What a busy Holiday Season!

The Art League’s 50th Holiday Fine Art & Craft Fair held on December 6 & 7 was a smashing success! Many came out in force and bought some truly unique gifts from the more than 75 artists and craftspeople at the Fair. Congratulations are in order for Best in Show winner Michael Albert’s collage work, as judged by Anahi DeCanio and Sally Shore. Also winning awards for Awards of Excellence were Chris Hammer (fiber art dolls), Robert Goldwitz (photography), Tom Homann (ceramics). Honorable Mentions went to Marlo Richards (copper gemstone wire jewelry), Dayna Bell-King (mosaics), and Catherine Buckley (steampunk jewelry).

Congratulations are also in order for the winners of Part Two of the Art League’s annual Members’ Exhibition: Pat Ralph, Gia Schifano, Marie Sheehy-Walker, Anna Tsontakis-Mally, Vesna Volaric, Greg Tsontakis-Mally, Eleanor Meier, Paul Moreno, Nancy Pallack, Jackie Stevens, Angela Stratton, Shawn Sullivan, Susan Tango, Kalliope Viegas, and Elizabeth Waywell. These 15 artists were singled out from among the 114 works on display. The decision must have been difficult for juror Robert Carter, as all the pieces show remarkable talent. Come visit the gallery soon, the exhibit closes December 30!

Sat/Nite/Draw brought out a determined group who drove to the Art League and weathered the winter storm. Pierre Bernard Jr. led the group of intrepid artists in drawing from live models dressed in Steampunk attire, and signed copies of his book “18 x 24 and Other Sizes”. A video crew from Newsday was on hand to shoot the event, so keep an eye out on Newsday’s website for the video!

All are invited to bring family and friends to the Cabaret Concert for the Holidays happening this Saturday, December 21 at 8pm in the Jeanie Tengelsen Gallery. Janice Buckner will be joined by Ben Boecker, Anna E. Kravis, and Miles Kravis for a fun evening of live musical entertainment. Between the Art League and the generosity of these wonderful musicians, the event is a gift to the public with free, admission, wine (and other refreshments!), cheese, and holiday cheer.

Please remember loved ones on your holiday shopping list with the precious gift of art, whether it be a drawing class, membership, or even a work of art from the Members’ Exhibition and Strolling Gallery. At this time of the year as many of you are deciding on your charitable giving plans, please consider sponsoring the many activities and programs the Art League offers throughout the year!

Wishing you all a happy, healthy, holiday season,

Charlee Miller, Executive Director,

Art League of Long Island

What an early taste of winter we had, with the snow falling earlier this week. It’s a real reminder of what’s to come just around the corner. We are ready for the season with the online publication of our Winter Classes and Workshops. Hard copies will be available within the next two weeks.

Our Holiday Fine Art & Craft Fair, now in its 50th year, is happening on December 7 and 8 in the Art League’s spacious galleries and studios. There is a gift for just about everybody on your shopping list to be found among the one-of-a-kind handcrafted items made by the artists you will meet at the fair. Not sure what to get for your artsy friends? Purchase an ALLI gift certificate for your friends to use towards an art class of their choosing, or make a donation to the Art League in the name of a dear friend.

Congratulations to award of excellence and honorable mention winners of Members’ Exhibition 2013: Part One! Come see their work in the gallery, it’s quite a show with 119 works of art on display created by our many talented members.

We are thrilled to have renowned realist painter Max Ginsburg return to the Art League for his sold-out weekend workshop “Painting a Portrait from Life in Oil” on November 16 and 17. In addition, we are happy to host more VIP guest artist workshops in the coming year by Laura Westlake, Shelli Ardizzone, Antonio Masi, Keiko Tanabe, Edward Little, and Liz Haywood-Sullivan.

Please remember to vote for us in the Bethpage Best of Long Island, the Long Island Press’ annual survey. We were nominated for Best Art School, under the category of education. Don’t keep it a secret, let all of Long Island know we are your number one art school!

We have had quite a calendar of exciting exhibits and events this past year that were successful if not for the generous donation of time and effort by our many volunteers. My sincerest gratitude goes out to all of you!