Milford to celebrate The 2019 Big Draw Festival DE during October
In keeping with Mispillion Art League’s mission to provide community-wide access to a quality visual arts program, MAL presents The 2019 Big Draw Festival DE sponsored by Bayhealth. The aim of this month-long October Festival is to encourage community members to participate in making art and to enjoy the benefits of self-expression and creativity using a multitude of mediums. In addition to classes and events held at MAL, the business owners in the City of Milford have fully embraced the festival and will be hosting participants at their locations.
The Riverfront Theater opens its doors for Open Sketch, where artists dropped in and sketch Second Street Players in costume. Red Bandana invites folks to bring their favorite superheroes to life in a family-friendly workshop building a superhero prop Saturday, Oct. 5. Also that day, Downtown Milford Inc.’s Riverwalk Farmers Market is donating space to MAL for a free kick-off event, including pumpkin painting and a community canvas painting project. At the same time, visitors to Dolce Bakery can try their hand at painting with coffee, led by artist Cathy Walls, while the barista brews their favorite beverage.
The Milford Public Library has found a perfect use for those old card catalogs - create art on them Tuesday, Oct. 8, along with other arts activities. Beer lovers can decorate their own growlers at Mispillion River Brewing Wednesday, Oct. 9, in a fun workshop led by artist Claudia Cianci. Using light in a darkened room, participants will move to live music at The Music School of Delaware to create exciting photographs, led by local photographer John Mollura, Friday, Oct. 12.
Another opportunity for figure sketching is offered at First State Dance Academy where artists can join Urban Sketchers Delaware to Sketch Dancers in Motion Saturday, Oct. 13. Arena’s Deli & Bar is providing Imagination Stations for Grown-Ups, a take-off on a popular event offered at MAL for kids. Drop in for a meal and wander back to the meeting room to experiment with different art materials Monday, Oct. 15.
This organization is 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 www.delawarescene.com.
ArtTrail on the Riverwalk Saturday, Oct. 19, will lead participants to the Vinyard Shipyard where they can join Urban Sketchers DE in sketching the boats and artifacts and learn about this historic gem in downtown Milford - one of the last remaining shipyards in Delaware.The Milford Museum welcomes Big Draw participants to sketch its exhibits and historic building that was once a U.S. Post Office. Look for Lulu the Ladybug to show up in sketches from the museum as well.
Gallery 37 is hosting a Pure Drawing Show in support of Mispillion Art League’s The Big Draw Festival DE with the opening reception Thursday, Oct. 17, and running through Nov 16.
Most of these events are offered free of charge or for a nominal fee. For further information about The 2019 Big Draw Festival DE’s events and to register for classes and workshops, visit https://www.mispillionarts.org/big-draw-de/
Also participating in The 2019 Big Draw Festival DE are Jerry’s Artarama in Newark, Milton Arts Guild, Rehoboth Art League, Developing Artist Collaboration in Rehoboth, Gallery 107/Nanticoke River Arts Council in Seaford, and Downtown Dover Partnership bringing other exciting art opportunities to our surrounding communities. Big Draw news and events are posted on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thebigdrawde2019 and at https://www.mispillionarts.org/big-draw-de/, and on Delaware Scene’s online calendar.
For further information, contact Rosemary Connelly, festival chair, at 302-359-5534, livecheapmakeart@gmail.com, or Sonja Frey, co-chair, mispillionarts@gmail.com, 302-430-7646.
