First Friday Festival kickoff, Gallery Hop and open house at the Guild

DALTON — The Creative Arts Guild will celebrate its 47th anniversary of a “Festival of Fine Arts and Crafts” this year at its August First Friday opening and Volunteer Party.

Festival’s Indoor Exhibit of 123 artworks includes jewelry, pottery, painting, drawing, pastels, watercolor, photography, wood, sculptur, and assemblages. First Friday is Friday at 5:30 p.m. in the Guild’s main gallery.

First Friday Kickoff Party is also a time when volunteers gather to pick up their Festival T-shirts, sign up for volunteer duties for Festival weekend, enjoy previewing the show, and gathering with fellow volunteers. This year’s kickoff party chair is Mary Beth Pool and she has put together an evening filled with great eats and drinks.

“Festival First Friday is a favorite with our community,” Leanne Lawson, Guild events director, said. “In many ways it’s a homecoming for a lot of folks who have been involved with Festival for years.”

First Friday gallery hop

Join the Creative Arts Guild, Kellie Smith Designs and Michael’s Fine Art and Framing by attending First Friday openings each month to promote area and regional artists.

Kellie Smith Designs is in downtown Dalton on Hamilton Street and Michael’s Fine Arts and Framing is on Dug Gap Road. All will be open Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. and a trolley will be available between the three venues. First Fridays are free and open to the public.

Fall open house at the Guild and Studio 111

Friday, Aug. 13, marks fall open house for the Creative Arts Guild and the Studio 111 Complex.

Each year the Guild opens it studios doors and invites the community in. The public is welcome to stop by both places for tours, to meet the program directors and instructors, for art activities, to munch on light refreshments, gather information and to enroll.

The Guild will be showing off its latest expansion efforts at the Studio 111. The gymnastics studio is a 6,000-square-foot center at 111 Glenwood Ave. in Suite B. The center is filled with new state of the art gymnastics equipment, an Olympic standard 42-square-foot spring floor, a special birthday party center and more.

“The positive response from the community has been overwhelming. We are so proud to have such a tremendous space for our program and are looking forward to lots of visitors this Saturday” Jessica Dyer, gymnastics director, said.

The Glenwood Avenue Complex also boasts the relocation of the Guild’s Dance Department. Dancers now have three dance studios, two offices, a dressing room and a large waiting area in a 4,000-square-foot space.

“The additional dance studio has allowed us the opportunity for individual training and private lessons. We are encourage by our enrollment numbers so early in the season,” dance director Jessie Bonanno said.

The biggest news for this coming year is the addition of the Guild’s new division, Creative Learning. The new program area at the Guild will offer special instruction to students who learn differently and require special considerations. The program will have an arts integration component so that these students will have a well-rounded experience.

Kristy Slocumb will serve as director of Creative Learning and has several therapists on staff to accommodate each student’s needs. The new classroom spaces will be available for our community to visit as they gather information about this new opportunity through the Guild.

Contact the Guild at 706-278-0168 or visit www.creativeartsguild.org for additional information.

The Creative Arts Guild is the oldest multidisciplinary community arts organization in the state of Georgia. The Guild is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts (GCA) through appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. GCA receives support from its partner agency, the National Endowment for the Arts.

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