Spotlight on the Arts

HEART ON A STRING BIDDING IS UNDERWAY; DON’T MISS OUT!

Are you bidding? The CAMP Rehoboth HeART on a String art event bidding site is now open, and CAMP Rehoboth invites you to the fun.

This invitational event showcases the work of emerging and established artists who have joined together to support the arts, and you can too. Read some of their stories below, but here’s the gist of the event.

The artists were invited to submit small works of art—approximately 12 inches square, give or take a little—for full or partial donation. They have been hanging in the gallery since April 23 and stirring up a lot of interest. This auction follows in the tradition of our HeART of The Community and LottoHeart projects with several returning and new artists to add to your collection.

You can view these wonderful pieces in person at the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center or place a bid online.

All the bidding is online, but don’t let that worry you if you aren’t that computer savvy. Come to the Closing Bid Reception, and someone can help you bid to win. It’s fun and can help us all chip in to team up to support the arts.

Come Celebrate!
The Closing Bid Reception will be at CAMP Rehoboth on May 26 from 5 to 7 p.m. Bidding can be done at the reception or online. The actual bidding will close at exactly 6:30 p.m. on May 26 and bidders will learn if they have won the bidding wars.

Stories Behind the Art
Art often tugs at our heartstrings and the stories from the exhibiting artists will tug at yours. Come see their visions and hear their stories on May 26 at the Closing Bidding Reception.

Vincent Hughes:  “When my partner and I first came to Rehoboth in the 70s, we used to stay in a guest house on Baltimore Avenue named The Crow’s Nest. The building that was once that guest house serves today as the home of CAMP Rehoboth. Back then, I would sit on Poodle Beach and sketch the Speedo-clad men sunbathing around me, as they conveniently remained motionless for long periods of time. Now I have the luxury of painting from professional models who pose without Speedos. Building up layers of transparent colors to represent the reflections and shadows defining the male figure, I strive to express its timeless beauty. My painting, Summer Gold, is reminiscent of my early Poodle Beach sketches, scenes illuminated by summertime’s golden light.”

Donna Deely: “I’ve been coming to Rehoboth for over 30 years, and many of my works are linked to my love of the beach. Whether it’s an oyster, the north shore towers, or lobster buoys, they all remind me of the place I am most happy—near the ocean. Lobster buoys are full of color and conjure up wonderful memories of lobster rolls and weathered and crusty old seafood shacks I’ve visited up and down the coast.”

Jeffrey Todd Moore: “I created my piece especially for this event. When I heard the theme was Heart on a String, I immediately thought of Steve Elkins and how all of CAMP Rehoboth must have felt like their hearts were hanging by a thread. I’ve always liked the logo that Murray created for CAMP Rehoboth and remembered that it had a heart in it. I thought of that heart falling out. But there is a house built around that heart and that represented a foundation, a structure that could hold up this heart and eventually recover.”

Yvonne Frankis: “Two of my favorite things in life are music and art. Although I’ve been painting since I was nine years old, it was about five years ago that I realized every time I painted, I had to have the right soundtrack while I worked. My huge love of music had influenced me all along, but now I know each song I love has a painting attached in my mind. My piece, done using only black and white paints, is titled Ridin’ the Storm Out,  influenced by REO Speedwagon’s song of that title. I chose this piece for the show because so many of the fabulous people who come to CAMP for love, acceptance, friendship and more have ridden out storms of their own or have people in their worlds with stories to tell.”

Michael Mueller: “The piece I designed Sleep Softly Fallen Angel was inspired by Steve Elkins. Steve was so dear to me, and it was so inspiring and sad to watch his journey. When it came time to do the piece, he was so much on my mind that the muses brought me this angel to honor and celebrate the amazing life he led. He was truly an angel and hero to so many people.”

The funds raised through the sale of art, along with a grant award from Delaware Division of the Arts, are used to support CAMP Rehoboth arts—visual, performance, and more.▼

CAMP Rehoboth arts programs are supported in part by a grant from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. The Division promotes Delaware arts events on DelawareScene.com.