NEWS RELEASE-
GENEVA, NY, DECEMBER 18, 2023—The Dove Block Project, a community arts center in historic downtown Geneva, invites the public to visit and participate in programming offered throughout the month of January. In keeping with The Dove’s mission to bring arts programming to all members of the community, programming is FREE of charge to participants thanks to generous grants, individual memberships, corporate sponsorships, and donations.
The New Year also brings a fresh look and new functionality to the first-floor interior of the Dove’s historic 1878 structure. After many months of work, renovations to the arts center are nearly complete. Guests and exhibiting artists will enjoy a new reception area; enhanced workshop space with surfaces, storage and sink area; enhanced lighting, increased electricity capacity, a professional gallery hanging system; ceiling and wall restorations; and tile work. All improvements have been made possible by generous grants from the New York State Council on the Arts and support from memberships, sponsors, and individual donations. Next up, flooring!
TWO FREE GALLERY EXHIBITS
- Maureen Church: Light in Landscapes
Exhibition: Jan 6–28
Opening: Sunday, Jan 7, 1–3 pm
Opening reception music by Smooth Groovy
Maureen Church is an accomplished artist who finds inspiration in the beauty of nature. She is a versatile painter, equally adept at capturing the spontaneity of outdoor painting as she is at creating dramatic landscapes and animal portraits in her studio using warm, molten encaustic wax. She earned a BFA at Alfred University and a Masters in Art Education at Nazareth College, and enjoyed a successful three-decade career teaching art until she retired in 2017. Since retiring from teaching, Maureen has devoted herself full-time to her art, working out of her studio at the Hungerford Building in downtown Rochester. As a signature artist in the Genesee Valley Plein Air Painters group, she shares her joy for plein air painting in local shows and competitions. Her passion is evident in her small, vibrant paintings, which often serve as references for her larger canvases. In this exhibit, Maureen shares new works and invites viewers into her creative process with a peek at how all her work begins with direct observation of land forms and light.
Bernadette Bos: Travels in Art
Exhibition: Jan 6–28
Opening: Sunday, Jan 7, 1–3 pm
Opening reception music by Smooth Groovy
Bernadette Bos has expressed herself through her art in a number of media and drawn from a wide range of subject matter. A native of The Netherlands, Bernadette spent over two decades training competition horses in Belgium, England, Australia, New Zealand, California, Japan and New York, respectively. While living and traveling there as well as through other countries, she has gained a tremendous amount of inspiration, and a strong appreciation for distinctive cultural imagery and memorable landscapes which she now uses in her art. Bernadette has worked in oils, acrylic, pastels, pencil, and encaustics. In addition to her paintings, Bernadette has worked as a decorative painter and muralist, having executed interiors of numerous residences and restaurants in Long Island and New York, including a mural for “The Bar Below”, a restaurant located in The New Yorker Hotel, a famous Art Deco landmark in Manhattan. After having lived on Long Island for 15 years, she has lived in Geneva since 2012. Bernadette contributed to the design and painting of The Dove’s floor and history murals.
FREE WORKSHOPS, MATERIALS PROVIDED
- Figure Drawing with Tina Yannotti and Lisa Carlyon
Saturday, Jan 13, 12–3 pm
Limited to 6 participants
Registration required
Just as a musician, dancer or athlete must practice and train to maintain a level of excellence, drawing the figure from life on a regular basis keeps an artist in good form. Join Lisa Carlyon and Tina Yannotti for Figure Drawing with a live model. Students will have the opportunity to work from life with or without instruction. Instruction will focus on gesture, proportions, and form. The model will do short poses for the first hour followed by two 30-minute poses and one long pose for the final hour.
- Acrylic Painting with Steve Duprey
Saturday, Jan 20, 1–4 pm
Ages 16 to adult, limited to 10 participants
Registration required
Over the course of three hours, local artist Steve Duprey will take students step-by-step through the process of creating a specific painting. Each student will receive close personal attention as they create the painting. Steve’s intent is to teach techniques that can be used throughout the painting career of each student.
NEW and FREE! SECRET SUNDAYS CINEMA!
Monthly movie titles will be announced the Thursday prior to screening
January’s movie is Sunday, Jan 14, 1 pm
Limited to 27 seats
Get ready for an afternoon of surprises and great cinema! Join us every month in the Jim Spates Dove Block Theater for a special art-themed movie. The film will remain a secret until the Thursday prior to screening. Follow The Dove on Instagram and FaceBook for screening hints and announcements. Whether you’re a movie and arts buff or just looking for a fun time out, this is the perfect Sunday afternoon for you.
The Dove Block Project is a community arts center in historic downtown Geneva inspired by the creativity and originality of the renowned Geneva artist Arthur Dove, devoted to fostering the arts in the Finger Lakes Region through exciting and innovative exhibitions, events, and programs, which are free and open to all members of the community.
Thank you to our generous sponsors:
Workshops are supported by the Wyckoff Family Foundation, Rochester Area Community Foundation and
The Looking Out Foundation
Exhibition and special event refreshments: Billsboro Winery and Lake Drum Brewing
The Dove Block Project is funded, in part, by New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature
Location and Hours:
465 Exchange Street, Geneva, NY 14456
Wednesday–Sunday, 12:00 to 4:00 PM
Register for workshops at www.thedoveblockproject.org/workshop-registration
