COMMUNITY PALETTE MURAL AT THE CARTER BUILDIG

“I am so excited to be associated with such a talented, imaginative, accomplished, hard working community of artists. What an amazing day at the Carter Building! You could feel the creative energy in the air. Everyone participating had so much fun. The mural is fun, colorful and captures the story of the Carter Building Community. “

Rick Bennett

“Thanks for putting my thoughts into words, Rick! I join you in appreciating the leadership and creativity of those who gave shape to this project, strengthening both our Carter Building community, and Raleigh, at large.

I love the inspiration of each of us bringing our own unique gifts; learning from what others offer and feeling the pleasure of extending our own flavor into the mix.

What an opportunity we have with all our creative spirits! We're a funny lot by nature, I think. Or maybe it's just me. I love to be by myself when I'm painting, yet I feel super-charged and engaged by being with other artists. Just doing this project, I noticed I went from being addressed in polite terms to being "one of the guys". We have so much potential in this group. I am grateful for Tunde, Susan and Lee for being the brainstormers who planted the seeds and cultivated the soil for the rest of us to flourish. Now, I see the process growing, so that many more join in the joy of creating with like-minded artists.

Our working together can only serve to ignite the community! Bring on the church groups, home schoolers, neighbors, politicians, and celebrities. We're the place to be!”

 Yay us!

With gratitude,
Donna Belt

 

“Great job by the painters, photographers and Web/Blog masters. The final work is fantastic as is/are the immediate postings. Anyone in the community looking at the photos online should be impressed with the capabilities displayed by TCB folk and look forward to what may be brewing for the future...”

Good Stuff!

Bill Beatty

“We had a lot of fun with this mural event and it was an unqualified success, thank you to those who organized it. As daunting a task as it was the group pulled it off amazingly well and it created more buzz in the community than I'd anticipated.

After showing the photos to numerous people there are many who are already regretting not seeing this event and telling me they will commit to coming next year. I have spoken to one minister at a mid size church and he says he'd like to advertise the next event to his church.

It is my opinion that the next one could draw many hundreds of people. Maybe we need to dream even larger?”

 Steve Coad

“Thanks to all who helped and all who came out and painted! It was a great day, we had more than 50 participants ranging from local politicians, artists, families, passer-bys and a tourist from Greece!
Truly a community palette! Steve Caod will have photos on his website tonight, www.simplyphotosnc.com. I will get photos on our website tomorrow! The mural needs the final finish and then it will be hung!”

Susan Jones

Impressions of an Artist New CARTER BUILDING by Donna Belt

Last fall, I found myself in a position of growing my art studio from the lone space I had enjoyed in an apartment building on Glenwood Ave to establishing a presence in a creative community.  It was important to me to feel at home in an environment that would appreciate the knowing I had that art was a language of the spirit.  It was not just about outcome, but process, as well. Awake at 3:00 in the morning, I got out of bed to look up the link for The Carter Building.  What I read there about the creative community inhabiting a building that dated back in the Carter family to the 1920s, lured me to bring my husband with me to tour the space the following day.  The impression I had there was like walking into a Hobbit warren.  Stairways leaned and floors tilted, and everywhere art and artists' tools competed for space.  It was that day that I knocked on Mr. Carter's door and announced that I was coming.  He had no space available, but I knew I was meant to be there. This was a place that felt like home.

This Saturday The Carter Building artists will be hosting a gathering of school children, local celebrities, and neighbors to paint a mural entitled, "Raleigh, My Dream City" designed by Tunde Afolayan and Lee Ball, which will decorate the exterior of The Carter Building.  This is exactly the vision I had when I got out of bed in that early morning last November.  I wanted to be in a place that acknowledged the creativity inside each person; a place where people experienced community, and one that allowed each to contribute according to his nature.

I invite you to be part of the dream. Feel a glimmer of ownership as you stroll down Glenwood South.  Bring your kids so they can share the experience of creating something that will touch others for years to come.

