Mothers Day Scholarship Fund Appeal

This Mother’s Day, please consider honoring the mother in your life by making a charitable donation in any amount to AVA’s Scholarship Fund. 100% of your fully tax-deductible donation will help us provide a child with an enriching art experience.

All donors to AVA’s Scholarship Fund will receive an original AVA greeting card thanking them for their contribution to a young artist’s creative path through AVA’s art classes and camps.

Click here to honor the mother in your life with a donation to AVA’s Mother’s DayScholarship Fund.

Public Art :: Spooky Sculptures, Halloween 2013

Hidden Spooky Sculptures Made for Free Halloween Treats!


Participants in this fall’s Sculpture Modeling, Plaster Casting, and A Public Art Project, an AVA class taught by Ernest Montenegro, had a great time working with clay to produce original sculptures in clay. Once the final designs were completed, participants made molds from which they created a series of plaster-cast multiples. The plaster sculptures were then hidden throughout the PowerHouse Mall on Halloween-where children and families could find these surprise gifts of art during the mall’s annual trick-or-treating celebrations.

 

AVA wishes to thank the PowerHouse Mall, the sponsor of this Public Art Project.

AVA’s Green Building Challenge: A Work in Progress

This past spring, we were pleased to announce a new initiative: AVA’s Green Building Challenge. Its aim is to significantly shrink our carbon footprint, with the goal of making our facility a “net zero” building by 2017. In other words, we hope to have a building that ultimately produces more energy than it consumes.

As we continue the conservation efforts that began with our 2007 building renovation, we will also begin tapping into the significant solar-power potential of our site.

The first phase of this goal began in May, when we contracted with the Jordan Institute to focus on the energy-saving opportunities inherent in our building and to examine the potential for renewable energy. In hiring the Jordan Institute—New Hampshire’s premier think-tank dedicated to addressing climate change in the built environment through aggressive building efficiency upgrades— we will once again be working with the team that was instrumental in our achieving LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold-certification for our renovation. Jordan’s staff, led by Paul Leveille, is currently analyzing three years of our energy consumption, both thermal and electrical. (It is already evident that the 2011 LED lighting upgrade in our gallery spaces made a significant reduction in kilowatt-hours.)

The strategy is to reduce the electrical loads as much as possible (measuring devices placed throughout the building will identify areas for improvement), then address the solar potential of AVA’s rooftop as well as other areas capable of producing both thermal and electrical energy.

The prospect of making the “new” old Carter-Kelsey building net zero has energized AVA’s Board, staff and friends. It builds on work that has been accomplished over the past several years and reflects our ongoing commitment to sustainability. It is in our DNA: The Arts and the Environment—a winning combination!

Micro Macro 2013

AVA Partners with Dartmouth College for a Two-Week Art and Science Summer Camp

Sponsored in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation

Ages 9-12: July 29 – August 9

Teens: August 5 – 16

AVA is delighted to announce the launch of Micro Macro, an art and science camp offered this summer in partnership with Dartmouth College’s Biology Department, the Dartmouth Microscopy Lab, and the Murdough Greenhouses at Dartmouth.

Participants will take field trips to see tropical, sub-tropical, desert, and aquatic plants— including the Brout Orchid Collection—observing plants and their environments from a Macro perspective. A visit to the College’s Microscopy Lab will introduce students to plants on the Micro level, as they see incredibly close using contemporary technology. The insights gained through these trips will be brought back into the art studio, where participants will interpret and express their experiences through 2D and 3D projects, both big and small.

Micro Macro is funded in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation. Sincerest thanks go to Dr. Eric Schaller of Dartmouth College, a longtime AVA member and volunteer, for his leadership and vision in making Micro Macro a reality.

 

2013 Hemberger Architecture Workshop

2013 Hemberger Architecture Workshop

The Second Annual Greg Hemberger Sustainable Architecture Workshop for Teens

July 22–26, 2013

Monday–Friday, 9am–5pm


Created in memory of the architect Greg Hemberger, with the support of the Greg Hemberger Memorial Fund at the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, the first annual Sustainable Architecture Workshop for teens at AVA was a tremendous success. Building upon the strength of the first experience, AVA will be offering the Second Annual Greg Hemberger Sustainable Architecture Workshop July 22–26.

Structured for young people with an interest in sustainable design and construction, this five-day, hands-on workshop will consist of morning sessions at AVA, led by local professionals, and afternoon visits to local architecture offices, construction companies, and LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified buildings. The workshop will incorporate architectural design principles, free-hand drawing, model building, sustainability standards, and other pertinent topics. It will also provide students with new design skills, personal portfolio material, and an idea of whether sustainable architecture and construction is of potential career interest to them.

Participation is limited to 12 students in grades 9-12; younger students can participate with special permission from the instructor. Participants must complete an application to be considered for this workshop. Tuition for this five-day, 40-hour workshop is $350. Scholarships are available to those who need assistance with all or part of the tuition.

Eliza McLellan, who led the program in its first year, will be returning to the Upper Valley from New York, where she works as the assistant to the Design for Risk and Reconstruction Committee at the AIA New York Center for Architecture.

AVA wishes to thank June, Ben, and Gretchen Hemberger for their commitment to the continuation of this important and meaningful offering. Greg Hemberger was for years a partner at Banwell Architects, the architectural firm responsible for the renovation design of our LEED Gold-certified building.

2013 Internships and Camp Assistants

AVA’s 2013 Internships and Camp Assistants

Application Deadline: April 15

AVA’s diverse programs provide dedicated and capable high school and college students the opportunity to make an essential contribution to the work we do in the community, while also gaining skills as they learn about the art world.

Camp Assistants, who are generally high school students passionate about the visual arts, work directly with faculty members to create exciting and memorable Summer Art Camps for children and teens. Click here to download AVA’s 2013 Camp Assistant Application. The application deadline is April 15.

Interns, who are generally high school seniors and college students, help in multiple ways with our education, exhibition, and community arts programs. AVA internships are designed with the unique interests of each applicant in mind —  individuals seeking experience in a fine art gallery, art education and community arts programming, or arts administration would be rewarded by their time at AVA. Click here to download AVA’s 2013 Internship Application. The application deadline is April 15.

Public Art :: Lantern Making Workshop

Working with artist Gowri Savoor, learn how to make your own enchanting lantern from willow bows and tissue paper. The unique workshop will include a brief slideshow to introduce you to the process and the materials.

No previous experience is necessary, and all tools and materials are provided. All ages are welcome to create their own light (children under the age of 8 must be accompanied by an adult.)

Space is limited to 12 participants. A $25 registration fee is requested. Scholarships are available.

Illuminations, sponsor of this community arts program, has been providing lighting to the Upper Valley for over a quarter century.

Paper Lantern-Making is now full. Please give us a call at (603) 448-3117 if you would like to be put on the waitlist. Thank you!

2012 Owl Awards

AVA received a 2012 Owl Award!

 Last night AVA received a 2012 Owl Award for Here, Now: Work by Regional Native American Artists, Best Painting and Sculpture Exhibition.

A big thank you to The Complete Hoot and everything they do for the arts in the Upper Valley!

Y’art Sale

Save the Date!

Saturday, September 15

Frames, Art Supplies, Paintings, Books, Sketchpads and More!

Join us in the first floor lobby of AVA for a fall Y’Art Sale!

We will also be kicking off the start of CAOS in the children’s studio and the latest exhibitions in the galleries and library. Come to AVA for a day of fun!