i was very disappointed last Sunday when i visited the Sharon Arts Center gallery that the exhibit that i wished to see had begun to be taken down, The exhibit, as stated on the sharon Arts Center web site said the exhibit ended on january 7th. When i mentioned this to some one in the Galllery i received a very curt response that the exhibit ended on the 5th and they were dismantling the exhibit i had gone to see, and had begun to replace it with the upcoming exhibit. I had traveled over an hour to get to see this exhibit and besides not being able to see it was treated in a not very nice way by whomever i spoke to. There were others in the gallery that were disappointed as well, that had gone to see this particular exhibit.. i will think again as to whether i will want to waste my time traveling there...
Sharon Arts Center is an important cultural resource for people of all ages in the Monadnock region. It offers professional instruction at reasonable prices as well as opportunities to view/display art and learn about art as a technical and professional practice. I feel very lucky to have this organization in my community.
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I began my relationship with Sharon Arts as a student in the summer classes when I was a sophomore, but my real involvement began with their high school portfolio building class, ArtAccess. It was here that exposed me to the world of art beyond drawing and painting. Nome and Melanie, the leaders of the program, did everything in their power to give us a wonderful experience between taking us to artist studios and planning art events, and showing us how to use new mediums (like metal or chocolate!). I came back to ArtAccess a year later and worked as an intern for the class, and it was just as great, if not better! We did a 150 ft mural for the local hospital and hosted Art Attack which is this crazy open house party type event that lets young adults come to the school overnight and try their hand at a whole bunch of different mediums and art games. But basically, ArtAccess was a creative outlet, a guiding hand, and a type of home for me. I made so many artistic friends, and was exposed to opportunities I never would have found on my own. Sharon Arts is an incredible place, and a safe haven for artists. I'd recommend it to anyone with any type of interest in art in the New England area!
The Sharon Arts Center is an amazing resource for all ages. Teen and children programs offer a multitude of artistic experiences. Classes provide instruction at beginner and advanced levels in a variety of mediums. Staff, volunteers, and teachers are helpful and enthusiastic.
Sharon Arts is the premier arts venue for the Monadnock region. I have been involved with the organization for many years and have enjoyed it immensely. The school of arts and crafts has top notch facilities and faculty. The craft shop has wonderful hand crafted work from local and regional artists. And the gallery space is on par with galleries from New York to L. A. I would recommend visiting the Sharon Arts Center's school and galleries to anyone visiting the Monadnock region. Sharon Arts serves local artists, students, and connoisseurs alike.
I started at the Sharon Arts Center by taking classes. Then I started volunteering with the kids ArtVenture day camp. I loved it and I have been helping there for four years now. I love teaching kids how to express themselves with art and it helped me with my carrer choice of either art teaching or art therapy. It is a great and very welcoming enviornment that anyone can feel confortable in.
The Sharon Arts Center provides a wonderful opportunity for children within our region to experience the world and their own creativity in new and exciting ways. My child started attending their camps when she was in elementary school. She is now in the 6th grade and still looks forward to attending their camps whenever they are offered. However the excitement of the Sharon Arts Center and staff extends beyond the camps to the various gallery shows, exhibits, and events they hold throughout the year. My daughter has been able to use her growing art skills not for just her own enjoyment, but the enjoyment of others. For example, she and other younger students worked with the Sharon Arts Center in conjunction with Crotched Mountain Rehabilitation Center to create a mural for their residents. Another example is that my daughter and others were able to work with the staff at the Sharon Arts Center and the Monadnock Community Hospital to create a series of murals lining the walls of the emergency room entrance to the hospital to make it visually more appealing and soothing to patients while the space was undergoing extensive renovation. The Sharon Arts Center and their staff care about my daughter, the other children and adults they serve, and the wider community in which they reside - what a wonderful group!
I started taking classes at Sharon Arts after a 25-year career in marketing -- I was presented with the opportunity to start working from home, and I took advantage of my newly-flexible schedule. I signed up for a watercolor class with a fantastic teacher and 9 - 10 other truly lovely people.... so peaceful and fulfilling -- what a gift to give yourself!! It was amazing!!
