First Friday at the Depot – Hidden Gems – Valley Art Project

Come and see us at the Depot this Friday. 

Hidden Gems by the Valley Art Project
First Friday
This month we are thrilled to welcome a group of local artists to our space. The artists are all part of Valley Art Project and include the following artists:

Pamela Tittle
Erin Murray
Sharon Strite
Alisha Gangwer
Cheryl Richards
Vik Samoylov
Leah Claire Lawson
Kimberly Juda Souder
Emily Quesenberry

All types of medium

Continue your 4th of July celebrations on the 5th at our office. Stop by for a minute to see the work and cool off or come and stay for a longer conversation with the artists or one of your many friends that will be 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 and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

First Friday Art Opening: Photographs by Laurence Heine

Come see us at the Depot on June 7, for the First Friday Art Opening.

What a great way to kick off your summer fun – come visit the Depot on First Friday!

June 7, 2019

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Gaines Group Architects – The Depot Gallery (second floor)

Laurence Heine is hanging some of his amazing photography and of course we will have a ton of food and drink. Stop by for a minute to see the work and cool off or come and stay for a longer conversation with the artist or one of your many friends that will be 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 and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

ART OPENING INFORMATION

Title of show: Photographs by Laurence Heine

Description of show:

The show features 24 of my favorite photographs covering a variety of subjects including outdoor, wildlife, and architectural scenes.

About the artist: I have been interested in photography since childhood. I remember my first camera was a plastic Kodak box camera. I was a photographer for my high school and college yearbooks and my college newspaper. Over the years I have amassed boxes of slides and photos, many of which have never been looked at. Since switching to digital cameras, I have also taken thousands of digital images (more than 2000 images during an 18 day trip to National Parks in the west in 2015). Although I am primarily interested in photographing nature (landscapes and wildlife), I also enjoy photographing ‘distressed’ (as in abandoned or forlorn) buildings and objects.
I had long desired to be able to display some of my images so others could appreciate them. Recently, I have started mounting and matting my best (or favorite) images and displaying them when an opportunity is available. In the past year I have displayed photos at the Rockingham County Fair, The Smith House Gallery, VMRC, in the offices of Dr. Stacie Dietz, and The Gaines Group.
Because almost every photo has a story, my wife and I started a photo blog (www.blinspirations.com) featuring some of our photos and describing the circumstances which led to the photo being taken, as well as information about the location of the photo and the technical aspects of the photo.

First Friday Art Opening: Textures + Textiles with Meg Laughlin

Come see us at the Depot this Friday for the First Friday Art Opening.

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 and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

Meg Carpenter Laughlin First Friday Art Opening

April 5, 2019

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Gaines Group Architects – The Depot Gallery (second floor)

ART OPENING INFORMATION

Show title:

Textures + Textiles

Exploring the contrast of textures and textiles created in nature and by the human hand. The fabric of the elephant’s skin is coarse and rigid, filled with lines and wrinkles, and infinitely detailed. It’s a landscape that reads to the life of the animal. By contrast, the quilt has a unique texture with a palette uniquely its own. The stippling is as purposeful to the quilt as wrinkles to the elephant. In this case, each quilt depicts an abstracted landscape of their own. The purpose of each piece of art is to explore the visual textures that forms the fabric of the subject. Textures and textiles can be more alike than we think, the beauty is when all of it can live in harmony.

Artist:
Meg Carpenter Laughlin

Hi, I’m Meg Laughlin! I’ve filled my studies and my career path with various architecture and construction practices. Having studied architecture at the University of Virginia, taking architectural history and landscape design courses, and working professionally as an architecture intern and currently as a construction project coordinator; the underlying theme of my creative endeavors and pursuits is the exploration of “making.” I’m constantly curious about what invites people and nature to grow and thrive. I’m a hands on learner and producer, feeling a greater connection to my surroundings when I’ve had a hand in making their form and function. I love to dream and explore new ways to study my surroundings and develop a greater connection to it. Drawing and quilting are avenues in which I more deeply explore what makes me curious and becomes a language in which I reflect what I learn. Thank you for taking the time to observe these works and my hope is that it inspires you to delve into your own personal exploration.

 

Read about our previous First Friday Art Opening shows here:

From the Valley to the Bay: a book in the making

Eastern Mennonite School Artists

Marketing a locally owned business

I understand that marketing a locally owned business is critical for the survival of that business. However, I find it is difficult to find the right places to invest our marketing dollars for the best return on investment. Most of the ways you can market affordably are hard to measure success – outside of “is your business growing.” I know it is critical that we continue marketing and finding ways to reach a broader audience when we are busy and when we are not. Our strategy of being active in the community, supporting local efforts that build community, and investing in other local organizations is working well from a standpoint of “is your business growing.” However, I still wonder if we are growing fast enough, investing in the right strategies, and using our limited marketing dollars to the best of our ability.

So in an effort to learn what you think works best – give me your feedback in the comment section below. What do we do that has worked to grab your attention? What should we be doing? What can we do better?

Rotary Ad

You may not have noticed all of our marketing and I will not list all of it here – but here are some places that I am wondering about this morning.

Facebook – We do a lot on FB to build trust, show our work, and promote other local businesses. However, our number of likes, views, and follows is small compared to other local events and businesses. I have asked for our supporters to share our page to build likes, paid for ad space, and done contests. It all seems to get lost in the noise. What do you think? Do you follow our page? Do you think we provide quality content?

Twitter – We have a solid number of followers on Twitter, but not a lot of retweets. This platform announced yesterday that it is growing again after making changes to the spam members. Are you following us? What do you think about using this as a marketing platform?

