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TAG'S 60th anniversary provides exposure for artists, city
WARREN
Maria Campagna traveled from Morgantown, W.Va., to display her handmade glazed pottery and help the Trumbull Art Gallery celebrate its 60th anniversary Saturday in downtown Warren.
Brittany Linger of Rock Creek chose the event to introduce her abstract paintings and beach jewelry to the world.
“This is literally my first art show,” said Linger, a graduate of Grand Valley High School and Pittsburgh Technical Institute and a software programmer for E2B Tekologies in Chardon.
Campagna and Linger joined a number of area artists who shared conversation and their wares with a sparse crowd early Saturday that James Shuttic of Warren, president of the Fine Arts Council of Trumbull County, predicted would grow as the weather improved later in the afternoon.
Saturday’s event not only celebrated TAG’s 60th anniversary, it was FACT’s third annual Summer Art Hop on Courthouse Square, one of several events it conducts throughout the year, Shuttic said.
Part of the variety of items was supplied by Kari Crawford of Champion, who displayed her photography and painting brought to Courthouse Square in her rare, eye-catching 1973 Volkswagen Westfalia Camper.
Crawford said she “does not photograph humans” except her skeleton “Garcia.”
Rocco Nori of Niles, who is retired from American Welding and Manufacturing where he was a machinist, drew interested visitors to his booth of bonsai trees, many of which are made from the Japanese juniper.
Nori, who used to play keyboard in area groups including Group Therapy, got involved in creating bonsai trees after he saw some while on vacation in South Carolina in the early 1980s.
“I bought one and took it home ... took lessons now and then on how to create bonsai trees. It’s a hobby that keeps me busy,” Nori said.
Wendy Mullen’s business card says “All pieces are handmade with love.”
To make her “Steampunk Designs,” Mullen, of Cortland, recycles the gears of mechanical watches and clocks and old skeleton keys to create beautiful jewelry.
Among the TAG events Saturday were the dedication of TAG Underground in the basement of TAG’s store-front studio at 158 N. Park Ave. and the opening reception of the 53rd annual TAG multimedia exhibition.
Patricia Galgozy of Warren has been a TAG volunteer for 40 years and its volunteer executive director for 14 years.
Not only is this event a great venue for artists to show and sell their products, it is good for the continued growth of downtown Warren, said Shuttic.
The restaurants and bars are always busy during this type of event, and FACT provides free trolley rides, making it easy for people to get from place to place, he said.
“When we do these events to support the arts, we also encourage people to come and see the new downtown Warren,” Shuttic said, adding, ”A decade ago, there was lots of empty retail space. Now, retail space is at a premium.”