Uniontown Art Club to host show at historic Summit Inn
Submitted
Some pieces from the Uniontown Art Club gallery on Main Street in Uniontown will be part of the art show at Summit Inn Resort this weekend.
Artist Gray Sky Carson will have some Native American beading work for sale this weekend.
Some of the Uniontown Art Club officers include, from left: Denise Stepanik, correspondence secretary; Stephanie McClain, president; Pete Pasqua, Treasurer; and Jessica Lotman, vice president.
Artist James E. Stepanik will have his pieces available at the show this weekend.
The Uniontown Art Club and the historic Summit Inn Resort in Wharton Township will team up this weekend to provide an opportunity for the public to purchase some locally crafted art pieces.
An art and craft show will be held at the resort this Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is no admission to the event. Local art will be on display for show and sale in the Henry Ford Ballroom on the ground level.
Denise Stepanik, corresponding secretary with the art club, said the resort and the club began their partnership four years ago to help promote art because inn officials wanted to have some type of art activity on their premises.
“This partnership has resulted in successful art and fine crafts sales and shows that present local art at least two to three times a year for the past 4 years,” Stepanik said. “They normally hold a May Mother’s day event, a summer show and a fall show.”
The Uniontown Art Club has been around since 1927 promoting and generating the appreciation of visual arts in the community, meeting in the Uniontown Public Library once a month until last year.
Stepanik said that in 2016, under the leadership of then President Pete Pasqua, the club began to seek out a new home and decided to take over the space holding the Art Gallery formerly run by JAMES Photographic, whose owners are also members of the UAC.
“The club signed its lease at 86 W. Main Street, Uniontown in 2017 and is now celebrating its one-year anniversary at its new home, which is shared by the Phoenix Arts Center,” she said. “Since moving there, club members meet on a monthly basis and hold many events at that location. They have also opened a cooperative gallery that features several of the artists’ fine art and craft works.”
Club president, Stephanie McClain, said not only does the club offer an outlet to local artists, it also benefits the community.
“Creative people need an outlet — a place where they can go to make art — but non-creative people like to participate in viewing others’ art,” she said.
Stepanik said the club members have a passion for art and invite all artists, tourists, and community members to come out to the show.
“They offer a wide variety of beautifully handcrafted art and fine crafts for sale including paintings, innovative fused glass art, carvings, jewelry, photography, unique ceramics and pottery, Native American beading and much more,” she said. “The pieces are very unique and are reasonably priced, making them great gift items.”
As for the club itself, McClain said they have about 60 members, with about 25 of them considered very active.
There is always an open invitation for other local artists or individuals, ages 18 or older, to join who wish to promote art in the community. Dues are only $22 a year.
McClain said the art shows are a way for the club to raise money for their rent and other expenses, so artists in the club who participate in shows at Summit Inn Resort pay a $15 fee and then the club takes 20 percent of the final sales the artist makes that weekend.
Club members also have the opportunity to pay a fee to display and sell their pieces at the art gallery at 86 W. Main St.
Several different events are held throughout the year at their location to include paint and sips, art classes (some in conjunction with the Phoenix Art Center), art shows to feature an artist, antiques appraisals, and many other fun activities.
Meetings are held the third Tuesday of every month at 6:30 p.m., as well as the last Friday of the month. The gallery is open to the public Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m.
The club also is opening their space for others to hold unique events and they welcome other artists throughout the area to join the club by applying on their website.
“Art is changing like the world is changing and variety is the best asset of our club,” McClain said.
The club will have another art show this fall at the Summit Inn Resort as well as a show on Nov. 3, which is still being coordinated with the “Masontown Matters” program.
Uniontown Art Club gallery and store is at 86 W. Main Street, and is open Wednesday thru Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more details, visit their website at www.uniontwonartclub.org.