Martinis With Monet
CRANBERRY TWP — Martinis With Monet will serve as the kickoff for a revival of a fine arts program in the township with the help of the Associated Artists of Butler County.
The pre-Cranberry Community Days event will be from 6:30 to 9 p.m. July 11 at the Cranberry Highlands Golf Course Clubhouse and Pavilion.
Its goal is to revive a vibrant community art scene and to expand the artistic reach of AABC to Cranberry.
It also will give attendees the opportunity to sip a variety of martinis with artists and bid in an art auction.
A few works of art will be on display at the martini event, but there will be more at the art exhibit at the municipal building and on site during Community Days July 12 through July 14.
A Martinis with Monet ticket is worth $15 off any AABC artwork for sale during Community Days. This includes paintings/sculptures at the event and at the art exhibit in the municipal building.
Bruce Mazzoni, Cranberry Township Community Chest treasurer, said a group has been trying for years to revive an arts society in Cranberry.
Members of AABC saw a way to fill that void.
“It made perfect sense for both of us to join together to bring a 'Cranberry chapter' of the AABC to our community,” said Mazzoni.
“We are a young community with a lot of activities going on during Community Days. Therefore, we felt we needed a unique way to make residents aware of the art exhibition that we will have in the Cranberry Township building and the art on display in Community Park. We thought the Martinis with Monet would be a great launching pad.”
AABC President Paul Scanlon said, “We're the Associated Artists of Butler County, not just of Butler City where our art center is located.
“Teaming with Cranberry Township is natural win-win-win,” Scanlon said. “We can bring great art to Cranberry. Our artists entering future shows can gain exposure in two venues, the art center in Butler plus the municipal center in Cranberry.”
It has been more than seven years since the Cranberry Arts Council was active, and for the past three years, the Community Chest has tried to form a new group.
Mazzoni said Jack Cohen, executive director of the Butler Tourism and Convention Bureau, connected him with Scanlon.Mazzoni also is on the Butler County Community College board with Dick Rittelmann. Rittelmann and his wife are active AABC members.Mazzoni said, “It made perfect sense for both groups to move forward together in this venture and using Community Days as the platform, we all agree, would work perfectly.”AABC had an Invitational Art Exhibit this year in which top regional artists were invited to exhibit. Scanlon said it was a huge success, with highly respected artists from the region.Harmony artist Bill Perry, Mars artist Maria Leysens, Saxonburg artist Stan Walchesky, Butler artist Tom Sheehan, and other well-known artists from the Pittsburgh area entered.Scanlon said, “We expect a similar, if not even better, showing of excellent regional artists to participate in this (the Cranberry) show.”He said the goal is to establish at least two to three art exhibits per year in Cranberry and to increase the art presence during Community Days.Mazzoni noted tickets to the Martinis with Monet are limited.“I expect to be sold out weeks in advance, so they should not delay,” he said.If successful, the Cranberry Township Community Chest hopes to make Martinis With Monet an annual event.Tickets cost $15 and can be purchased by mail at CTCC-Martinis with Monet: 2525 Rochester Road Suite 450, Cranberry Township, PA 16066. Buyers are asked to include a stamped return envelope or add 50 cents to the cost per ticket.Tickets also can be bought at the customer service desk at the municipal center.Go to www.CTCChest.org, and hit the Martinis with Monet logo for details.For information about AABC, visit its gallery at The Art Center, 344 S. Main St., Butler; call 724-283-6922; or visit its website at www.aabcartcenter.com.
