Paul Szmal: And welcome back to FLX Morning on Finger Lakes News Radio. It's 8.39, time for our Scholastically Speaking segment. And for that, I'd like to welcome in first Liz Brownell, who is a professor of graphic design and the co-founder of the Artspace 36 in Canandaigua. Liz, good morning.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Good morning, Paul.
Paul Szmal: And also joining us is Joyce Koba, who is president of the Ontario County Arts Council. Good morning, Joyce. How are you?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Good morning, Paul. Good. How are you?
Paul Szmal: Liz, I want to start with you to get a little background on Artspace 36. How long has that been around? How was it first put together?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Sure. So my colleague, Lacey McKinney, wrote a grant, an inter-college grant in 2018, and the space opened summer of 2019. So we've been in downtown Canandaigua for quite a bit now.
Paul Szmal: And what type of art and whose art is featured in that exhibit space?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: That's a great question. It's a mixture of artists. So we show our own student portfolio work. We partner with local school districts to feature their students' work. And we also invite different regional artists to show in the gallery. Currently, my sabbatical show is up. My whole life is two different stories at the gallery.
Paul Szmal: Interesting. And Joyce, tell us a little bit about the Arts Council and how the Arts Council got involved here.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: So the Arts Council has been around for 35, 36 years. And originally, they had a space on Main Street called All Things Art. And the Arts Council evolved, eventually kind of downsized, and then came back under the guidance of Judy Cermak. And so we have been looking for the last couple years for a place on Main Street to have more visibility and to do more art for our community. And the end result of that was the recently opened Gallery 32, which is right next to Art Space 36.
Paul Szmal: Correct.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Yes. As a matter of fact, there's just one doorway between the two, and you can browse both at the same time when they're open. So yes. So this partnership evolved. I think we were both seeking to create a partnership where our membership could exhibit their art in a different setting. And also, we could have connections with the college and with a younger group of people. Bring different art experiences to different ages and different levels of talent. And we wanted to expand our membership to include a younger component.
Paul Szmal: We're talking with Joyce Koba, who's President of the Ontario County Arts Council, and Liz Brownell, Professor of Graphic Design and Co-Founder of Art Space 36. There's been a little bit of a partnership here where the two different agencies are working together and have opened Gallery 32. And it had, I guess you would say, a grand opening, ladies, as part of the Canandaigua Fire and Ice Festival. It absolutely did. And how did that go?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: So I think it went fantastic. We had hundreds of people come through. The Gallery 32 is just a beautiful... If you have a chance to stop in, the show's still up. A beautiful collection of some of the OCAC members' artwork. And we also relaunched our Makers Market, which is a little shop that 80% of everything sold goes directly to a local artist who made it. And it will soon include also OCAC members' work, as well as the work that Art Space 36 has been showing from local artists. And we only sell things that are made right here in our area.
Paul Szmal: That's fantastic. Joyce, can you give us a little bit more detail on how this partnership works between the two agencies?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: So because we have an adjoining door, we can share each other's spaces. So currently the space on the Gallery 32 side has exhibit space for our membership, and it also has the Makers Market. And then the other side, Liz's side, for the College, has more workspace and open space. So we're able to share workshop space, we're able to share the gift shop space, and gallery space really, because we have people from both sides exhibiting both areas.
Paul Szmal: And Liz, I've got to think that FLCC students are pretty excited about having a public domain to be able to display their artwork.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Yeah, absolutely. And I think not only have they had that opportunity the last few years to show in a required portfolio class in the Main Street Gallery, but now to bring them, weave them into the fabric of all of the local artists that are a part of this historical community that is OCAC, or Ontario County Arts Council, it just, it heightens the playing field for them with all of the connections that they can make, and all of the opportunities that they have to become members of OCAC, and just to learn from people who have been living in the arts their entire lives.
Paul Szmal: And Joyce, I've got to think that the networking opportunities for some of the FLCC students with some of the Ontario County Arts Council members is going to prove to be valuable in the long run as well.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Absolutely. Absolutely. And I know our membership is looking forward to some mentoring-type possibilities and just different opportunities. I think it's going to open up a whole lot of new experiences for us.
Paul Szmal: Now, will both galleries be open concurrently at the same time, continuously, or will there be different shows in different locations at different times?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: So that's a great question, Paul. The Art Space 36 and Gallery 32 in the Makers Market will all be open at the same time simultaneously. So we are open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 12 to 6 p.m., and Sundays from 12 to 4 p.m., and although shows may rotate between the two galleries, those open times will always be common.
Paul Szmal: How often are items and materials going to be rotated in and out of the exhibit spaces?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Well, our group is working on that right now, so we haven't finalized a plan on that yet, but I would say at least probably every three, four months. Liz, how about from the FLCC side?
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Sure. So we host one larger artist show, like the one that I have up right now, for about two and a half to three months each semester, and then we rotate in other shows. So there's a pretty regular turnover of shows and events that go along with them.
Paul Szmal: And tell me a little bit about my whole life in two different stories, because that is the exhibit that you have going on right now inside the Art Space 36.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Sure, I'd be glad to. So last spring, I took a sabbatical to dive a little bit deeper into my own work and my own experience being an adoptee. So when I was 45 years old, five years ago, I searched for my birth parents for the first time and found that both of my birth parents were deceased, but through that process found that I had two sisters. And so this body of work is all about the research that I did about biological mothers, about adoption and the celebration that I feel it is, and the stigma that's attached for a lot of people. And so I'm hoping to bring joy to adopted people, adopted families, and to bring awareness to others about adoption.
Paul Szmal: And I know you're going to be giving a couple of talks about this exhibit coming up as well.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Yeah. So one really special one is March 5th. I'm going to host an art-making and discussion event for adoptees only. And so you can find that information. That one's not posted just yet, but will be on our Facebook page within the next couple of days. And then also, I have a closing talk April 4th at 4.30.
Paul Szmal: And also, I understand, and either one of you can chime in on these, that there'll be some called Create and Connect Community Art Projects that are going to be conducted as part of this whole partnership.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: So actually, the Create and Connect is something that we've been doing since 2019. It even made its way through the pandemic. We would deliver little packets of art supplies to people right outside our doors via connections on Facebook. They'd drive up to ArtSpace and grab a kit. Now we get to be back in person. So we invite anyone to join us. Tonight is a Create and Connect. That's on Wednesday evenings. Tonight we're going to do Watercolor Galaxies. It's 100% free. Anyone seven and older is welcome to join us. And it's just a really beautiful time from 6.30 to 8 to create art in community, which makes everybody happier. It's so good for your mental health. And it's just so good to treat yourself. And it costs you nothing. We also do it online. It's every third Wednesday. And you can check it out on Facebook. And that way, if you're stuck in your home, we'll give you a list of supplies to find that you would have around your house. And then we all join in a Zoom and make art together.
Paul Szmal: Well, Liz and Joyce, congratulations on the partnership between Gallery32 and ArtSpace36. It sounds like this will be successful for a long time to come in showcasing local artistry.
Liz Brownell, Joyce Kowba: Thank you. We hope so. Thanks, Paul.
Paul Szmal: All right. Have a great day, ladies. Thank you so much for sharing. It is 8.49 on FLX Morning.