Welcome to "Raleigh, My Dream City"!
Saturday, June 4, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM
TCB, 12-22 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh 27603

Donna Belt
www.spiritworksonline.com

FOLK ART EXHIBIT AT THE CARTER BUILDING

Lula is a North Carolina folk artist born and raised in a rural community of Wolf Pit, North Carolina. Her childhood home was located in the middle of a cotton field, the early childhood experience of of the cotton field is reflected in her work. She also worked in the tobacco mill during her early years. She started painting at age eleven in the fifth grade, with the direction and encouragement of her special teacher, Mrs. Anna Wall Johnson at Ashley Chapel Elementary School. While at elementary school, she had a privilege of doing bulletin boards, floats, and some other projects that were available. Mrs. Johnson often said to young Lula “Stick with it, and one day it will serve you well.”

For a period of approximately five to six years, her art

took a slight detour, when she pursued a career in modeling with the Greensboro

based Glamour Inc. Lula was blessed with two loving children, Cynthia and Jack Jr. when they became teenagers, Lula’s painting resumed at a rapid pace. She created images of things she had seen combined with her life experiences and imaginations.

The setting of Lula’s first art show and many to

follow was in the closet of her job at Richmond Memorial Hospital. Quite often during her lunch break, she would show her art to different people. This led to her being invited to display some of her paintings at the Leath Memorial Library.

Her paintings have been exhibited in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC and several galleries in North Carolina.

ArtSPEAKS AT THE CARTER BUILDING

Retired N.C. State Art Professor Lope Max Díaz was the inaugural ARTspeaks presenter on Sunday, April 17, 2011, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Carter Building. The event was held outdoor on a bright, sunny Sunday afternoon at the Carter Building parking lot.
Lope shared with the participants a penetrating insight to his creative world and process. He also offered constructive critique sessions to some of the individual artists who were present at the event.

Lope Max Díaz is an artist and retired faculty of NC State University where he taught Design Fundamentals and Painting in the College of Design. He exhibits his paintings with regularity throughout the southeast region of the country, as well as in Puerto Rico. Before joining the faculty of the College of Design in 1988, he was an Assistant Professor of Design in the School of Architecture of the University of Puerto Rico, and prior to that an Instructor in the Fine Arts Department of the College of Humanities, University of Puerto Rico. He has also taught art at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico.
He received the College of Design Outstanding Teacher Award in 2000, and the nomination for Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor of the College of Design in 2002.
Lope Max Díaz has served as juror in numerous art exhibitions in North Carolina and in Puerto Rico. He has also served on art/design panels for the Raleigh Arts Commission, the North Carolina Arts Council, the McColl Center for Visual Art in Charlotte, NC, the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, DC, the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation in Baltimore, MD, and the Torpedo Factory Art Center, Alexandria, VA
For his contributions as an artist, educator, and service to the community, he was awarded the 2003 Raleigh Medal of Arts and the 2003 Centennial Medal from the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico.

ARTspeaks is a quarterly forum designed to engage artists and arts patrons in meaningful dialogue. Next Artspeaks will be held in August 2011.

DRAW A-THON

WITHOUT BORDERS STUDIO

Representing some of the finest media in the world of art.
ORIGINAL PAINTINGS, MIXED MEDIA & PHOTOGRAPHY
We are located in the Cater Building on Glenwood Avenue
in the historic Glenwood South community of Raleigh, NC
Please join us for the First Friday ARTwalks
on the first Friday of every month 6 - 9:30 pm.
Gallery Hours: Wed. - Sat. 1 - 7 pm.

CARTER BUILDING ART CENTER

The Carter Building Art Center instructors will be offering art clinics this summer for children grades K-8. We will have a special workshop for high school students late summer on preparing a portfolio for college applications. Camps will be broken up into grades K-2, 3-5 in the morning session and grades 6-8 in the afternoon. Sessions will cover traditional media, photography, oil pastels, print making, mask making, murals, sculpture from recyclables, chalk art and more. Every Wednesday we will have a field trip to museums, the farmer's market and other local sites.
Instructors are Lee Ball, Tunde Afolayan, and Susan Jones.