In rural areas, opportunities to show work are few and far between.
That’s why I am thankful for organizations like the West Virginia Watercolor Society and Hampshire County (W.Va.) Arts Council, and venues like the Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community in Harrisonburg, Va., or the Clarke County Historical Association’s Burwell-Morgan Mill in Millwood, Va., where there are devoted volunteers and community support for art exhibits.
There are other groups and businesses I have experience with, too, and they also have my heartfelt thanks …. groups like the Berkeley Arts Council that hosts shows through the Berkeley Art Works gallery in downtown Martinsburg, W.Va., or the Bath County (Va.) Arts Association, where a team of volunteers puts on an enormous art show each July that draws work from artists residing both Virginias. There are also businesses like Guesthouse Lost River, where innkeepers Gary and Jesse Halpern-Robinson have been willing to provide a local artist (me) with the opportunity to present work in a beautiful location and share it with a diverse audience. Cheerleaders like Gary and Jesse can launch an artist’s professional career.
In fact, as I type, I can think of still more organizations and venues…. like the Northern Virginia Plein Air Artists, which partners with organizations like the Friends of the State Arboretum (Blandy Experimental Farm/State Arboretum of Virginia) and local wineries like the Farm at Sunshine Ridge to host plein air events and art shows, or the amazing Cecil Ybanez and his Bloomfield Richwood Gallery in Richwood, W.Va., or curator and art collector Jose Rizo of Beckley, W.Va., who travels the country to enjoy and collect Ashcan School art and in turn builds relationships with West Virginia artists to help present their work in exhibits around the state. There’s also the Lost River Trading Post in Wardensville, W.Va., featuring an eclectic blend of craft and fine art, that hosts regular shows in their Grasshopper Gallery.
Then there are groups like the Western Maryland Watercolor Society that provides fellowship and fun and exhibition opportunities, along with the Allegany Arts Council in Cumberland, Md., — home of several juried exhibitions and one of the best biennial plein air events in the country. Over in Elkins, W.Va., there’s the Art Center (Randolph County Community Art Center) with a host of solo and group exhibition opportunities, and the center often partners with the Seneca Trails Artist Guild for events. There also are individuals like Susan Feller of Augusta, W.Va., who is curating shows and partnering with venues across the region to share socially conscious works of art. There are also artisan co-ops like the Lost River Educational Foundation’s Artists Marketplace (Lost River, W.Va.), or the Hampshire County Marketplace and Co-op (Romney, W.Va). And don’t me started on the artistic energy in places like Thomas, W.Va. or Davis, W.Va.
In short, I could go on and on and on…
So….. yes, in a rural area maybe there are not a lot of traditional brick-and-mortar galleries featuring carefully controlled lighting and hushed tones. However, you can still find organizations powered by dedicated volunteers, you can frequent art-loving businesses, you can visit venues that are willing to host and give artists a chance, and you can talk with individuals who are working to promote the arts.
So even though “the art scene” in a rural area might look different, it’s there. Enjoy it and put your work out there for the world to see.