Mae Stoll will be featured during November’s First Friday Gallery Opening.
The walls of the Depot continue to shine with local artist’s work and we are grateful for the opportunity to celebrate the arts in our community. With only two more gallery openings left this year, we are excited to feature artist Mae Stoll at the Depot on Friday, November 4th. The gallery opening will be from 5:00-7:00PM and as always, the event is free and open to everyone! Get to know Mae before the event by reading her bio below.
Originally from the island of Malta, new artist Mae Stoll moved to Virginia three years ago after more than 40 years in Texas. She thinks that it was the beauty of the Valley that inspired her to buy her first set of acrylics late in 2020 and start dabbling. Not having any formal art instruction aside from a couple of elective art classes in college, Mae is still adjusting to her late-in-life “art awakening” and new identity as an artist. She says, “…sometimes, things flow, and life is good. Other times, the work is mentally and emotionally exhausting; but somehow, it always feels like it’s what I should be doing.”
In addition to her success at local area art festivals, Mae was the featured artist at the Crozet Artisan Depot last April, and some of her work can be found at Cabell Gallery in Lexington. She was also recently awarded first place in the Painting category at a local fall foliage festival this month! Mae also makes lovely wire-wrapped jewelry, which can be seen along with her many paintings on her website www.adornmentsbymae.com .
Learn more about the event and RSVP on our event page here.
Next in our lineup of First Friday artists is local painter, Wendy Bowers Lam. We are looking forward to hosting Wendy on Friday, October 7th from 5:00-7:00PM, and invite everyone to visit the event page here. Get to know Wendy before the gallery opening by checking out her biography below.
Wendy enjoys painting with bold colors and whimsical subject matter. She is drawn to curious cow expressions and gentle sheep she photographs while hiking in Scotland. She finds inspiration for subject matter in an African safari, or a trip to Key West seeing strutting roosters. Wendy also photographs rural barns, garden flowers, Blue Ridge Mountains and vineyard fields for local inspiration and beauty. Watercolor paintings are intricate depictions of bees, fish, and insects among other animals.
Wendy grew up on Paul Street in Old Town Harrisonburg. She graduated from Harrisonburg High and then the University of Virginia. She taught middle school language arts in Augusta and Rockingham County until staying home with three children. Always interested in artistic pursuits, Lam took some classes at The Beverley Street Studio School in Staunton as an adult and began to paint in oils. She is a juried member of the Co-Art Gallery in Staunton and has exhibited professionally there for over 10 years. Wendy also exhibits in state juried shows such as the VMRC Art Show, Art at the Mill, the Bath County Art Show, Blue Ridge Community College and Two Rivers Colony Country Club (Williamsburg). Lam’s solo shows include the Smith House Galleries at the Arts Council of the Valley, Ox Eye Vineyards (Staunton), Aioli Restaurant, Shenandoah Pizza (Staunton), and Clementine’s Restaurant.
She currently teaches some watercolor/mixed media classes at JMU’s Lifelong Learning Institute. Wendy is very active in the community as a CASA volunteer, a board member of both the Explore More Children’s Museum and Kerus Global Education, and is active in the Spotswood Garden Club. She is a lifelong runner and reader.
Janine Aberg’s art will be featured during the First Friday Gallery Opening on September 2nd.
In September, we are excited to share another talented local artist, Janine Aberg. Janine is one of two artists who will be featured during our First Friday gallery opening on September 2nd, from 5-7pm. To learn more about the event and RSVP, visit the event page here.
Janine (South African) and her husband Simon (Sweden) met in Hawaii. They lived in Harrisonburg for a number of years and now they own a small farm in Keezletown, VA where they run River Mountain Farm And Life Center (See more at www.artbyJanine.com). Janine and Simon have three beautiful girls Arowin, Katanyah and Soercha.
Janine is a passionate artist. She processes life through art and finds true solace in her times in front of a fresh canvas or wall. Art is a form of meditation for Janine and gives her time to connect the spiritual and physical aspects of life. Janine gives herself fully to whatever she sets her mind to and she finds satisfaction in a life fully lived.
Janine is a fine artist, muralist, and dancer. Her art is strongly influenced by color, light, and by her love for dance, movement, and animals. Her work expresses the wealth of beauty and feeling that is born out of the confluence of suffering and the joy of life. This coupled with complexity in design makes Janine a truly unique artist. She is deeply influenced by her country of origin (South Africa), living in Hawaii, and travelling around the world.
