Lewisburg Arts Council holds 10th Members' Show

Justin Strawser, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
·3 min read

Feb. 9—LEWISBURG — Sylvia Denger requires a steady hand to complete her artwork on display at the 10th annual Members' Show at the Public Library for Union County.

Denger, who is one of 20 featured artists with 70 pieces on display at the library's "Gallery 255" at 255 Reitz Blvd., Lewisburg, started painting on tea bags five years ago after taking a workshop in New York. The show's reception was held at the library on Thursday night.

"It takes patience and learning what your paint will do once it hits the tea bag," said Denger, of Watsontown. "I use watercolor. It's kind of fun to see what you can create in such a small space. It is challenging."

Denger, who has other non-tea bag watercolors displayed at the show, starts her process with used tea bags. Each bag is emptied, dried and ironed before it's ready.

"I love being a part of the arts council," she said. "The variety of art here is wonderful, and the quality is wonderful too."

Other artwork includes jewelry, acrylic, pastel, oil, photography, print, scratchboard, mixed media, wood carving, watercolor, colored pencil and pen.

"This lets you know how much talent there is in the area," said watercolor artist Gerald Heckler, of Lewisburg. "It's amazing to me. I've been painting for 13 years. This is a small sample of what's out there."

Tara McKinney and her son Dom, of Lewisburg, said they enjoyed walking around to view the art.

"It's a lot of variety in the work and a lot of talent," said Tara McKinney. "It's always really fun to see what the different artist come up with year after year, and to see their growth."

McKinney said she appreciated the public space being used, and she is looking forward to the show being at the new Arts Council headquarters next year in the former Packwood House, 15 N. Water St., Lewisburg.

Arts Council President Della Hutchison said beginners and professionals are showcased in the gallery. The pieces are not juried and there's no fee for members to display.

"People surprise you," she said. "One year, they may do one medium, the next year it could be completely different. It's fun to see the evolution of their styles."

Art is a personal thing where the artist is showing viewers what interests them through photography or painting, said Hutchison.

She also announced that photographer Robert Haefner, of Winfield, will be the featured artist for the Lewisburg Arts Festival in April. His work will also be on exhibit through the month of April at 15 N. Water St.

Artwork will be displayed in the library's "Gallery 255" and can be viewed during regular hours: Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Representatives will be available in the library lobby from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesdays in February to engage with visitors and answer questions about the artwork, the Lewisburg Arts Council, the Photography Club, and the Artists' Guild.