The Eighth Annual Artists’ Open StudiosBotetourt Tour this weekend features 14 artists plus work by about 20 art students at Lord Botetourt and James River High Schools.
Open Studios is Saturday, Oct. 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday, Oct. 28 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Participating artists will open their studios to the public to present their work and show how and where their artwork is produced. The 14 artists will be at 10 locations on the free, self-guided driving tour. The high school art students’ work is divided among the 10 locations, and their work will also be for sale.
Again this year, as time permits, some of the artists will give demonstrations during the weekend to explain the materials, methods and processes they use. Possible demonstrations are in such media as printmaking, woodturning and carving, painting and mixed media processes. The art teachers at the two county high schools have chosen their best students to make a painting of a favorite subject. The paintings are done on canvasses provided by Open Studios. A portion of the sale of the students’ works will go to support the League for Animal Protection (LAP) in Botetourt County.
Again this year, the “Studio Passport” will be available. Visitors can pick one up at any studio and fill it out with their contact information for a chance to receive a $150 gift certificate toward the purchase of an artwork of their choice. Sponsors for the studio tour this year are Bank of Botetourt, The Bank of Fincastle, Virginia’s Blue Ridge, Virginia and the Office of Economic Development in Botetourt County. For more information and a map of the studio locations, visit www. openstudiosbotetourt. com. Open StudiosBotetourt signs will be along the way to help visitors with directions.
The Open Studio artists and locations are: • Linda Atkinson, 336 Lugar Lane, Fincastle • Lois Miller Bisese and Dreama Kattenbraker, 5178 Blue Ridge Turnpike, Fincastle • Ed Bordett with Brett LaGue, 5 East Main St., Fincastle • Vera Dickerson and Courtney Cronin, 148 W. Arrowhead Court, Troutville. • Willie Simmons, 329 Botetourt Road, Fincastle • Mark Rader Woodie, 149 Dale Road, Troutville • Claudia de Franko, Gala Studio, 8030 Lee Highway, Troutville • Nancy Dahlstrom, 1608 Springwood Road, Fincastle. • Don Jones, 1069 Sprinkle Road, Fincastle. • Judith F. Lochbrunner and Mary Anne Meador, 42 Stone Coal Road, Troutville.