In their time in Harrisonburg Janine painted murals in every room in their town house, creating a taste of different countries and otherworldly places. She has also painted murals in a number of Harrisonburg homes and businesses including Dick Myers, Sentara RMH wellness center, J. Frank Hillyard Middle school to mention a few. Janine loves to connect her many passions, like her passion for psychology, peacebuilding, animals, and dance. She has found joy in her art being used on the cover of books especially “to stir &” by Nikia Chaney. Her art also hangs in Eastern Mennonite University.
Her preferred mediums are oil and acrylic. She loves to experiment with the intersectionality between fine art, dance, theater, music, and healing. She does portraiture, landscape, murals, body painting (especially for pregnant mothers), and social justice pieces.
The artist holds a BA in Performing Arts from the University of the Nations, and an MA in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. Janine has won prices at fine art competitions on the Hawaiian Islands, including the Kona Coffee Arts Festival and the Waimea Arts Council. She has worked for a summer with Philadelphia Mural Arts and has exhibited with a group of fantastic artists at the Olympic games in the UK 2012.
Her art hangs in many countries including the USA, South Africa, China, Germany, Sweden, and England.
Our second artist we are excited to feature in September is Saloma Furlong. To learn more about the First Friday art gallery opening, visit the event page here.
Saloma Furlong was born and raised in an Amish community in northeastern Ohio. With the eighth-grade education of her childhood, she acquired her GED, enrolled in community college courses, and became an Ada Comstock Scholar at Smith College. She studied at the University of Hamburg in Germany for a semester. At fifty, she graduated with a major in German Studies and a minor in Philosophy. Furlong is the author of three books, and her story has been featured in two PBS American Experience films, “The Amish” and “The Amish: Shunned.” She is the mother of two grown sons and lives in Virginia with her husband, David.
Saloma will share her book, Liberating Lomie at the gallery opening. In this personal and moving memoir, Saloma (Lomie) traces the genesis of her desire for freedom and education and chronicles her conflicted quest for independence. She recalls her painful childhood in a family defined by her father’s mental illness, her brother’s brutality, her mother’s severe punishments, and the austere traditions of the Amish—traditions she struggled to accept for years before making the difficult decision to leave the community. Eloquently told, Liberating Lomie is a revealing portrait of life within—and without—this frequently misunderstood community.
Also available at the gallery opening will be her book, Bonnet Strings: an Amish Woman’s ties to Two Worlds. In this poignant coming-of-age memoir, Saloma’s freedom allows her to thrive in her new life in Vermont. Then late one night, her freedom comes to an abrupt end when members of her Amish community arrive to take her back into the fold. Thus begins a years-long struggle of feeling torn between two worlds. Bonnet Strings offers a universal story of overcoming adversity and a rare look inside an Amish community. Readers will find a story of competing desires between freedom and belonging.
Aside from writing books, Saloma is also the creator of handmade rugs. These beautiful works of art will be available at the gallery opening.
First Fridays at the Depot are a special time to gather in celebration of the arts and have become a bit of a tradition around our office. We love opening our doors to celebrate the arts and artists who share their talents with our community. After far too many months in isolation over the pandemic, these past few First Fridays of the Valley gallery openings have reminded us how much joy can be found when we prioritize lifting up the diversity of our community’s artists. From authors to painters, photographers, musicians, and craftsmen; we are grateful for the creativity each artist shares.
We still have a few more spots available for artists this year and are making reservations for 2023. If you or someone you know is interested in showcasing their work at the Depot Gallery, don’t hesitate to reach out! We love having first-time exhibitors as well as seasoned pros. Artists can expect to leave the party planning up to our team as we are happy to tackle the details and provide food and refreshments.
Anyone interested can give our office a call or email Annie at annie@thegainesgroup.com. We look forward to continuing this tradition into the future and showcasing the talent held within our community!
Aaron Zook will feature “Method in Madness” during this month’s First Friday gallery opening.
Mark your calendars for another First Friday art gallery opening at the Depot! This month’s show “Method in Madness” is presented by local artist, Aaron Zook. He is a self-taught photographer, born and raised in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
The Method in Madness show focuses on the small, quiet moments that punctuate our daily grind. Moments of professionalism, thought, care, routine, and wisdom gained from years of experience are what continually inspire Aaron. In his words, “the world is madness, held together by the fascinating methods of the human mind. This one is for the craftsmen.”
This free event will be held from 5:00-7:00pm on August 5th and is open to everyone. The Gaines Group will provide snacks and refreshments and encourage everyone to RSVP on the event page here.
