Youth Art Displays: Wesserunsett Arts Council began this program in August of 2019. We are always looking for excellent youth artists to display their work in the front window of Warren’s Office Supplies in downtown Skowhegan. Any youth artist aged 14 to 18 years old in Somerset county is eligible, including those who are home-schooled. During the 2019-2021 time period, youth artists from Skowhegan Area High School, Carrabec High School, Madison Area Memorial High School, and home schooling were featured. In November 2021, we will display work from Margaret Chase Smith School students. We would like to expand our incoming art to areas much further out into the whole of Somerset County! The Youth Art display runs for 3 months during each quarter of the calendar year. This gives young artists a chance to get their names out there, their work seen, and to possibly sell pieces as well. Not only are people able to see the display in person, but announcements and photographs of the displays are pasted onto the WesArts website and onto the WesArts Facebook page. To top it off, an art display is a great item to add to college resumes!
All interested youth artists are asked to send in photographs and titles of each piece, a price or a note of NFS if it is not for sale, a short biography, and a way for the viewing public to contact the artist. All submitted artwork will be approved for display by business owner, Warren Roberts, and by WesArts Youth Coordinator, Lyn Govoni. Please send in your submission to Lyn at wesartsinfo@gmail.com.
Art Kits for Kids: Wesserunsett Arts Council began this program in May of 2021 with the help of other community organizations. It is a program that will distribute take-home Art Kits to children (ages 12 and younger) in the Skowhegan area. Based on the program started by Waterville Creates in April of 2020, these Art Kits are intended to provide access to art during the coronavirus pandemic and then into the future. Each month, the Art Kit will have a new theme, educational information about the theme, printed directions as well as a link to online visual directions, and materials to create art based on that theme. April’s theme was migrating birds, May’s theme was bugs, and June’s theme was pets. There was a break over the summer months to allow the Skowhegan Free Public Library to run their 6-week summer reading program which includes Art Kits. WesArts has continued providing Art Kits for Kids since September and plans to continue through December of 2021.
For the initial month of April, the KVCAP Family Enrichment Council helped to pass out the Art Kits for Kids along with their Free Drive Thru Meal program. After that, WesArts passed out kits at other community locations, such as the River Roads Art Gallery, the Coolidge Library in Solon, and at Harmony Elementary School. We are always on the look-out for volunteers to come up with themes and ideas for crafts and help pack the Art Kits, as well as receiving ideas of where to pass out the kits! Thank you, to the following donors (in no particular order): United Way of Mid-Maine, Coburn Park Commission, American Legion, Skowhegan Sportsman’s Club, Skowhegan-Madison Elks, Lions Club, Rotary Club, Community Regional Charter School, and GFWC Semper Fidelis. If you would like to contribute your ideas or your time, please contact Lyn at wesartsinfo@gmail.com.
Youth Art Scholarships: We will be posting the description and application soon and we will be looking for applicants by February 14th, 2022.
