April 2, 2017
The Kingaroy Regional Art Gallery will be a very busy anthill of arts activities in April.
On Saturday morning the gallery opened “Autumn Antics”, a wide-ranging exhibition of works by 14 members of Jumping Ant Arts.
The opening was preceded by a one hour demonstration of small clay figurine creation by well-known Goomeri potter Fay Stumm, and followed by an early afternoon demonstration of dichroic glass jewellery making by Shirley Williams.
Throughout April, Jumping Ant Arts members will be running many other workshops at the Gallery covering everything from painting to print making, pottery to rug-making, and bookmaking to creating pendants.
Saturday’s exhibition was officially opened by Jenny Christensen from St John’s Lutheran School.
Jenny said members of Jumping Ant Arts have been running art activities at the school twice a week this year, and they had proven quite a hit with students – particularly pinch pottery and rug making workshops where the children could get actively involved.
And in April, adults will be able to take part in a range of similar workshops at the gallery, each one run by a Jumping Ant Arts member who has extensive hands-on experience in the subject they’re teaching.
Jumping Ant Arts president Catherine Woodham said many of the group’s members were already well-known South Burnett artists.
Others might be less well-known at the moment, but they were highly skilled at what they did.
And while each Jumping Ant Arts member specialised in different things, they found the group rewarding because of the creative stimulus it provided.
Catherine said she hoped the April exhibition would give visitors an insight into just how varied members’ output was.
The workshop program will be run on Wednesdays and Saturdays at the art gallery and the nearby 1913 Council Chambers.
Most workshops are free, but some have a small charge for materials ranging between $5 and $50 where students get to take home a finished piece of their own work.
Workshops will be held as follows:
- Wednesday, April 5: Watercolour painting with Dot Rowland, 10:00am-1:00pm
- Saturday, April 8: Printmaking and Books with Fran van Vegchel and Carmel Nott, 10:00am-1:00pm
- Wednesday, April 12: Fun ways to paint on silk and paper (school holiday workshop), 9:30am-noon, 1:00pm-3:30pm, $20 for materials
- Saturday, April 15: Watercolour painting and silk painting with Suzi Wells, 10:00am-1:00pm
- Wednesday, April 19: Making pendants using folk art techniques with Diana Bolton, from 10:00am, $20 for materials
- Wednesday, April 19: Painting with Dot Rowland, 10:00am-1:00pm
- Wednesday, April 19: Mixed media art class with Selena Stevens, 10:00am-12:30pm, $20 for materials
- Saturday, April 22: Botanical art with Diana Bolton, 10:00am-noon
- Saturday, April 22: Pottery with Fay Stumm, 9:00am-4:00pm, $50 for materials and firing
- Wednesday, April 26: Working with Rugs with Judy Brook, 10:00am-2:00pm
- Wednesday, April 26: Bookmaking with recycled materials with Janelle Mason, 10:00am-2:00pm, $5 for materials
- Saturday, April 29: Dichroic glass jewellery workshop with Diana Bolton and Catherine Woodham, from 8:30am, $50 for materials
People who’d like to book for any workshop should phone Catherine Woodham on 0403-616-564.
- The Autumn Antics exhibition will be on display at the Kingaroy Regional Art Gallery in Haly Street (opposite the peanut silos) from 10:00am to 4:00pm weekdays, and 10:00am to 2:00pm weekends and public holidays, until the end of April. Admission to view it is free.
