Ruby Szekeres Photos.
Amidst the rise and fall of chatter, artist Sherry Block kept a twinkling eye on her sculptures, as if they might come to life. Beneath white fairy lights, a suite of metal flowers, trees and brightly colored animals all cast long shadows across the table. A metal cat nimbly pawed the deep green tablecloth. The bright red fabric beside her harmonized with the light greens, blues and earth tones Block uses in her work.
Saturday, Block was one of five artists at the Guilford Art Center’s (GAC) pop up holiday expo, featuring artists from the Lyme Artisans Guild among other small businesses, creatives and makers. The hope of the expo, which is still ongoing, is to support artists from the shoreline and across Connecticut and New England as the year draws to a close.
“Shoppers should feel good in knowing that every gift they purchase supports an artist and the Guilford Art Center’s mission to bring arts to the community,” said GAC Executive Director Maureen Belden in a statement released earlier this fall. “It’s a gift that does so much good.”
Last weekend, artists like Block were part of building that creative and small business ecosystem. Inspired by a class she took at Creative Arts Workshop (CAW), Block has been making sculptures with recycled metal since 2014. Initially “I learned from the same instructor who taught my mom” at CAW, she said. Now, Block teaches the same class and hopes to inspire more.
For several hours, she displayed her signature metal pieces in the gallery. “When the organizer of the guild asked to see if anyone was able or wanted to come show their art, I was very excited to do so,” she said.
To her left, Block shared space with fiber artist Carol Stanland, founder of the Lyme Artisans Guild. In advance of the week, Stanland worked with GAC members to arrange the pop-up, which is one of multiple showcases that the Art Center will be hosting this month.
Stanland was happy to be there, she said. “It is really great to be able to show our work like this here.”
Though Stanland’s main medium is textiles, she also makes ceramics. She explained that her love for art started off when she was a child, and since then she has added knitting, sewing and embroidery to her portfolio. After years of doing fiber arts as a hobby, she started doing them more professionally 15 years ago.
Saturday, she also showed off a small display of earrings made out of Czech glass made by her friend Michaelle Pearson, a member of The Lyme Artisans Guild who was unable to be there.
While Block and Stanland use metal and fabric in their work, Paul Maulucci brought his collection of wooden bowls. Since high school, Maulucci has been working with wood. Using wood from copper beech and apple trees (among others), he finds materials local to him. When looking for a piece to work with, he said he looks for wood with character, meaning it bends in an unusual way or had once acted as a home for bugs.
“I like to show the natural wood grain in my work,” Maulucci said. His main tool is his lathe, which helps him rotate the bowl and shape it into his desired shape. He doesn’t have a favorite wood to work with in particular because, “I use wood which will go best with my project, and it is all about the grain of the wood.”
One table that really stood out belonged to Troy Antoniewicz, who had an assortment of copper and steel sculptures and functional creations. Growing up on a farm as a kid, Antoniewicz always loved to fix things with his hands, he said. For 20 years, he has been making hooks, bookstands, sculptures and more. One of his most popular creations was a metal maple leaf.
“I find leaves when I go on walks with my dog, he said. “Once we see one, I bring it to the forge and trace it on a piece of metal.”
Antoniewicz doesn’t always have a solid plan for his creations, especially with some of his book stands. What might have started out as a piece of a train track becomes an ornate handle for a fire stoker. “I just love seeing what comes out in the end,” Antoniewicz said. He has made a small copper spoon to an iron railing for a porch.
The Art Center was a new place to attendees like Marybeth and her friend Pam (neither wanted to give their last name) who had seen a notice for the expo it in the newspaper. “We were just looking for events that were going on during the day,” Pam said. She added that both were enjoying the day.
The art center was also new to Tom Mabry, who read about the holiday expo in a magazine. “This place is great to see people’s art and be part of the community,” Marbry said.
This article comes from the 2024 Cohort of the Youth Arts Journalism Initiative. Ruby Szekeres is a sophomore at the Sound School.