed this week - just in time for the double celebrations of Moulin à Nef's 17th anniversary + VCCA's 40th anniversary. The slideshow below follows the sculpture's development from the gathering of materials at the recycling center to the stage of the photo above, which shows the skeleton of Coeur de Mon Coeur with the Ga

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Late Mist by Mary Page Evans, 2011, oil on canvas, 45 x 55 inches "Few artists paint with the courage, high energy and confidence of Mary Page Evans, an artist of long experience and deep conviction who brings to her work the strength of well observed landscapes and the grace and fluidity of nature." -- ADDISON/RIPLEY FINE ART The opening reception for the Mary Page Evans' exhibition , Skies, Trees & Sea, is September 16, 6-8pm. The show is open through October 15. FOR MORE INFORMATION - CLICK HERE

If you're in Buffalo, New York between now and November 1, don't miss Tatana Kellner's Requiem for September 11th, a public artwork at the CEPA Gallery in the historic Market Arcade Building. "Composed of 44 white, translucent fabric banners suspended in two columns, the piece hovers in the narrow space of the atrium as two silvery, shifting volumes eerily suggestive of the twin towers. These 'towers', however, have been stripped of all weight and substance, and out of their soft, veiled interiors float ghostly portraits - some 3,000 in all - of the victims of the attacks on Sept. 11. The effect is remarkable for its simplicity and restraint." -- RICHARD HUNTINGTON, THE BUFFALO NEWS ART CRITIC It was originally shown at this location on the first anniversary of the attack and served as the official commemorative site for the city of Buffalo. ADDRESS 617 Main Street, #201 Buffalo, New York HOURS Weekdays: 7:00 am - 9:00 pm Saturday: 8:30 am - 4:45 pm Sund

"Veteran short-story writer Ayer strikes gold with these enchanting sketches of the motley relatives and neighbors who peopled her mother's rural West Virginia girlhood--back when the 20th century was young and spry." -- Kirkus Reviews An interview with Jean Ayer will also appear in Kirkus Reviews next printed catalog. The publication date for Tales of Chinkapin Creek is June 27, 2011. To read the entire review, CLICK HERE

If you'd like to get the inside story about VCCA's upcoming new director, Gregory Allgire Smith, read this article in The News & Advance . It's written by a VCCA Fellow, Darrell Laurant . He interviewed our current Executive Director Suny Monk, as well as Sheila Pleasants, our d irector of artists' services. Sheila was also a member of the hardworking executive director search committee. They spent six months studying and researching to make sure they found a perfect fit for VCCA. Greg becomes VCCA's new executive director on October 1. To read the article, CLICK HERE

Lower Manhattan, 2011: watercolor and ink on paper: 12.5" x 18.5" Olive Ayhens began drawing New York from above as a recipient of the World Views residency, which granted artists studio space in the former World Trade Center. Several drawings in this exhibition contain views of her former studio, now the construction site of the 9/11 Memorial, as seen from a Wall Street office building. "New York Drawings" will be on exhibit at the Adam Baumgold Gallery through October 8. For more information, CLICK HERE

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