January 20, 2001 - April 1, 2001

The 25th Annual Juried Art Exhibit was an outstanding success with the most entries to date - 512! This year 126 entries were accepted and feature everything from watercolors to glass, pastels to photography and sculpture to oil.

Award of Excellence ($500 prize) was given to Benjamin Koch for "House from Vals, Switzerland" paper construction and drawing. Awards of Merit (2 - $250 prizes) were given to Lydia Panas for "9 Portions" gel-silver print and Valletta for "Dreamscape" pastel on paper. Honorable Mentions (certificates) were bestowed on Salma Arastu, Fred Danzinger and Hyunsoo Han.

Congratulations to all other accepted artists: Lauren Acton, Vincent Adone, Eric Armusik, Denis Aumiller, Edward Babiarz, Gayle D. Barcz, Izzie Barth, Mark Becker, Harry Bentz, Ruth Ann Bergman, Michael Borrasso, Jonathan Bond, Russell Joseph Buckingham, Jr., Michele Byrne, Virginia Caputo, Jack Coggins, Amanda Lee Condict, Katrina Creyts, Mary Lou Creyts, Tom Davis, Nicole M. Demjan, Richard Distefano, John A. Dusko, Scott Ferguson, Joyce Floreen, Phillip E. Fraley, Karen L. Freeman, Kass Morin Freeman, Esther Galiley, Evelynn Glausman, Daniel Gorman, Deb Gurman, Adrian E. Haak, Jr., Kathy Hahn, Joanne Jorgensen Hardy, Robert F. Heckman, Linda Henry, Jerry Holleran, Joseph Hoover, Katy Jean Druzba, Dennis E. Johnson, Mary Kane, Susan Bennis Kappenstein, Robert Koch, Catherine A. Kohl, Isadore LaDuca, Richard Laubach, Christine Leinbach, Barbara Lerch, A. Nadine Masteller, Matthew Mazurkiewicz, Michael L. Miller, Regina Gouger Miller, Chad Mohr, Craig G. Myers, Nan Morrissey, Sharon McGinley, S. Ann Nace, Elizabeth Nentwig, Judith Barbour Osborne, Mimi Oritsky, Karen D. Palcho, Frances Parzanese, Janis B. Pinkston, Virginia Reese, Josh Rickenbaugh, Sue Roedder, Pam Roule, Valetta & Nancy Sarangoulis, Rich Sassaman, Carol Scarfo, Joanne Schlosser, Kathleen Scott, Laura R. Leonardo Seidel, Gretchen Shannon, Keith Sharp, Jay I. Shin, Rosemarie Sloat, D. L. Sloyer, Jacqueline Mitchell Smith, Sarah Smith, Doug Smock, Peter Jon Snyder, Joanne Young Stephan, Todd Stewart, Susannah Hart Thomer, Richard S. Tobey, Jr., Don Vallere, Frederick Wagner, Marcia Walsh, Debi Watson, Don Weaver, Ineke van Werkhoven, Virginia Wise, Kathryn Wolf, Alma Woods, Clare Wood, William M. Yenkevich, Gum Ran Youse, and Laura Zito.

About Berks Art Alliance
"The Berks Art Alliance is a fellowship of artists, both professional and amateur, interested in creating an atmosphere compatible and stimulating to the arts within the Alliance and extending out into the community at large." This statement of purpose describes the aims of this organization that is 60 years old.

The Alliance came into being November 1941 under its original name of the Art Haven Guild of Berks County and evolved into the Alliance in 1947. Artists had banded together in Berks well before 1941, but it was not until this organization was created that a group of its kind succeeded in operating continuously to the present time.

Aside from activities aimed at their personal improvement, Alliance members have reached out into the community from time to time to encourage school children through special art projects and to faster art consciousness with exhibits, demonstrations and participation in community events.

Membership Programs
General meetings, followed by programs of interest to artists are scheduled the 2nd Tuesday of September, November, January, March and May. They start at 7:30 PM and are held at the Institute of the Arts in Wyomissing in the first floor gallery. These programs may be demonstrations or slide presentations by noted artists. Also featured are lectures on conservation, framing, marketing, etc.

Art Shows
Every year, BAA sponsors a statewide Juried Art Exhibition held at the Reading Public Museum and Art Gallery and a Membership Show held at the Institute of the Arts in Wyomissing.

Thursday Workshops
All members are welcome to attend the three workshops held in Studio I at the Institute of the Arts in Wyomissing:
MORNING - 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM
Portraiture and figure studies, both costumed and life. Media of your choice. Model fee $2 per person.
AFTERNOON - 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Landscape painting outdoors when weather permits, still life and florals. Media of your choice. No fee.
EVENING - 7:30 to 9:30 PM
Figure studies and life models. Model fee $3 per person.

Newsletter for Members
Berks Art Alliance publishes a bi-monthly newsletter, The Palette, which contains information about the programs at our general meetings, bus trips, workshops and the accomplishments of our members. The Palette is issued in August, October, December, February, April and June.

Membership in BAA
New members (18 years old or older) are welcome any time of the year. Make checks payable to Berks Art Alliance and send to the Vice President in Charge of Membership - Mary Ann Remer. You can call Mary Ann at 610-777-3470 or email her at wrrandmar@aol.com. Dues are $20.00.

Membership renewal forms are included in the June The Palette and payment is due no later than the September meeting. Upon joining or renewal, you will get a BAA membership card which entitles you to discounts at various local art supply stores.

Goals of the Berks Art Alliance

• To foster an appreciation of the visual arts
• To offer opportunities to study with well known artists teaching various media through workshops and programs
• To offer bus trips to major museums and shows
• To sponsor two art shows yearly
• To inform you of exhibition opportunities

Institute of the Arts in Wyomissing (BAA Headquarters)
Located at Trent and Belmont Avenue, Wyomissing, PA 19610-2082
Telephone: (610) 376-1576

Robert Metzger, Ph.D
Director, CEO, Chief Curator Reading Public Museum