First Friday Artist: Russ Eanes

First Friday Artist: Russ Eanes

by | Nov 21, 2023 | artwork, community, First Friday

On Friday, December 1st from 5:00 – 7:00pm, we are thrilled to host a special Holiday Celebration/First Friday event at the Depot and host author Russ Eanes. Russ will be signing and selling copies of his latest book, Pilgrim Paths to Assisi: 300 Miles on the Way of St. Francis. Join us to welcome him, enjoy refreshments, and celebrate the holidays with the community. Also don’t miss our other featured artists and vendors, Randy Harman, Wood and Wool, and David Sutton with music by Red Wing Academy. Read more about Russ and his books below. RSVP for the event here.

Artist Russ Eanes

Bio:

Russ Eanes is a writer, walker, and cyclist from Harrisonburg. Formerly the Publisher and Executive Director for MennoMedia, he has written and published two books about his pilgrimage experiences in recent years.

His latest book, published this year, is Pilgrim Paths to Assisi: 300 Miles on the Way of St. Francis. He is also author of the bestselling The Walk of a Lifetime: 500 Miles on the Camino de Santiago. In addition to writing, he works as a publishing consultant and tour host and guide, specializing in active travel for older adults.

He and his wife Jane have six children and eight grandchildren.

This event is free and open to everyone. Refreshments will be served and there will be opportunities to take photos with Santa himself. We look forward to seeing you there, and you can RSVP at our event page here.

Each month we host a new artist in our building’s 2nd floor gallery at the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). This month, artwork by our featured artist, Randy Harman, will remain on exhibit through the month. Come view the show anytime and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

First Friday Artist: Randy Harman

First Friday Artist: Randy Harman

by | Nov 20, 2023 | artwork, community, First Friday

On Friday, December 1st from 5:00pm-7:00pm, we are thrilled to host a First Fridays Gallery Opening and special Holiday Party at The Depot which will feature the talented artist Randy Harman! Join us to view Randy’s exhibition, a bold pop of color of poured painting, and to enjoy refreshments and community. Get to know more about Randy and his art below, and RSVP on Facebook here.

Also, don’t miss our other featured artists and vendors with their work for sale, Russ Eanes, Wood and Wool, and David Sutton with music by Red Wing Academy.

Artist Randy Harman

Bio:

Randy Harman is a native of Harrisonburg and the beautiful Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. Randy has worked in the real estate industry since 1996—first as a Realtor, then three years later obtaining his Principal Brokers license and founding Harman Realty, Inc.

Mirroring his own colorful personality, he birthed a lively and family-focused corporate culture while maintaining a strict dedication to the personal and career development of each of his employees. It was this combination of ingredients, coupled with a technology-forward approach, that would prove to be Harman Realty’s special recipe—fueling its sustained growth for decades to come.

Outside of the office, Mr. Harman has many hobbies; but the greatest of these has been his love of art. He has an eye for color usage, as evidenced by his most recent passion for, and the subject of this display, the abstract method of painting called poured or fluid painting using the highest quality of acrylic paint. Randy has been an artist in many areas of his life including palette knife painting with heavy body paints, silk painting using alcohol paints and inks, as well as the art of Shibori which is an ancient method of silk dying and forming colorful permanent pleats in the fabric. Randy also enjoys working in several aspects of art within the use of various textiles, ie fabrics, strings, cords, etc. Randy continues to evolve and expand his artistic ventures but has found much joy and satisfaction in his most recent conquest, the poured or fluid method of painting.

Randy lives in Harrisonburg with his husband Kyle, travels often to visit his daughter attending college in Miami, all while running his business and exceling and expanding in his art! Randy can be reached at his email which is Randy@HarmanRealty.com or his mobile phone which is 540-246-4300. Randy also has an Etsy store where he displays many of his latest paintings, so feel free to find him there. The address for his Etsy shop is www.etsy.com/shop/RandyHarmanArt .

Randy Harman Signature. CEO Harman Realty, Inc.

This event is free and open to everyone. Refreshments will be served and we look forward to seeing you there! See the event page and RSVP here.

