By Leland Schwartz

“Wolf”, a charcoal by local artist Oyunaa Waskin, won ‘Best of Show’ in the Artists in Middleburg’s (AiM, a 501c3) “The Animal in Art” exhibit running through June 14th at the gallery on 102 W. Washington Street in Middleburg.

“By blending ink-like techniques with the softness of charcoal, I create depth and movement,” Oyunaa says. “Through this, I capture the spirit of the wolf, its surroundings, and the energy that flows between them.” ‘Wolf” is 11 x 14 and is $400. “Zorro”, a 15 x 9 bronze, by sculptor Wendy Lind, came in second and is $4,500. “All the Pretty Boys Walk Like This”, a 14 x 11 oil by artist Shelia Huyett, is a strutting little rooster with serious swagger, which, Shelia said, “totally came from having that song stuck in my head when I painted him.”

The exhibition juror was J Douglas, whose work has been collected internationally and can be found in private collections, palaces, presidential homes, estates, galleries, public institutions, and the Salamander Resort.

J has a longstanding connection with the Artists in Middleburg community, dating back to its earliest days when it began as a gathering of local artists meeting in one another’s studios long before it became a nonprofit and had a physical gallery. J hosts the monthly Art Tribe event, helping create a space for artists to gather, share, and grow.

Executive Director Sandy Danielson says AiM hosts themed exhibitions each month for local artists as well as offers art classes, from Plein Air (French for ‘in the open air’) experiences to sculpting, painting, and drawing instruction.

 

“AiM also strives to nurture and promote art and art education within the community,” she says. “AiM has supplemented the art programs at local schools by providing guest art teachers, supplies, and art therapy, as well as partnering with many schools to host an annual exhibition of students’ art during Youth Art Month in March. ”

 

As indicated by the National Endowment of the Arts (“NEA”), “American communities are strengthened through the arts.” AiM seeks to join what the NEA describes as “Communities across our nation…leveraging the arts and engaging design to make their communities more livable with enhanced quality of life, increased creative activity, a distinct sense of place, and vibrant local economies that together capitalize on their existing assets.”

“We believe wholeheartedly in the physical, cognitive, and emotional benefits of creativity and work to level the academic playing field through arts education and community programs,” Sandy says. “All made possible through grants, donations, and proceeds from gallery sales and programs. Our goal is to increase our education endeavors and explore community needs. We need your help to do this!”
 

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Middleburg Page is an experiment to test new ways for us to use our reach to help sustain local artists, and at the same time, sustain local news coverage. We’re starting with Artists in Middleburg by sharing this page in the Fauquier Times and The Georgetowner, and the idea is to build a bridge between Georgetown and us. In doing so, we’ll connect the arts community out here in Hunt Country to the arts community in Georgetown. That should enable us to help bring in thousands of new funding dollars to solve both challenges.