My next class was a drawing class; I signed up with my 16 year old step-daughter and we sketched nude models. My step-daughter was was unsure of her direction in life, but had strong artistic tendencies. We had bonded over the 2 - 3 years we knew each other... but what better way to bond than to sketch nudes together??!! This is a story we will tell forever!!!
I then assisted with some fundraising for the organization, and ultimately found myself on the board... Sharon Arts is a gem in this community, and to the youngsters who may not "fit in a regular" school but have a chance at art school, to the housewife who need a creative outlet beyond folding laundry (that was ME once) to the seniors who need a past-time, both creatively and socially -- Sharon Arts is there -- and there are SO MANY MORE who benefit from this organization! If you want to take art classes, if you are an established artist who wants to sell your art/craft, and if you are an artist who wants to display your work in an exhibit, then Sharon Arts is the place!
And if you want to live in a community that honors and fosters an artistic culture, then come to the Monadnock area... Sharon Arts, along with a long list of other organizations, makes this a lovely place to live and raise a family. I thank everyone who makes the place tick, you are all amazing...
The Sharon Arts Center has been a part of my life for many years. I took a ceramics class back in 1990 when I was an adolescent and greatly enjoyed the experience. I think the variety of art that is shown in the Sharon Arts Gallery in Peterborough is exceptional and the programs that involve the local community are well thought out and fulfilling.
I especially like this gallery because they show an unusual array of exhibits -- not just the usual paintings of New England landscapes. They also exhibit work by local artists and support community events. And they have a broad selection of classes for all ages.
Fantastic, professional arts education, fine art and fine craft galleries, wonderful, knowledgeable staff.
The perfect place to find the perfect gift...ALL HANDMADE.
The uplifting atmosphere, professional staff and school, all make the
Sharon Arts Center THE top gallery for fine arts and crafts in Southern
NH.
My daughter (now age 11) has been participating in the Sharon Arts Center ARTventure camps (summer and school breaks) for several years now, and she absolutely loves them! SAC has fueled her passion for art, developed her artistic talents, and connected her with caring and gifted professionals (the art teachers working with kids there are phenomenal - Naomi Graham and Karrie Mitschmyer in particular). She is even thinking of volunteering there in the future (as part of their Teen Volunteer program). We have a lot of talented artists in the Monadnock area, and Sharon Arts Center gives them a venue to teach, learn, create, display, and hone their craft.
My first class 40 years ago was collage with Nora Unwin. Such a thrill! I have taken many more classes through the years and loved them all. We are so lucky to have this resource located in "Our Town" of Peterborough.
I am excited about the new direction that Sharon is now taking, as it is opening up even more opportunities to the people in our communities. I had become somewhat disappointed in the last several years, especially with the higher pricing of goods for sale in he shop. But now Sharon is more competitive, which is good in this softer economic time.
Sharon Arts is a community resource. Not only does it display lots of crafts and art works, many from NH, but it has more recently reached out to the community to make their gallery more inclusive. Not long ago there was an exhibition for those with visual impairments. What fun to be able to touch a work of art! The classes for all kinds of artistic efforts are exciting opportunities for anyone in the area. As a local resident, I find that I love taking my out-of-town visitors to Sharon Arts just to see the wide variety of gifts and works of art.
SAC came into my life maybe some 25 years ago when I took a jewelry making beginner class. It was a great experience for a person who was very involved in a work/job and who had not allowed herself to be very creative. After the class I unfortunately fell back into the work and lots of overtime work rut and did nothing more than drive by the studio and gallery in the woods of Sharon, stopping in to the store or to an exhibit when an ad or sign caught my eye. My career changed and I found myself in real estate and loving it but working even more crazy hours with a passion and also joining the world of local town committees and organizations. Again I would stop in now and then to SAC, but almost always in a rush. Then my parents both became ill and the care-giving phase of my life took over. Between bouncing back between MA and NH, trying to be a great daughter, a great wife, a great agent, a great board member/chairperson, member or volunteer, etc., I was so out of balance for who I was. It was the true rollercoaster ride that so many others have gone through or are going through and a ride you don't even know about if you have never really been on it. Somewhere in my time of stress I met Melanie from SAC and things changed. She was positive, a great promoter of SAC and, most importantly, a great listener. I started to bump into her at different meetings; she might be there if I stopped into SAC; she would pick up the phone and call me to ask how things were; a brochure or card would come in the mail. Somehow, in the time of some of my deepest difficulties, she got through and I signed up for a Saturday workshop of 2 hours or so on glass bead making class, just to do something for myself for a short time. It was amazing....I was having fun, doing something creative and I left hooked on that flame and that molten mass of fluid color that I twirled and spun. I signed up for a series of classes and then another. Yes, I missed a lot of classes because of what life was still doing, but I at least found some moments of peace, happiness and support in the fellow students, my teachers and staff, and of course, Melanie, who was always there to do what she could and be encouraging. I am sure there are many more examples of what the people and spirit of SAC has done for others and I know SAC aspires to do much more in the community if given the financial support and opportunity. I truly believe that Art, and those who have a passion for sharing Art, can help so many people at so many different levels to not only develop their talents but to build confidence, gain focus and even find moments of inner peace....often when you least expect it and may need it the most.