Each month we host a new artist in our building’s 2nd floor gallery at the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). Artwork will remain on exhibit through the month. Come view the show anytime and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

First Friday Artist: Joe Fitzgerald

First Friday Artist: Joe Fitzgerald

by | Oct 24, 2023 | artwork, community, First Friday

On Friday, November 3rd from 5:00pm-7:00pm, we are thrilled to host a First Fridays Gallery Opening at The Depot featuring the talented photographer Joe Fitzgerald! Join us to view Joe’s exhibition, “Sense of Place,” and to enjoy food, refreshments, and community. Get to know more about Joe and his art below and RSVP on Facebook here.

First Friday artist Joe Fitzgerald's headshot

Biography:

I’ve been a newspaper editor, Harrisonburg mayor, political hack, reporter, writer, programmer, photographer, webmaster, tech writer, and a night clerk in a 7-Eleven. Not all at the same time. I’m retired now, so I’m only doing two of those – photos and writing – and only when I want to. Like everybody else, I’m trying to keep my cool while the world doesn’t. I’m married to Deb, economics professor at BRCC and the only person I know of to chair both the city’s School Board and its Planning Commission. She spots photos for me, tells me when I’ve processed one too much, suggests which ones to print, and helps me hang them. I do the rest, including pointing the camera, choosing the f-stop, and taking the credit.

Artist Statement:

“Sense of Place,” photos by Joe Fitzgerald. “We travel, and Deb says, “Look over there,” and I have a camera with me. Beyond that, the photos have to speak for themselves, even if I’m never sure what they’re saying.”

photograph of mountains by Joe Fitzgerald
photograph entitled, "Mosco Street"

This event is free and open to everyone. Snacks and refreshments will be served and we look forward to seeing you there! See the event page and RSVP here.

Each month we host a new artist in our building’s 2nd floor gallery at the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). Artwork will remain on exhibit through the month. Come view the show anytime and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

First Friday Artist: John A. Hancock

First Friday Artist: John A. Hancock

by | Aug 23, 2023 | artwork, First Friday

On Friday, September 1st from 5:00pm-7:00pm, we are thrilled to host a First Fridays Gallery Opening at The Depot featuring artist John A. Hancock! John is a talented artist who wears many hats, including Studio Artist, Urban & Plein-Air Sketcher, Artist-Teacher/Artist-Mentor, Independent Curator, & Consultant. Join us to view his exhibition opening, “Interrupted Landscapes: Studies & Compositions,” and to enjoy food, refreshments, and community. RSVP for this event on Facebook here.

Below, John shares about his work and journey as an artist.

First Friday Artist John a Hancock

To see more of John’s work, check out the links below:

Websites:

https://www.johnahancock.com/

https://visualasides.wordpress.com/

https://sketchingalways.wordpress.com/

 

Instagram:

@hancock_john_a

 

Resume:

Link to PDF attachment

Bio:

 

About the Artist

Born in 1956, I have lived throughout the Southeast and Midwest (from Atlanta to Wichita, from the east coast beaches of Florida to the piedmont and mountains of Virginia). Before moving to Virginia in the fall of 2000, I had begun my career as an artist/professor in eastern North Carolina. Besides making art and teaching, I take an avid interest in walking through old neighborhoods and the countryside. I really enjoy bird watching, reading, and cooking. In my active parenting years, I had a bit less time for bike riding, playing chess, attending concerts and plays, and working on community service projects. Now those are finding their way back into my life.

 

Professional Background and Service

I began my serious study of art as a teen in adult-professional classes. I later received my B.F.A. in Art from Valdosta State University and later completed an M.F.A. in Painting at East Carolina University.

For more than 35 years I worked in both community arts management and as a full-time college art professor. Even before retiring, I had begun to teach adult sketching classes and workshops both locally and within the region. In the past few years, I have had the privilege to be invited to teach sketching workshops in Chicago and San Francisco and around the country.

 

About The Art Work

I work outside often, avidly sketching rural and urban spaces. sometimes the image is a wide vista; other times it a view of an intimate detail of nature. Sketching informs my later work in the studio; I also find that it frequently stands on its own as completed works of art.

