Met in the park on Saturday evening
The Cornwall Arts Collective chose an ideal location for its first event of 2021. The members gathered on Saturday evening at the picnic pavilion between the Town playground and the Little League fields.
During the day, the area is swarming with kids. But by 6:30 p.m. on May 15, the youngsters had all gone home.
The meeting was informal. The guests chatted in small groups until Rebecca Kashinski stood up and got their attention. “2020 was going to be our year,” she began.
You can imagine the rest. Last year, the membership had a well-attended show at 2 Alices in Cornwall-on-Hudson. And then the pandemic brought the world to a halt. In spite of the lockdown and COVID restrictions, the group continued to function. It hosted an online show in the summer and produced an attractive booklet featuring its work and explaining its mission, copies of which are available for free at 2 Alices and Cornwall Coffee Co. & Mercantile.
The group has three objectives – to support the arts, promote artists, and enhance life through art. There was an obvious camaraderie at the Saturday evening event. The guests enjoyed one another. And showed an interest in what their fellow artists were creating.
The Collective has a social function as a place where artists can feel at home. But its aspirations go beyond that. The members hope to have an impact on the community. It corresponds to their third goal of enhancing life through art. So after Mrs. Kashinski recounted the hardships of 2020, the focus turned to the current year and the ways to interact with nonmembers. Most suggestions would require help or permission from outsiders. An idea that surfaced several times was having art displayed at the Cornwall farmers market or the summer concerts. Almost as popular was the prospect of displaying art at a business, where the exhibit might attract additional customers.
Since its formation in 2018, the Collective has been conspicuous. It hosted an “Artist’s Alley” at a Shop Hop and produced nature-themed art for a group show at the Cornwall Public Library. It will be interesting to see what events the members concoct for the summer and fall.
To learn more about the Collective, or to become a member, email cornwallartscollective@gmail.com.