Blog – Of course you are reading the blog so I know I have your attention – but is the content what you want? What should I be posting? How often do you click to read more?

dnr business journal

Community Organization Support – We pick a few organizations each year to support. This year we are supporting the Real Men Wear Pink Campaign, On the Road Collaborative, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Montessori School of Charlottesville, Eastern Mennonite School, Harrisonburg Rockingham Child Day Care Center, Massanutten Technical Center, Charlottesville Albemarle Technical Education Center, Habitat for Humanity of the New River Valley, Explore More Discovery Museum, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance, Albemarle County Sheriff’s Office Foundation, Shenandoah Valley Scholar’s Latino Initiative, Red Wing Academy, Brethren & Mennonite Heritage Center, Shenandoah Women’s Alliance, Rotary Club of Rockingham County, Harrisonburg Soap Box Derby and some others. We see this as marketing for a couple of reasons. One these organizations are helping grow a more diverse and inclusive community for us to live and work. We want to see these organizations survive and thrive for the health of our communities. We also see these organizations as a way to reach out to grow our reputation. We want to be known for supporting local community efforts that are working to build the best community possible. Is this the right strategy? What organizations we should work with that we have not reached yet?

virginia living

First Friday Art Openings – this monthly event at our office invites our friends into our space to see local art work and enjoy some food and drink. This is a chance for people to get to know us and see our office. We have examples of our work hanging in the space and we did the design work to renovate our historic building. This takes a lot of time, coordination, and investment to do each month. Is it the right place to invest those efforts? Do you attend?

First Fridays

We also advertise in / on the WMRA, WNRN, Daily News Record, Cville Weekly, and Virginia Living Magazine. Do you see or hear these ads? Do you like the ad? Is it effective to build trust with our company? Which platform reaches you? What platform should we be using that we don’t yet?

Cville Weekly Ad

I know there are other options and we do marketing in some other formats. My primary goal with our marketing is to use our investment to the best of our ability to continue to foster this business forward while supporting local community. If you have suggestions or thoughts, please share in the comments below. While I want to invest in local community organizations and publications to follow our mission to build community, I also need to grow our reach. That means I need to see more followers on social media sites. I need more clicks on our blog each year. I need the phone to continue to ring. I need our First Friday crowd to grow. This all justifies and for me tells me the marketing is working. It also allows me to continue to build on past success when requesting the next budget the next year. So even if you don’t have input, please like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter, and click links and more links on our website. Even better, get your friends to do the same. Thank you for reading and for your support of our business. At the end of the day, we are only successful if we have made a positive difference in our community. Working with you has allowed us to do that on so many past projects. We hope to continue to do it for many years to come.

 

 

 

First Friday Art Opening: From the Valley to the Bay: a book in the making

Come see us at the Depot this Friday for the First Friday Art Opening.  We are hosting a group of art teachers from Rockingham County. Their show From the valley to the Bay: a book in the making will look at how our local actions impact the Chesapeake Bay.

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 and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

April 5, 2019

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Gaines Group Architects – The Depot Gallery (second floor)

First Friday Art Opening

Our building (first floor Marvin Window and Door Showroom) will also be a Chocolate Walk stop this month. This event supports the Collins Center’s mission to eliminate sexual violence and its impact in our community. (4:00 pm – 8:0 pm)

There will also be a huge event in our parking lot – Friendly City Fortune Kick-Off Event! Come out and see The 2019 Friendly City Fortune prize vehicles! (5:00 pm – 8:00 pm)

ART OPENING INFORMATION

Show title:

From the Valley to the Bay: a book in the making.

Description:

After spending a week last summer learning about the impact our lives here in the Valley have on the Chesapeake Bay, five county art teachers have teamed up to illustrate a children’s book. The book follows an osprey’s journey over waterways from Smith Creek in Broadway, Virginia to the Bay in Tylerton on Smith Island. In its final stages the published book will be a collaboration between five art teachers, two music teachers, and two science & ecology teachers. This exhibit will show you the book’s current stage and feature mixed media artworks, reference photography, and preliminary sketches.

Short Bio:

Brandy Somers, Amelia Guido, Christopher Michael, Martha Maddox and Edwina George are art teachers in Rockingham County.

First Friday Art Opening – Eastern Mennonite School Artists

We are excited to kick off our 2019 First Friday Art Gallery season. Come visit, enjoy some food and drink, and check out these young artists work. I am looking forward to seeing you again – it has been too long!

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 and get a tour the Depot! We will have food and drink available!

Featured artist: Eastern Mennonite School student artists

March 1, 2019

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Gaines Group Architects Harrisonburg Studio

141 West Bruce St. Suite 201, Harrisonburg, VA

Media used in the art: Multiple medias including charcoal, acrylic, stained glass, and more.

Eastern Mennonite School

The artwork in this show displays a small percentage of the hard work and creative efforts of middle and high school students at Eastern Mennonite School this school year. Our middle school students take an art exploratory class in which they explore a variety of art mediums, problem solve to create themed projects, and develop their own creative ideas through choice projects. In 8th grade or in high school, students take a Basic Art I course where they learn about the Elements of Art before taking media specific courses, such as drawing, painting, ceramics, etc. For students who show greater initiative, experience, and skill, they can further develop their artistic abilities and art portfolio in an independent art study.

Some of the artwork displayed has been created for a specific assignment with requirements. Other artwork was made during student choice work time. The work shown by seniors has been created mostly during independent art studies or in their time outside of class. Whatever the type of project or artwork, this show is about celebrating students’ creativity, curiosity, and growth.

Malea Gascho, EMS Middle and High School Art Teacher