The North Texas Area Art League seems to be reaping almost
instant rewards in a campaign to reorganize, reach out and
retain its relevance in an arts community.
For the first time in the organization’s history, the league
wasn’t able to admit every entrant into its annual members
exhibit, which opens at 2 p.m. Sunday in the East Gallery at the
Center for the Visual Arts.
The league’s importance never slipped. It just didn’t have
the manpower needed to run an established, productive
organization in an area that is surging with growth. The group
has taken several deliberate steps to grow with Denton’s busy
art scene.
To recap: The art league hired its first executive director,
Ingrid Scobie, this year. Ms. Scobie officially assumed the
leadership role in June. A retired Texas Woman’s University
professor and artist, Ms. Scobie told the press that she planned
to set her organizational skills in motion as soon as June 1
arrived and the league’s new officers and leaders took the
reigns. Not only was she charged with taking over the
administrative duties of the league, but she immediately began
exploring ways to bring more money to the league by scouting new
grants and attracting new members.
The next step the league took appears fruitful already,
league officials said. The annual members show was recast as an
enter-and-join show. Previously, artists could only enter the
summer show if they had joined by the end of the fiscal year,
May 31.
This month, 87 artists entered the exhibit, and 33 of them
were new members.
"Our concern with our space in that gallery, in that space,
was that we might not be able to hang something by every artist
who entered. And that ended up being the case," said league
president and painter Jo Williams. "We have 60 pieces on the
walls, and it’s wall-to-wall."
Ms. Williams said this year’s members show includes teenage
members and college-age artists. The show was selected by juror
Cidnee Patrick, owner and curator of the Cidnee Patrick Gallery.
Ms. Patrick selected a diverse exhibit, with paintings,
drawings, photographs, intaglio prints and three-dimensional
works, including bronze and limestone sculpture.
"The winners are mostly new people," Ms. Williams said. "So
there are different people than our usual winners, which I think
is fun."
The league invited all 850 Greater Denton Arts Council
members to the opening reception, Ms. Scobie said via e-mail.
The 2003 members show is meant to spotlight the talent of
league members and is a reminder to Denton that the visual arts
are as important to the area as its foremost art form, music.
The league will announce the show’s winners in a 3 p.m.
awards ceremony Sunday at the arts center. Visitors to the
gallery can listen in on the juror’s critique, which is a rare
chance for artists to ask the juror how she selected the show
and why the winning pieces spoke to her.
In the past, the league has probably suffered from a lack of
public awareness. After all, Denton is home to visual arts
luminaries, such as sculptors Don Schol and Harlan Butt. The
University of North Texas School of Visual Arts enjoys ties to
some of the most significant arts foundations in existence.
Unfortunately, those things might be easy to miss for the
average art lover.
While it has offered continuing education and exposure to
artists who consider themselves hobbyists, the league is also a
home base for professional artists with degrees in fine arts,
hefty resumes and a history of gallery shows. The new
leadership, which is actually a composite of longtime members
and new blood, is already on the path to take the organization
to the next level. Its annual juried spring show has continued
to garner attention beyond Denton city limits, earning entries
from the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Now the members show looks to be gaining prestige, if this
year is any indication.
With diversity, a roster of reputable jurors and plenty of
elbow grease from the volunteers who keep it running, the art
league should be a force to be reckoned with in Denton and
beyond.
LUCINDA BREEDING can
be reached at 940-566-6877.