I became involved with Sharon Arts first as a student. The diversity of classes offered and the atmosphere was magnificent. I developed a great friendship with its' then ED and she really convinced me to volunteer and ultimately join the board. I did and have never regretted it. Fellow board members, staff, faculty; are all wonderfully engaging people. I consider myself very fortunate to be part of the family. I am looking forward to the time when I can get back in the classroom here!
The Sharon Arts Center is an extraordinary community art center with classes for everyone, from beginners to advanced students. Years ago as an undergraduate, I attended one of the finest art schools in the country. Forty years later, I am taking classes at the Sharon Arts Center in mediums I didn't study as an undergraduate and find that the level of instruction is as good as or better than the instruction I received as an undergraduate. The teachers at the Sharon Arts Center are excellent, the atmosphere is friendly and welcoming, and the exciting opportunities to learn and explore one's creativity are endless. Not only have the results of my efforts been rewarding, but also, I have made lasting friendships with wonderful people I would never have met otherwise. My experience as a student at the Sharon Arts Center encouraged me to exhibit and sell my work as well as to volunteer and to ultimately join the Sharon Arts Center Board of Trustees. I can't recommend the Sharon Arts Center highly enough and encourage anyone who is interested in the arts to take part.
Whenever I need inspiration, I visit the Sharon Arts Gallery in downtown Peterborough. It's a magic place that's free and open to the public. There's a new show opening every two months, and I wish everyone could spend an hour there to feel recharged. I also find fantastic gifts at their shop, mostly made by regional artists and craftspeople. The classes at the SAC school in Sharon welcome students of all ages, and many of the teachers are amazing professional artists. My favorite classes are in ceramics, but there's something for everyone.
I am a student and volunteer at the Sharon Arts Center. Frankly, I am having a blast.
The teachers are wonderful and the administrative staff is so helpful and encouraging.
Affordable and diverse are two ways I would describe the classes. Weaving, drawing, painting, self-publishing, and book making are only some of the classes I have taken.
The school provides a small shop where your art work can be seen and sold.
I had never had a piece of my art work in an art show but was encourage to put a couple of pieces in the student show. One sold. It was such a positive experience that I will be entering a couple of more pieces in an upcoming local show.
Sharon Arts offers so many ways to get involved with art, there's something for everybody! I have volunteered through them, taken classes, gone to art shows, and bought wonderful pieces in their Craft Store. I highly recommend their exhibits and workshops, they have great teachers and local artists involved.
As a long-time member and supporter of Sharon Arts, I'm excited to say that they are my favorite organization to be affiliated with. Their programs for children and teens are top-notch and fulfill important needs in our family-oriented community. From the amazingly talented faculty at the school in Sharon to the art and craft on display in the downtown galleries- a cross-section of our regions great talent- Sharon Arts is a big part of what attracted us to the Monadnock region. We even bring all our out-of-town guests there to show off our SAC-pride!
While SAC may be limited in financial resources, what they ARE able to do on just a shoestring is one of the many reasons we join and try to give each year.
I have been involved in one way or another with Sharon Arts for 45 years, first through my parents, who were artists, and now as a Trustee. I love being able to serve the Monadnock Region by raising funds to ensure that world-class exhibitions and first-rate classes continue. The staff and Board members have become my second family, sharing a view of non-profit service which agrees with mine.