Art in the Park began 37 years ago with a handful of artists selling their works on the Square. It was sponsored by the Medina County Arts Council and it was an immediate success. Since then, it has evolved into Medina’s premier summer event, attracting artists from across the country and thousands of spectators and shoppers.

Sunday, July 18 was hot, as it is every year for Art in the Park  — although it didn’t rain as it has frequently in the past. The smell of roasting hot dogs permeated the air, (Kiwanis had set up their concession stands), and there was — as always — the delightful anticipation of finding a treasure to purchase from the 130 artists set up in bright white tents that spread throughout the entire park like a Bedouin encampment.

The show, which was juried, was judged this year by Scott Ligon,  professor at the Cleveland Institute of Art and an acclaimed digital artist.

The awards were:

Best of Show: Josh Rush for his oil painting.

Traditional, 1st through 3rd: Kathleen Green (oil painting), Sharon Borror (watercolor) and Doug Lehnhardt (acrylic)

Non-traditional: 1st through 3rd: Leo Charette (photography), Sharon Stolzenberger (painting) and Sandy Kephart (fiber).

Functional: 1st through 3rd: Paul and Debra Bahm (wood), John Smothers (wood) and Elaine Lamb (ceramics).

Non-functional: 1st through 3rd: Bob Pozarski (glass), Joe Leonard (wood) and Richard Ruehle (wood).

Here are some of the sights:

Painted and quilted fabrics were colorful and profuse.

Perennial favorite, Elaine Lamb offered ceramic ware embossed with her distinctive sgraffito trim.

Wood sculptures came in interesting sizes and shapes. This one, designed for a garden, was particularly distinctive.

This very artistic metalwork attracted a great deal of attention.

As did the beautiful stained glass.  There was glass ware of all kinds, from the functional to the wearable.

And of course, there were paintings in great profusion– oil, water color acrylic. Which was, of course, how it all began, 37 years ago.

A view from the north side of the Square.

Lisa Bond of Art 101 Gallery

Bond, ( below at left)  surrounded by some of the most  exciting art in the area, greets guests at the gallery opening. A recent arrival in northeast Ohio, she owned an art gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona for 22 years.

The Gazebo, Photo by Jeffery Heaton, Medina High School, Class of 1995.

The Gazebo, Photo by Jeffery Heaton, Medina High School, Class of 1995.

We wish you all the best in 2010, Medina! May your hopes and dreams become reality this year.

Oh, Christmas Tree!

To see more photography of the Medina Public Square decorated for the holidays by Medina lawyer Denis Kucharski (Medina High School class of 1995), click here.

Elaine Lamb founded Mud Mothers Pottery in 1975.  It remains a Medina institution…

“The name Mud Mothers is so seventies,” Elaine observes.

But at the time it was very appropriate.  She and a friend, Sarah Jane Ingraham, were both mothers of young children and were both drawn to the delights of turning mud into beautiful pots.  Eventually, the friend moved on to other interests, but pottery became Elaine’s passion and life’s work.

“Even as our world moves to a global economy with ever-advanced technologies, our spirit is still moved by the hand-made piece. The mark of the hand remains essential to our personal expression,”  Elaine says.

After studying at the Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina,  her style evolved into a carving process called “sgraffito”.  The clay, after being carved, is painted with ceramic underglaze stains and bisque fired.

“I tell stories in clay,” she says.  “There are images I carve over and over again — things that have significance for me, like books, wine glasses, coffee cups…”

For many years Elaine owned a successful studio/gallery in Medina’s historic district.  Currently she divides her time between a sunlit studio behind her restored Victorian house, and her North Carolina mountain retreat where she has a second home and studio.

She can be reached at enlamb@verizon.net.

The Largely Literary Theater Company’s performance of  “A Christmas Carol” on Sunday December 6, in  St. Paul’s Episcopal Church lacked the 3-D pyrotechnics of the version currently running in the cinemas, but was undoubtedly closer to Charles Dickens’ original vision. The 1884 Gothic Revival church with its arched ceilings and stained glass windows was an appropriately Victorian setting for the British writer’s tale of the evils of selfishness and greed transformed into a Christmas Day redemption

The Largely Literary Theater Company consists of three actors –Tom Stephan (Scrooge), Sarah Showman (15 different characters) and Mark Dawidziak (Charles Dickens).  They perform  on a stage equipped with a minimum of props, and remain faithful to every word in Dickens’ short novel.

The performance was a benefit for the Scholarship Fund of the American Association of University Women (AAUW). The organization awards two scholarships annually to non-traditional women students.

For more information about the performers, click here:

left to right:

Tom Stephan (Scrooge) is a retired English and drama teacher who has appeared in numerous productions with the Akron Weathervane Theater and the Ohio Shakespeare Festival at Stan Hywet Hall.

Sarah Showman (15 different characters) is the general manager of the group and holds a degree in acting and directing from Kent State.

Mark Dawidziak (Charles Dickens), the artistic director of The Largely Literary Company,  is also the television critic at the Cleveland “Plain Dealer”.  He is the author of several books and  plays Mark Twain in the troupe’s “Twain By Three”.  He is married to Sarah Showman.