Mason, Anderson, and Menzel to be featured at FoA
For the City Times
STEVENS POINT – On April 5, 62 Midwest artists will come together for the sake of creative connection during Stevens Point Festival of the Arts (FoA). Confirmed exhibiting artists include Plover-native Melissa Mason, whose award-winning scratchboard art has gotten her previous honors at FoA. She specializes in realistic animal portraits.
Last year’s “Best of Show,” oil painter Marc Anderson will return with his realistic landscapes.
Another repeating exhibitor is Scott Menzel, whose digital art captures the eyes of many, including Claire Wyhuske who now sponsors him.
This sponsorship is in honor of Wyhuske’s nephew, Wade Choudoir who passed away two years ago. He was a Stevens Point artist with autism, and she hopes to continue celebrating his life with a local organization that provides opportunities to artists with disabilities.
Wyhuske said, “I attended the Festival of the Arts the year prior to Wade’s death and spotted Scott Menzel. I marveled at the intricacies of Scott’s art pieces in addition to his ability to overcome obstacles to display at the Festival. I decided to sponsor Scott not only for 2019 but every year thereafter should he be selected as a vendor. It is an honor to sponsor him again this year In Memory of Wade.”
Other artists include those working with fiber, glass, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and wood.
The event will include a Kids’Art Zone, art raffle, and community raffle.
For 48 years, Stevens Point FoA has focused on “bringing artists together for the overall enhancement of the community.” This includes helping better arts education.
Each year, through local business support, Community Art Grants are distributed to emerging scholar artists of elementary to college ages.
This year, seven Community Art Grants will be delivered to different art education programs. Recipients of these awards include UWSP Studio Art and Arts Management students, Riverfront Arts Center’s Emerging middle and high school artists, as well as Boys and Girls Club of Portage County, Madison Elementary, Ben Franklin Junior High, and SPASH students.
The event will be held at SentryWorld, 601 N. Michigan Ave., Stevens Point, 10 a.m. – 4p.m.