Winston Publishing

portfolio • 47 Studio 706 Artist Guild Pursuing Artistic Talents studio 706 artist guild show March 21 Show, open house, and reception 5-9pm March 22 Show open | 10am-8pm March 23 Show open 10am-7pm Drawings for the architecture contest and scholarship basket winners 6pm Gibson Room at the Mansfield Center for the Performing Art 2 Park Drive South S Studio 706 Artist Guild Show Event Schedule www.studio706artistguild.com MARCH 21-23 • 2019 Civic Center - Gibson Room 2 Park Drive South – Great Falls, MT Thurs 5-9 pm • Fri 10am to 8pm Sat 10am to 7pm Steve Tilleraas By Ellie Stone tudio 706 Artist Guild is featuring 18 of its 50 plus member artists who work in a wide variety of fine art. Members of this nonprofit organization are as its tagline suggests, "Local Artists Involved in Art Education". Collaboratively, they share a desire to educate themselves and others as they pursue their artistic endeavors. This year's show demonstrates the varied styles and mediums of the artists including oils, watercolors, acrylics, pastels, pen/ink, graphite, pottery, photography, woodcarving, stained glass and ceramics. Guild President and exhibiting artist, Steve Tilleraas says, "We have more than just Cowboy themed art, our artists represent a variety of mediums, each with their own unique style." Studio 706 was founded by Bill and Barb Chigbrow. When Bill Chigbrow retired, he wanted to spend time creating more art. So, he and his wife purchased the house at 706 7th Avenue South in Great Falls and turned it into a club. Today, the Bill Chigbrow Memorial Scholarships are awarded to high school seniors in Cascade County who intend to continue their art education. Student competitors have their art displayed during Western Art Week at Studio 706's venue: the Gibson Room at Mansfield Center for the Performing Art. Studio 706 raises money for these scholarships by hosting a summertime garage sale. Scholarship money is also raised by selling raffle tickets for valuable baskets containing donations from local businesses. The raffle winners will be announced Saturday afternoon. Adding an element of fun to the show, Tilleraas, who specializes in landscape acrylics and photography, is bringing back his architectural scavenger hunt contest. Each year for the last three years, he takes close- up photos of architectural details on a handful of buildings in downtown Great Falls and designs a flyer. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to identify each architectural element with the correct building name and address. Once your mission is complete, return the flyer to the Studio 706 show. Those with the correct answers are automatically entered into a drawing for a great prize. You can't win if you don't enter, right? As a club of aspiring artists, Tilleraas and his fellow members enjoy showing their talents during Western Art Week. "We're probably not quitting our day jobs," he says with a laugh, "but it's nice to have people come look at your art and see what you're doing. It's great to get a compliment here and there about how they appreciate what you've done. We have a nice sized spot full of reasonably priced art. So, if you have that spot in your kitchen that needs a flower-then we probably have it!"

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