903 Artisans make an artistic splash in the community

More and more you are beginning to see the name 903 Artisans popping up around the community. Whether it is on Facebook, a local organization or at an event like what happened at the Linden Public House a few weeks back, something special is happening. Nancy Martin took some time to speak to the Cass County Sun about the short history of the organization that is already making a “splash” around the 903 area code.

Martin explains that the organization started in January of 2018 when she “made a post on social media to see if there was any interest in having a local art league. The response was overwhelming, so I called 5 of my art friends and we met for dinner at my house and discussed getting one started. We met several times in January and February and wrote by-laws and decided where we wanted the club to go. Our first public meeting was March 05 at the city council chambers room at city hall. We had over 50 people attend,”

In the beginning, it was Nancy Hall Martin, Sherry Quinn, Tara Collins, Sheryl Pattillo, Luana Taylor, and Kay Reynolds, now they have over 40 involved. “Anyone is welcome to join our group,” says Martin. “You do not have to be an artist. We welcome anyone who loves the arts, and who would love to see the arts in the forefront in our community. Not just visual arts, but the performing arts as well. Membership dues are $40. a year, prorated to $20.6 months after March.”

According to Martin, “903 ARTISANS was formed to bring awareness of and promote the interest of the arts in our community. Through monthly meetings, artists demos, workshops, art exhibits, displays, community projects, and paint-outs, we hope to enrich the lives of fellow citizens. We would love to be instrumental in getting the city auditorium back up and running and having it open as a venue for plays, recitals, etc.”

Currently, “We have monthly meetings with artist demos on the first Tuesday of every month. We are still a very young club, but we have participated in several things in the community. We did a program at Atlanta Elementary for the gifted and talented, in partnership with Flip and Cheer, we painted pots with community children at Price Hardware, and also did Watercolor in Woods Park with the children of the community. We repaired and repainted the town’s Nativity, We recently teamed with LInden Public House for an art show and reception. We will do that quarterly (the next one will be November 09).

b) We just recently got our building and are in the process of getting it ready for workshops, classes for all ages, and for gallery space. Our first workshop will be in September. Hopefully, we will have them at least two times a month soon. We will offer classes in a lot of different media,” says Martin.

So far says Martin, We have had great support from the citizens of our area. Not just Atlanta, but surrounding areas.”

Here in the area, they have what they “call Artist of the Month, each month. The membership votes on the artists that bring works each month to the meeting, and the top 6 are displayed around town. Some of our member works are at State Bank on Main, Atlanta ISD Admin Bldg., Atlanta, City Hall, Cass County Bank, Queen City ISD Admin Bldg., and Queen City City Hall. We also will be having the quarterly shows at Linden Public House. We are hoping to have art walks and shows more frequently here,” says Martin.

In their limited time, they have had some opportunities to work with the schools, for instance, they have worked with the Atlanta Elementary Gifted and Talented, but they look forward to working with more in the future.

Martin says “that it has just been exciting to be in the founding group of this endeavor. We have been received well by the community, and are hoping we will have a major impact on our town.” Martin says that 903 Artisans are proud of their community, and “are striving to make it better, and more beautiful.”