Thriving arts at Strand Center for the Arts

PLATTSBURGH | Side-by-side in the heart of the city's arts corridor, Strand Center for the Arts occupies most of a block. For one hundred years, the red brick and terracotta theatre has lit their stage in the City of Plattsburgh for music, dance and theatre shows. From vaudeville to ballet, rock bands to musicals, the Strand is foundational to downtown goings-on. Just past its bulb-buttoned marquee, though, the counterpart hub for arts and music sparks creativity from a network of big rooms in the Federal Building. In 25 years, the Strand's conjoined arts center has grown into a lively place for community to learn, practice and explore creative art and expression. More than 30 classes are in process or upcoming on the Arts Center roster. Some have openings, some are full. Some are for adult learners, some are for children. Some are for adults and children together. They all seek to spark curiosity. Allison "Ally" Baker, Elsa Koop-Angelicola, Mollie Ward and Jamie Durivage provided The Sun with a glimpse of the art rooms, studios and galleries at the Arts Center. All are arranged in three floors behind the pillared entrance off Brinkerhoff at Margaret Street. Koop-Angelicola is an oil painter and serves as Strand Center gallery and events coordinator. Baker is a graphic artist and designer and the center's communications coordinator. Ward, a sculptor, educator and potter, manages the clay studio. And Durivage is the Strand's theatre manager. A unified force for local art, they are part of an 11-person staff that runs theatre and arts programs led by Executive Director Megan Charland. Many, including Charland, are working artists and "teaching artists," wearing hats to welcome, engage and help people explore creative forms of expression. "We like to say we wear many hats," Baker said of their team. "We're cross-trained here at the Arts Center," Koop-Angelicola added. Studio space is organized by genre. There's a painting studio, ceramics rooms, life drawing center, and a makers' space that translates artworks into prints, signs and 3D crafts with the center's CNC machine. There is a studio lined with computers for digital media arts with 3D and laser printers. There is a music room with a grand piano and instruments used for private lessons. Baker said possibilities for collaboration prove endless with so many materials and artists under one roof. "Every day is different," the graphic artist mused. "Art is for everyone." Some Arts Center courses repeat weekly, others are held in one or multi-day sessions. Baker said classes bring together people from all walks and phases in life, from ages 5 to 80. The Strand Center for the Arts reaches thousands of regional residents and visitors when you add the music and dance performances held on the Strand Theatre's stage. STUDIO TOUR In the pottery studio, fired plates and bowls glazed in bright, colorful patterns from Ward's most recent 'Try it on the Wheel' class were set out to dry. "We do a few Try it on the Wheel classes a month," Ward said. "The classes are open to people who want to learn to work with clay. For more experienced potters, classes feed into the Open Studio program." The clay studio has six courses on the Arts Center schedule right now, including a Try it on the Wheel for kids ages 5 to 13 and a Mud & Merlot workshop for adults. In the MakerSpace Suite, located on the second floor, rooms are organized into Multimedia and Digital Technologies labs. Winners' names from past years of ADK Coast 3D Print Sprint are engraved on a plaque placed prominently on one wall. Baker said the Print Sprint has become a hotly contested event in April. "Teams are presented with a challenge and locked in the Arts Center for 24 hours. They have to present a final product to solve the challenge," the graphic artist said. A CNC Epoxy Inlay class will meet two days in March in the MakerSpace. Come summer, makers will host Laser Cut Jewelry workshops. In the printmaking studio, designs from a recent Lego Print course graced the work counter. An Intro to Printmaking Landscaping and Lino-Cut Class has openings left in April along with a Spring into Printmaking workshop on April 20. Some programs are free, but most classes have a fee that covers time and materials. The Strand has an Art Helps fund available to anyone who wants to explore art but might struggle to afford a class. Racks in the Visual Arts Studio on the second floor are lined with tubes of oil and acrylic paint. Work tables are a mosaic of color from art accomplished. "This is where we hold the Life Drawing class every Saturday," Koop-Angelicola said. "It's also where the kids' Art Club meets after school." Here, too, is a community hub for art adventure. The Arts Center hosts a Kid's Art Night in the studio, complete with pizza for youth ages 5 to 12. There is an Art Club for kids in grades 1 to 8 and a First Lego League for youth grades 1 to 4. STEAM Camp at the Arts Center started Feb. 17 with a busy roster of projects for kids on winter break. CREATE Camp offers a week of art exploration for youth in April. And summertime welcomes scores of campers to a wide variety of art programs. This year, staff has organized a full-day Strand Art Camp that runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some of the classes are taught by area artists who bring expertise in many forms to Brinkerhoff Street. The Strand's Metalsmithing: Hand Forged Knives fills every two-day session taught by artisans from Smiling Dog Forge, Tom Larsen and Samantha Williams. Hand Forged Knives does have openings in May and June. The center's artistic center of gravity has a community vibe, and programs are growing, Koop-Angelicola said. "Once we get people in the door, they like what they see and they stay," she summed. Their aim is to encourage art exploration in community. Art is both communication and self-expression, the staff said. "Art is so innate to community," Baker said. "Having a connection to the arts is a very powerful thing." "We find that people gain a better understanding of others through art," Koop-Angelicola said. ART AND MARKETS Celebrating regional talent, Koop-Angelicola coordinates Arts Center gallery shows hung around tall windows in brightly lit rooms on the first floor. She recently installed 'On the Brink', a collection of works done by Arts Center staff and teaching artists. The "Brink" is a reference to Brinkerhoff, their seat in the city. Works feature multi-media expression in paint, ink and charcoal with displays of sculpture, pottery, fiber and mixed-media. This spring, the Arts Center will present "The World is Her Canvas" featuring the talents of regional women. The show opens with a reception on April 18. Koop-Angelicola also coordinates Arts Center Artisan Markets, seven events from April through October that welcome craftspeople to the center's sprawling front lawn. "We have a conglomeration of everything on the front lawn," she said. "We have 40 vendors at each market. Registration has been open for a couple weeks and I have more season's pass holders than ever before." Hands-on art experience at the Arts Center is supported largely by event proceeds from the Strand Theatre, which celebrated a century last year. Donors, corporate sponsors, course fees and Arts Center memberships also set the pace for ongoing work. The Arts Center is in the midst of major fundraising to Raise the Roof. They are nearing a $905,000 goal for repairs and updates to their Federal Building roof, gutters, windows and the heating system. The complete list of over 30 classes, workshops and membership options is online, and anyone can call the Arts Center with questions. The Art Helps fund can help adults and children explore art they might otherwise be unable to afford. "Call us or come in," Baker said. "We want people to have fun with art. Art is for everyone." FIND OUT MORE: The complete list Strand Center for the Arts shows, programs, events and courses is available online, presenting many options for new or experienced artists and makers: Class Schedule: strandcenter.org/classes Private Music Lesson Teacher and Request Form: strandcenter.org/private-music-lessons Art Helps: strandcenter.org/art-helps-scholarship-program Theatre Event Schedule: strandcenter.org/theatre-events Schedule for Community Events: strandcenter.org/calendar Artisan Market registration page: strandcenter.org/artisan-markets Strand Center for the Arts Membership has various membership tiers. All membership funds support Arts Center operations and offer discounts on art classes and theatre events: strandcenter.org/memberships "Raise the Roof" Capital Campaign: strandcenter.org/raise-the-roof-campaign The Strand Center for the Arts is located at 23 Brinkerhoff Street in Plattsburgh and is open Wednesday from 1 to 9 p.m.; Thursday and Friday from 1 to 5 p.m.And on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Staff can be reached via email: Info@StrandCenter.orgOr call (518) 563-1604

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