THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 29, 1996 TAG: 9609260162
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Mary Ellen Riddle
LENGTH: 84 lines
It's artrageous how everybody's chipping in.
At least that's what I heard from Artrageous Art Extravaganza co-chair Lynette Brown.
The volunteer list is lengthy for the annual art weekend sponsored by the Dare County Arts Council that opens at Central Square in Nags Head at 10 a.m. on Oct. 5.
Brown laughs, calling her volunteer position a year-round job.
On tap for the first day is an art festival featuring children's booths and professional artists selling their wares. An upscale art auction is scheduled for day two, featuring donated works by local folk. Musician Scott Franson will provide entertainment.
The outdoor festival is free. Sunday's auction includes great food and drink for $10 a ticket. Walk-ins are welcome. The public already got a taste of what to expect at the auction from mini-art displays set up at 10 local businesses in the weeks preceding Artrageous.
On Saturday, the parking lot of Central Square will be filled with painted floor cloths, mirrors, wine glasses and furniture by Ellen Jones and Maureen Flauherty, Mike Hogan's photography, Genna Mile's handmade hats and Mike Rowe's oil paintings - to highlight a few of the booths.
Sound familiar? Well, why change a good thing. The festival, in its seventh year, is going strong.
Partial proceeds collected from years past amounting to nearly $10,000 have been donated to Dare County Youth Center, a non-profit group working to break ground by next spring.
The Arts Council will once again earmark 50 percent of its Artrageous profits for the youth center.
Folks attending Saturday's events can expect live music, food, a bike demonstration by KDH Cycle and Skate, a fashion show by Twila Zone, all-day raffles, hat making, hair weaving, T-shirt painting, paint splattering and face painting. Ten local youths, winners of last year's Artrageous poster contest, will paint canvases encompassing the theme of Human Alliance.
Ten local businesses each donated $200 to sponsor the weekend including: Barrier Island Station, Barr-ee Station, Western Sizzlin, Sea Scape, Goombays, Chilli Peppers, Outer Banks Chrysler-Plymouth-Dodge-Jeep-Eagle, Coastal Auto Mart, Tortugas Lie and The Currituck Club.
Brown is working with co-chair Donna McCleney Griffin and over 70 volunteers to produce the weekend event. Planning began in April. ``We knew we had big shoes to fill with Kerry leaving her three-year position,'' Brown said. Former arts council board member and Artrageous chair Kerry Oaksmith Sanders created such a solid foundation that Brown had little trouble finding sponsors for this year's art weekend.
This year's theme, Human Alliance, was inspired by drawings created during last year's poster contest. These winning entries appear on T-shirts, invitations and posters.
Helen Hoppe is working with the youth artists who will be painting at the festival. In a departure from last year's kids' paint-in, this group will not share canvases - but will work individually instead. Hoppe met several times with the group to discuss the art of painting with acrylics.
``At first they weren't sure what it meant,'' she said about Human Alliance. ``We talked. And I told them to look it up in the dictionary, talk to their parents. I told them it was everyone getting along in the world, with the environment and everything.''
Well the Artrageous volunteer crew and community at large are setting a good example, for Brown says donations of time and goods are plentiful including boogie boards for Saturday's children's auction, food, drinks and entertainment by West Virginia's Mister Billy, who will perform ``root blues'' on harmonica and guitar and Marianne Tobias who will entertain everyone with an array of children's instruments. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by MARY ELLEN RIDDLE
Sarah Zorc displays her poster painted last year. She is surrounded
by young artists Katie Morgan, Kyle Whitfield, Laura Jolly, Kira
Straub, Josh Settle and Bailey Triplett.
Graphic
AT A GLANCE
Artrageous art weekend will kick off Saturday morning, Oct. 5
with an all-day festival at Central Square, milepost 10 1/2, on the
U.S. 158 bypass.
Children will be able to create crazy hats, have their faces
painted and make a variety of crafts. A children's auction also will
be held.
Music and food will be available through out the afternoon.
At 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6, an auction of professional artists'
works will be held at the Village at Nags Head beach club. by CNB