They’re going downtown with a new name, and a blank canvas is their oyster.
They are the Island Artists, formerly known as the Greenbank Artists, and they’re taking their annual show out of farm country and into … well … into town.
The Island Artists, a group of artists working in various mediums, will show its work at the Coupeville Recreation Hall from noon to 8 p.m. on Friday, July 9, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, July 10 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 11.
The name change reflects an expansion of interest in the group from its grassroots location at the Greenbank Progressive Club. This group of 23 artists now hail from all parts of the Whidbey Island and meet at 10 a.m. every Tuesday at the Race Road Fire Station in Coupeville.
But it’s not really about where anybody lives that matters to these folks. It’s all about the art for them.
“It’s being with people who like to create that makes me come,” artist Lucinda Abrams said.
The Island Artists are a diverse group of people who welcome anyone who likes to paint or draw, whether with oils, pastels, acrylics, colored pencils or watercolors, or who practice mixed-media art.
Some of the Island Artists paint large canvases, while quite a few of the others prefer to paint miniatures. But the sessions always include painting, along with a bit of socializing, eating and some gentle critiques.
There is a synergy that comes from a group, and everyone draws inspiration and encouragement from others, said Janet Marshall-McConnell, one of the group’s organizers and artists.
“I like Island Artists because they critique without being critical,” member Marie Vallquist said.
“We’re all nice people bouncing ideas off one another,” added Leslie Born, the artist who created this year’s Whidbey Island Garden Tour poster.
That seems to be a unanimous sentiment in the group, and an important reason why these artists find the Island Artists so attractive.
“Everybody is so accepting,” said artist Carole Bement.
Every year the group has an annual show, and they are all abuzz about bringing this year’s show to a new location in downtown Coupeville.
“We’re excited to be able to show our work to a wider audience,” Marshall-McConnell said.
She said being open until 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday will be a big boon to their exposure.
Refreshments served during the show will be free, but donations are welcome and will go to help support the Central Whidbey Fire Department.
The artists included in this year’s show are Rainy Lindell, Phyllis Drummond, Linda Shafer, Leslie Born, Arlene Love, Marie Thornton, Sue McKinney, Ann Holland, Bliss Knorpp, Judy Skinner, Bement, Vallquist, Abrams and Marshall-McConnell.
