Twenty galleries will participate in the annual Annapolis Art Walk, which runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 10.
Organizer and gallery owner Cynthia McBride, who has been involved in each of the 10 previous Art Walks, says that although the event has grown larger every year, visitors should be able to visit all the galleries. The event is sponsored by the Annapolis Galleries Association.
Emphasizing that Annapolis has been designated one of the "top walkable cities in the entire country," McBride explains that most of the galleries are within a few blocks of one another in downtown Annapolis.
The association's goal is to make visitors aware of the rich diversity and quality of art in the growing arts center of Annapolis. In recent years, the city's arts community has expanded, spurred by an increase in the number of visitors. Once known for traditional water and boating scenes, galleries now house the work of artists who express their visions in a variety of subjects and styles.
Visitors will find new art exhibits and meet local artists demonstrating their skills in oil, watercolor, pastel, woodworking, sculpture, jewelry and hand crafts. Most of the galleries will offer refreshments, and many will feature music.
Participating galleries include three on Main Street. At the Main Street Gallery, Lynn Lockhart will give an oil painting exhibition; Marion Le Moal will work with vivid fluid pastel landscapes; Jennifer Wheatley will demonstrate the use of watercolors to create summer flower gardens; and Marla Tootle will work in minimalist watercolors.
McBride Gallery will feature nationally known folk artist Carol Dyer working in acrylic and Abigail McBride doing charcoal portraits. The League of Maryland Craftsmen will play host to Laurie Kleespies, who will demonstrate wood turning and how to make pens and letter openers.
Participating West Street galleries include Whitehall Gallery, where John Kopkowski will demonstrate and exhibit pen and inks of Maryland historical sites, house portraits and architectural views; and 49 West Cafe and Gallery, where Janice Wagoner will exhibit photography, sculpture and portraits.
The city's oldest gallery - Annapolis Marine Art Gallery on Dock Street - will play host to Thad Bergling, who will demonstrate how to build museum-quality ship models, including a large skipjack. On Francis Street at Easy Street Gallery, Julia Leonard will work in a mixed media of watercolor, ink, acrylic, and torn and cut paper to create watercolor and collage paintings.
On State Circle, Gallery on the Circle visitors can enjoy an exhibition by three Anne Arundel artists - Celia Pearson in photography, Anne Bradshaw in watercolors and Bobbie Greer in clay. Demonstrations on pottery throwing, drawing pots on the wheel and hand carving decorations on pottery will be held at Annapolis Pottery. A slide presentation and exhibit of mixed media will be featured at Nancy Hammond Editions on State Circle.
Maryland Avenue galleries holding Art Walk events include Aurora Gallery, where jewelry and crafts will be exhibited by John and Judy Fisher; the Carl Patty Studio, where watercolors of Annapolis and waterscapes will be featured; and Dawson Gallery, which will house an exhibition of 19th-century American and European paintings, along with Louis Feuchter's Chesapeake Bay scenes.
Also on Maryland Avenue, La Petite Galerie will feature artists Xue Jian Xing, Hai ou Hou, Suzanne Twyford and Dory Coffee working in oil and pastels to create landscapes, florals and still-life paintings.
In Eastport, the Raven Maritime Studio on Severn Avenue will play host to Howard Rogers, who will exhibit his pen and inks, watercolors and woodcarvings.
Free parking will be available from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Hillman Garage or Gotts Court Garage for visitors who obtain parking passes at participating galleries. Yellow balloons will mark the gallery route. The event will be held rain or shine.
Information: Cynthia McBride or Judy Brick at 410-267-7077.