Most of my artwork has been created by drawing and/or painting on paper or panels using mixed aqueous and dry media. Over the past decade, I expanded my drawing to the use of installation scale, Mylar. Whether working on Mylar, paper, or panels, I seek to do so with a passion for nuanced and powerful mark-making, color, and design.

 

Recent Exhibitions, Publications, Awards, and Honors

In the past few years (2020-23) I have had several solo exhibitions including one in the Lula B. Rackley Gallery at Barton College (NC) and the Arts Council of the Valley (VA). Other recent exhibitions have included shows at Troy University (AL), Mary Baldwin University (VA), North Carolina Wesleyan College (NC), Elizabethtown College (PA), and the Nichols Gallery (NC).

In the past few years, I have been featured in two publications, 100 Southern Artists, by E. Ashley Rooney, Schiffer Press and The Natural World: A Postmodern Perspective, Mt. Saint Mary’s University.

This event is free and open to everyone. Snacks and refreshments will be served and we look forward to seeing you there! See the event page and RSVP here.

Each month we host a new artist in our building’s 2nd floor gallery at the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). Artwork will remain on exhibit through the month. Come view the show anytime and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

Casa Cielo: Blending the in-between spaces

Casa Cielo: Blending the in-between spaces

by | Aug 15, 2023 | architecture, artwork, project update

Designing custom homes in the Shenandoah Valley, like Casa Cielo, is a gift. We absolutely love working with our clients to create their dreams in built form. And this project in particular, where the site for the home had deep meaning and purpose even before we began our work, was so much more than just a gift. 

 Casa Cielo is perched at the top of the property, and the views are magical. This home was carefully placed on  the site to blend the inside of the house to the outside and capture nature’s beauty as the seasons pass. Glass walls wrap around the home on three sides from floor to ceiling, creating  blended “in-between” spaces. The warm wood tones, high ceilings, and modest forms allowed us to  celebrate the site and make the home a refuge. A kitchen on one side of the living space anchors the home to the site; the morning views tell the story of the day, while the functional spaces are all allocated to the rear of the building. Our clients have beautifully complemented the architecture with just the right furniture and fabrics. 

 This project and these clients are so dear to us. We are grateful each time we are trusted to help develop a dream for a new home. This one evolved with such grace and beauty that it has exceeded our expectations. Stay tuned for the release of the portfolio showing all the images of this beautiful home.

Photography by Asha and Susan Beck with assistance from Eric.

open floor space between kitchen, dining, and living room. View from kitchen. outdoor seating area bedroom deck and view to the mountains
First Friday Artist: Delaney Westwood

First Friday Artist: Delaney Westwood

by | Jul 26, 2023 | artwork, community, First Friday

On Friday, August 4th from 5:00 pm-7:00 pm, we are excited to feature artist Delaney Westwood! Delaney is an experimental fluid acrylic artist who brings depth, meaning, & beauty into homes with her beautiful abstract works. She also works as a Real Estate Agent in Harrisonburg and believes that “when designed with intention and presence, custom pieces can transform a space and foster a sense of peace.” We are looking forward to hosting this talented artist, and we invite everyone to visit the event page to RSVP here. Check out her biography below to get to know more about Delaney before the gallery opening.

Artist Delaney Westwood

Bio:

Born & raised in the Shenandoah Valley, Delaney Westwood is a fluid acrylic artist and member at OASIS Fine Art & Craft in downtown Harrisonburg. She considers herself an “experimental” artist because of her deep reverence for the process and passion for exploring new techniques. It is her mission to create inspiring artwork that brings forth a sense of inner knowing akin to the healing transmission of the natural world.

To see more of Delaney’s art and read more about her mission, visit her website @ paradoxflowart.com.

art by Delaney Westwood
art by Delaney Westwood
art by Delaney Westwood
art by Delaney Westwood
"Shenandoah in Dreams", a piece of art by Delaney Westwood

This event is free and open to everyone. Snacks and refreshments will be served and we look forward to seeing you there! See the event page and RSVP here.

Each month we host a new artist in our building’s 2nd floor gallery at the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). Artwork will remain on exhibit through the month. Come view the show anytime and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!