There’s officially a new classroom and studio for ceramic artists in Chelsea.
Chelsea Center for the Arts (CCA) and the Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday afternoon for CCA’s new visual art classroom. About 20 people attended.
The new space is a place where the “messier” art can take place with several potter’s wheels – with more coming – for new and advanced students to create in a heated (and air-conditioned) environment.
Lisa Baylis Gonzalez, executive director of CCA, said the $30,000 recently completed renovation project “will let us explore and offer new classes that we weren’t able to before…while expanding hours and serving the community in a way we also weren’t able to do before.”
Plus, there will be open studio time available for ceramic artists at $40 for 10 hours of time.
“It’s a wonderful facility that caters a lot to the community,” said Chelsea Chamber President Bruce Szcodronski, adding, “It’s cool. I know a lot of people who will come here and use it.”
Funded by a grant from the Worthington Family Foundation, the original garage structure of the CCA building was renovated for use as a year-round visual art classroom and new heating, cooling, insulation, plumbing, electrical, lighting, doors, and windows were installed.
The space will be used for instruction in ceramics, metals/jewelry, sculpture, and other mediums requiring large or specialized equipment, she said, and there will be room for 6-8 students in the cozy classroom.
In the winter/spring 2013 term, Kristine Haddox will teach teens and adults functional ware and sculpture, and Sarah Banas will teach ceramics for youths in 3-9th grades, and host open ceramics studio hours for older teens and adults with prior ceramics experience.
“Congratulations on this great new facility … it looks great,” said Bob Pierce, executive director of the chamber, reminding folks that CCA used to be called Chelsea Center for the Development of the Arts, “But, we’ve developed the arts, so we don’t need that part of the name anymore.”
“We’re not just for kids at CCA,” Baylis Gonzalez said, “We’re for 2 years to seniors; We are the authority for art and music” because, she told the crowd — all the instructors at CCA hold high level college degrees in the subjects they are teaching.
“Everyone loves clay,” she said, and CCA offers potters a place to create to their heart’s content.
Click here to learn more about these and other CCA visual art and music programs, including exhibitions, performances and special events.
