WANNA DONATE 2 the Have A Heart Project?

Look What I Can Do, Mixed Media on Canvas, 24x24, MG Stout 2010 

http://haveaheartproject.bbnow.org/

Above is a link to our donation website if you'd like to make a contribution to the 

Have A Heart Art Installation and Food Drive

I'm also am sharing a few paintings from the original series:

Art 4 U and Food For Others

I donate a portion of the proceeds from these painting directly to 

FOOD FOR OTHERS 501(c)(3)

Orange Grin, Mixed Media on Canvas, 24x24, MG Stout 2010

Another Corny Title, Acrylic on Canvas, 24x24, MG Stout 2010

We All Scream for Ice Cream, Acrylic on Canvas 24x24, MG Stout 2010

Raspberry Manicure, Acrylic on Canvas, 24x24, MG Stout 2010

Give Peas A Chance, Mixed Media on Canvas, 24x24, MG Stout 2010

A Kitchen Made of Tape That Is Anything But Tacky

Workhouse Arts Center Studio 4 Installation View #1

The Have a Heart Project is in full swing!  The community is already responding to our challenge and beginning to bring in donations.
WE ARE PSYCHED!!! Together the artists of Studio 4 drew this kitchen scene out of tape.
YES, tape.  Black painters tape.  The photograph we took doesn't really convey the energy this work oozes.  You've gotta see it in person.  So come on out and see it.

John Gascot & MG Stout fill a cart @ Bottom Dollar

Thanks to the generous $25.00 donation our kitchen is getting a little bit fuller and the folks at Food For Others and the Families they feed will have stocked pantries.

MG Stout at Bottom Dollar

John Gascot at Wegmans

When we are not shopping with the generous donations dropped into our collection lunch box,  John and I are busy creating new food-centric artworks for this socially conscious exhibition.  Our aim is to not only feed our neighbors but to demonstrate the important role art  plays communities.  The Arts and art education cultivate creative minds.  Creative minds are problem solvers.  Problem solvers solve problems and fewer problems make the world a lot more peaceful.

Have a Heart Community Challenge

Workhouse Studio 4

Workhouse Arts Center Studio 4 Artists, John Gascot, Joan Yi, Lynn Goldstein, and MG Stout are working to fight hunger in our local community by launching an innovative food drive wherein the donations will become a part of an art installation!  These award-winning artists will create a new sort of "edible arrangement" that will be disassembled at the end of February and delivered to FOOD FOR OTHERS, a 501(c)(3) the largest distributor of free food to hungry people in Northern Virginia.  Food for Others offers vital assistance needed by our unemployed and low-income neighbors and those facing emergencies such as a family illness or sudden loss of a spouse or job.   They’ve proudly distributed more than 2.7 million pounds of free food in 2011.

The artists of Studio 4 believe in the power of art. They are harnessing that power and challenging themselves and the community.  The purpose of this interactive exhibit is twofold. 

1)    Raise awareness of hunger in our own backyard

2)    Translate awareness to action in the form of a food-centric art installation and exhibition

We are interested in securing business partners who share our projected goals and are willing to contribute their resources to help those in need.  As such, we’re asking you to consider partnering with us during the months of January and February for our Have a Heart Project: Food Drive & Art Installation.  We are primarily seeking non-perishable food donations, but would certainly accept food gift cards as an alternative. Your generous contribution will help bring hunger relief to those in need locally, while supporting resident artists in their educational, artistic, and philanthropic efforts. 

You're all invited to visit & participate in this exciting exhibition.  Bring in a can of soup, a box of pasta, or an entire bag of groceries.  Look into your cupboards with artful eyes.  See all the delicious shapes and bright colors manufactures use in packaging.  Don't they sort of remind you of lego bricks, erector set pieces, linkin' logs?  Collaborate with the artists of studio for as we build this food-er-ific art installation.  Come on and create for GOOD!!!  

Click the link and get the latest  Studio 4 "skinny"  as you will magically be transported to our facebook page.  While you're there be sure to "like" us and share the link with all your pals!

http://www.facebook.com/workhousestudio4

Gasp! I've Been Invited to Exhibit and Demo...Where?

Tomorrow I will be heading down to Richmond, VA.  Why you ask?  Friends I am happy to share that I have been invited to exhibit and discuss my work at the 2011 Advocacy of the Arts Convention.  I can't wait to share all the great things happening at the Workhouse Arts Center where I work beside some of the states finest artists. 
My book:  Real Life Drawing, My Eye on Washington DC will be available for sale, but if you've already purchased a copy, bring it in and I will be happy to sign it for you.  The exhibit will consist of some of the remaining pieces from the book and newer works created after publication.
Now as far as the demo goes,  I will be demonstrating and creating images for my new series - Real Life Drawing is a Parade! Spotlight on the Philadelphia Mummers (working title)  All of these images will be created on the pages of the Philadelphia Inquirer. 

Wanna Little Taste?

Okay for all of you who are just dying to know what I've been painting for ART Fare 2010.

I'm going to whet your whistle with an under-painting.  Be advised that it will look very different for the opening reception...Saturday, November 13, 2010 from 7:00-9:00p.m.  

Work in progress 24 x 24 x 3 MG Stout

A little taste so you can see what it will taste like.

Feeding Families, Nourishing Lives

Harvest for the Hungry

Delivering Healthy FRESH whole foods to our neighbors

All bellies should be full in the United States of America.  

NO EXCEPTIONS 

The number of hungry families in Northern VA is oft overlooked because of the affluent reputation of this area.  Yet, 90,000(+) of our neighbors are living in poverty and need our help.

ENTER STAGE LEFT: Food for Others

  Their mission is to obtain and distribute free food to the hungry of Northern VA and support food programs of other community-based organizations.  They also provide a channel for people to volunteer their services to help their neighbors in need.

ENTER STAGE RIGHT: MG Stout 

This November I am the featured artist of Studio 4 at the Workhouse Arts Center.  So I've decided to use my featured status to bridge the gap between my studio work and my commitment to DO GOOD.

I've created a whole new body of work celebrating the bounty of our county.  A portion of the proceeds will go directly to Food for Others. 

All month long I will be doing my best to raise awareness, funds, and food for an organization dedicated to helping our neighbors who need our support. So stay tuned or click the "followers button" at the top of the page to receive updates and positive promotions that will benefit everyone.

Hip Hip Hooray! Summer Camp Started Today

Today kicked off the first day of the Visual Explorers Camp at the Workhouse Arts Center.

I am teaching the kids to create their own series: 

REAL Life ART:  Kids Paint What They See 

 Mary Gallagher Stout Demos How Artists Use Photographs As A Resource

Students will be photographing a variety of subjects on campus. (YES each student is given a camera, and photography instruction this summer - lead by a super terrific photographer Melanie Beus)  These young artists will use their photographs as a visual resource.  They will reinterpret their visual explorations into a variety of media.

Emerging Artists Prepping Material

Check in tomorrow to see what the class produces.  This summer is going to be epic!

The kids are amazing and looking forward to creating their own brand of art.

I can't wait to see what they see.

Belated Thursday Post: Artists' of Minnieland Occoquan

The sun was shining and the scent of fresh cut grass filled the air as we made our way onto the Quad.  We stretched our arms and moved our bodies as if we were fully loaded paint brushes.  Then we familiarized ourselves with the brushes we would be painting with by drawing a variety of lines with water on the blacktop.

Their creative juices were FLOWING!   We headed back to the KIDS ZONE CLASSROOM and the young artists' were asked to choose a limited palette (three colors plus white) that represented how they were feeling that day.  They created expressive personal works that are surely going to be a treasure for years to come.