Professional Development for Artists

Being working artists as well as gallery owners ('gallerinas', we've been called), we have a unique perspective, being on both sides of the fence, so to speak.

Obviously, the most critical piece is making the art- That's Step 1- without that, there's nothing. Then, there's the education piece- whether by reading, experimenting with new techniques, visiting museums and galleries,  or exploring worlds within and around us. That's Step 2.

Step 3- 'BE READY' sneaks up on us- but it's critical.
While we're busy creating and learning, our work gets stronger, and guess what, people start to notice! As more opportunites arise to show our work, it's really important that the accompanying material we present to galleries and museums is well-presented and professional- in short, reflects, complements and informs the quality of our art.  Artist statements, bios, and resumes need to be articulate, thoughtful, well-written, and READY!

The only thing worse than a bad picture is NO picture.  When a newspaper asks us for images, the ones we reach for first are the ones that are appropriately sized (300dpi, 6 in. longest side, about 1 MB jpeg file size) and labeled (Artist last name_artwork title.jpeg)  And they need it NOW. More than once, a reporter has expressed interest in featuring a piece from a show; unfortunately we haven't had a jpeg to give them. The artists who didn't have the material available lost an opportunity to have their work seen by a wider audience because they were not prepared.

Periodically, we're offering brief, tarketed workshops to build the skill set needed for Step 3, so that we can get it right and 'BE READY' when asked for these materials. Two which are upcoming are listed below. Visit our website for more information and to register.

Photograph Your Artwork, taught by Jeremy Graves of Damianos Photography

Friday, March 30, 2012
9:30 am to 12:00 pm


Cost: $60 Fountain Street Fine Art members

  $70 non-members

minimum 4 students, maximum of 12

registration deadline 3/25/12

Learn how to photograph both 2-D and 3-D artwork. Angle of view, lighting, metering, polarizing and appropriate lens type/focal length will be covered. The session will take place in a gallery setting, giving participants the opportunity to learn to take effective installation shots as well. Basic knowledge and familiarity with your camera is necessary.


Writing Your Artist Statement Doesn’t Have To Hurt: Nail It Once And For All!

Taught by nationally recognized expert Ariane Goodwin, Ed.D.

Saturday, June 9, 2012 12 – 4 pm

Cost:      $65 Students and Fountain Street Fine Art members

  $75 non-members

Registration deadline 6/1/2012

Ariane Goodwin is the creator of the SmARTist Telesummit, and author of Writing the Artist Statement: Revealing the true Spirit of your Work, a comprehensive guide to writing an effective statement. In 4 hours, articulate your vision and prepare your statement, a key tool for reaching your buyers and collectors, who love your art, but need that extra push to pull out their wallets.

Two artists, two distinctly different media; is there a connection?

              YES. Definitely!

above:Grignaffini and Lougee's work in the Gallery.

 The work of Bob Grignaffini & Michelle Lougee, when brought together, complement each other in surprising ways. Each artist has a strong body of work, compelling in its own right. 

But there’s a synergy, a kind of electric current that jumps between the paintings and  sculptures, that makes the show greater than the sum of its parts.

In retrospect, it makes perfect sense. On the surface, the form and color used by Bob Grignaffini in his work is replicated in the shapes and textures of Michelle’s sculpture. But beyond that, conceptually both artists are strongly attuned to the natural world around us, and to a sense of place.

B. Grignaffini, Into the Garden

In his painting, as well as his work as a landscape professional, Bob shows a passion for creating self-sustaining ecosytems, for designing edible landscapes,  and for working with unprocessed materials such as stone and rough cut timber. Whether on the canvas or in the landscape, his work strives to show the heart and organic movement in what he is creating. His love of material carries over to his painting in the sense that his works have a very painterly quality. Expressing a love for the texture and color of the paint, equal to whatever image he is portraying on the canvas, is closely intertwined with nature, and infused with a sense of our place within it.

M.Lougee, Apologia.

Michele Lougee’s body of work, entitled Material Nature, is a collection of tactile woven forms inspired by microscopic ocean creatures. With some 20,000 types of organisms in a liter of seawater, there are many beautiful forms to draw from. In a continued exploration of material, she has used plastic bags, to crochet  enlargements of some of these life supporting underwater organisms.

The work of both artists is informed by their passion, understanding and concern for the fragile beauty of the world we inhabit, and reflects this in distinct but complementary ways.

Bob Grignaffini & Michelle Lougee: Painting & Sculpture 

runs through March 11.

Gallery hours Thursday-Sunday 11-5 

and as always, by appointment 508.879.4200

For the love of ART

The Artist’s Valentine (1996-2011) project has run its course and sadly will not be happening this year. For those of you not familiar with the Artist’s Valentine Project , it was a fundraising event for artists, by artists. Artists created & donated valentines, which were then sold. The proceeds from the sale were put toward merit grants for artists.  We thought this was such a great project that we had planned to ask our artists to make some valentines to donate to them.  As it is not happening, we are still going to invite artists to create & donate valentines to sell at Fountain Street Fine Art. The proceeds from the sale of valentines will be used to fund our Summer Project. Details for our summer project are still in development, but we can say it will be fun, and entries will need to be postmarked by July 15! More info will be available over the coming months. In the meantime, come visit to donate and/or buy your one-of-a-kind handmade valentines.

For the love of ART- 

Flash artful valentines sale!

Looking for a one-of-a-kind valentine? Come to Fountain Street Fine Art and check out the growing selection of handmade valentines and other one-of-a-kind works of art for sale.

The suggested minimum donation for handmade valentine cards is $5.00.  Other work in our Small Work Showcase ranges in price from $20 - $500.  All proceeds from Valentine sales will go toward funding our Summer Project.

This is the Final Weekend for  First Anniversary: PAPER.

Please stop by!