It started with a stroke of an idea and became an artistic legacy.
The 40 or so artists who make up the Artists of South Whidbey will celebrate their predecessors who started the group 35 years ago in Langley with the annual show and sale at the Island County Fairgrounds.
The show will begin with a reception from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, July 17 in the Fine Arts Building at the fairgrounds and will continue from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday,
July 18 and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 19.
Artwork at all prices will be displayed, including original oils, giclées, greeting cards and “recycled art” paintings by members to be included in a silent auction.
Special to this birthday-year celebration, several paintings done by early members will be on display from the collection of longtime member Midge Billig.
Visitors will also be able to browse the Artists of South Whidbey scrapbooks, which include photos and newspaper clippings, as well as members’ artwork.
Several members of the group recently shared the history of the South End institution and talked about the significance of this year’s annual show.
In the early days, it was a group of island painters who craved the camaraderie of other artists.
“It was simply a group of ladies who painted and decided to get together in somebody’s kitchen,” said four-year member Judith Burns.
Billig, a photographer and member since 1989, has been the resident historian for the group for several years.
She showed off one of the scrapbooks started by early member Betty Jane Miller in 1988. It told the story of the variety of island artists who were members through the years and the places where the group met, painted and showed its work.
“If they were real artists, they had to paint,” Billig said.
Chelsea Bonacello, another four-year member, said the group welcomes all levels of artists.
“It’s a charming group that encourages everyone who joins, and the meetings are highly organized and efficient,” Bonacello noted.
“You just have to be a person who loves painting, no matter what level you are.”
The group meets at 11:30 a.m. on the second Tuesday of each month in downtown Langley’s Brookhaven Recreation Room.
After a brown-bag lunch, the group holds a formal meeting and then proceeds with critiques of group works and exhibitions by local accomplished artists.
Ages of the painters range from 40 to 90 and older and new members are always welcome.
The artists hold special events, including the annual show and sale, summer paint-outs and a Christmas party.
Billig recalled being intrigued by one of the group shows she attended, and decided she would join.
“I remember one of the first demonstrations I saw,” Billig said.
“It was a painter — I can’t remember his name now — who said if you were a good painter you didn’t need that many brushes. By the end of the demo, he had six brushes sticking out of his mouth,” she added with a laugh.
This year, the show is history inside and out for these painters.
Billig said the first annual show was held at the Masonic Hall in Langley, which is now city hall, but later moved to the fairgrounds.
Bonacello said she is pleased that such an auspicious occasion as the 35th annual show will be held in the Fine Arts Building on the fairgrounds, which was built by the Works Progress Administration in 1937.
About 150 paintings by the artists will be available for browsing and sale, some traditional featuring serene island themes and others semi-abstract.
Although the Artists of South Whidbey is mainly about art, its community focus is the annual scholarship fund.
All proceeds from the Artists of South Whidbey cards and the silent auction help fund the annual award given to one Whidbey Island high school senior who plans a career in the arts. This year, Emma Monte Calvo received the $500 scholarship at the South Whidbey High School senior awards ceremony last month.
The fairgrounds is located at 819 Camano Ave. in Langley. Admission is free.
