Press Release: Donnelly Philanthropy Honored at Worcester Center for Crafts with Library Naming

(From Left to Right) Carol Donnelly, Jim Donnelly, Honee Hess (executive director of the Worcester Center for Crafts), and Barry Maloney (President, Worcester State University) pose at the conclusion of ceremonies

Worcester, MA—The Worcester Center for Crafts honored Carol and James (Jim) Donnelly of Worcester at its recent “30+ Faculty” show opening for their legacy of giving and service to the Crafts Center.  Both Carol and Jim are long-standing supporters of the Worcester Center for Crafts.  Carol, a professor of education at Worcester State University, served as Interim Director of the Crafts Center from 2008 until 2012 insuring the Center’s independence while guiding the then-new partnership between Worcester State and the Crafts Center.

Jim Donnelly is an attorney with Mirick, O'Connell, DeMallie & Lougee, LLP.  Both Jim and Carol Donnelly have been active community volunteers and leaders at many of the areas prominent cultural institutions in addition to the Worcester Center for Crafts such as the Worcester Art Museum and Higgins Armory Museum.   

“As a measure of our gratitude toward Carol and Jim Donnelly for their leadership, their giving and their promised philanthropy,” said Honee Hess, Executive Director of the Center, ”we are proud to name our Library the Carol and James Donnelly Library.  No one works harder for an organization they love then Carol and Jim Donnelly.”   The Board of the Worcester Center for Crafts presented Carol and Jim a set of book ends created by wood artist Matthew Thomas of Shock, WV.  The book ends are both symbolic of the library but also the Donnelly’s service on one end and philanthropy on the other that has helped hold the Worcester Center for Crafts together.

The Library is a non-circulating source of inspiration for the public and for students who visit the Center.  It also contains examples of ceramic and glass work done by visiting artists.  The Library is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm.

 

Dr. Carol Donnelly and James Donnelly

Table Hoppin': Italian wine dinner, Cinco de Mayo events and more

 Telegram and Gazette, May 5 2016

The Pottery Invitational at Worcester Center for Crafts is set for May 13-15. Participants include Sarah Ribeiro of the Worcester Garden Club, who will present a flower styling demo, Andy Novakoski of Austin Liquors, which is providing a whiskey tasting, Honee Hess, Craft Center executive director, and Elaine Pusateri-Cowan, owner of UxLocale in Uxbridge, who will present a food styling demo. T&G Staff/Christine Peterson

...The Pottery Invitational at Worcester Center for Crafts is scheduled May 13-15 in the center, 25 Sagamore Road, Worcester. Potters Aysha Peltz and Todd Wahlstrom, who work in Whitingham, Vt., are guest curators who organized the Pottery Invitational. Nineteen artists will display ceramic works.

The show kicks off May 13 with a Benefit Preview celebration that features a “Whiskey Tasting.” A limited number of reservations for this benefit are available. For a $35 donation to the Crafts Center, guests will have an opportunity to schmooze with curators and artisans and enjoy handcrafted whiskeys selected and provided by Austin Liquors, with locations in Worcester and Shrewsbury.

New Street Glass Studio at the center will provide hand-blown whiskey tumblers for the tasting and to take home. Westfield Farms in Hubbardston will provide handcrafted cheeses, and Stewart’s Chocolates in Jefferson, chocolate specialties.

For reservations, call (508) 753-8183, ext. 301, or visit www.worcestercraftcenter.org.

The show on May 13 is free to the public from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

May 14, the show is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., free to the public. Artists from the center will give demos in the Ceramics Studio at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. May 14 and 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. May 15.

Sarah Ribeiro of the Worcester Garden Club will present a flower styling demo at 3 p.m. May 14, using handmade ceramic containers for the arrangements.

May 15 show hours are from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., free to the public. A special food styling demo by Elaine Pusateri-Cowan will be presented from 1 to 2 p.m. Learn how to use handmade ceramics for serving and entertaining.

Pusateri-Cowan is owner and chef de cuisine of UXLocale, an Uxbridge restaurant that is expected to open later this month.

The Pottery Invitational at Worcester Center for Crafts began in 2003 as a way to expose the community to the work of regional and national ceramic artists, and to assist artists in creating a new market for their work.

Great weekend planned.

Xxxx

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Press Release: Pottery Invitational 2016

WORCESTER, MA - Nineteen nationally known ceramic talents will be on display May 13-15, 2016 in the Worcester Center for Crafts Krikorian Gallery's live exhibition, THE POTTERY INVITATIONAL. Ceramic work by the 19 artists will be on display accompanied by the artists themselves, a nod to bringing pottery in all of its forms to the public with the makers who can discuss it. This year's show will also include demonstrations by artists on the making of ceramics and by a local flower arranger and a chef on using handmade pottery in everyday life.

Held over the course of one night and two days, the Pottery Invitational is organized by two guest curators who invite a selection of artists to participate. This year's curators are potters Aysha Peltz and Todd Wahlstrom who work in Whitingham, VT. 

Artists included in the show include Ingrid Bathe  (New Castle, ME), Julie Crosby (Trumansburg, NY), Hayne Bayless (Ivoryton, CT), Kyla Toomey (Waltham, MA), Colleen McCall (Elmira, NY), Nicole Aquillano (Boston, MA), Lucy Fagella (Greenfield, MA), Michael Connelly (Philadelphia, PA), Todd Wahlstrom & Aysha Peltz (Whitingham, VT), Tom O'Malley (Forestdale, RI), Sarah Heimann (Lebanon, NH), Holly Walker (Randolph VT), Tom White (Northfield, MA), Robbie Heidinger, 

(Westhampton, MA), Rob Cartelli (South Newfane, VT), Maureen Mills (Portsmouth, NH), Normandy Alden (West Winfield NY), and Robbie Lobell (Coupeville, WA).

Friday, May 13 

5:30-7 pm, the Pottery Invitational kicks-off with a Benefit Preview Whiskey Tasting that features handcrafted whiskey served in whiskey tumblers made at the Craft Center's New Street Glass Studio. Provided by Austin Liquors, the whiskey tasting will give guests an opportunity to meet and mingle with the artists; shop & collect with first dibs; and enjoy handmade chocolates by Stewarts Chocolates of Holden and locally made cheese from Westfield Farms of Hubbardston. A limited number of reservations for this benefit are available; admission to the Benefit Preview is a $35 donation to the Crafts Center per person; click here to reserve online or call 508.753.8183, x 301. Benefit attendees take their whiskey glass home with them at the end of the evening.  

At 7 pm on Friday night, the Pottery Invitational opens to the public free of charge and reopens on Saturday from 10 am-5 pm and on Sunday from 11 am-4 pm. 

As part of bringing Pottery to the People, two demonstrations show how easy it is to incorporate hand-made ceramics into everyday life. On Saturday, May 14 at 3 pm, Sarah Ribeiro of the Worcester Garden Club will demonstrate arranging flowers in handmade ceramic containers. On Sunday, at 1 pm Elaine Pusateri-Cowan owner and chef de cuisine of the soon-to-open UXLocale in Uxbridge will show how handmade ceramics can complete the presentation of food. All events are free. The Invitational is accompanied by a small catalog of the show that highlights the artists' biographies and includes a statement from the artists on their work and working methods.

The Pottery Invitational was started at the Worcester Center for Crafts in 2003 as a way to expose the community to the work of regional and national ceramic artists, and to assist artists in creating a new market for their work. Based loosely on an event held at the renowned Art School at Old Church in Demarest, NJ, the Worcester Center for Crafts Pottery Invitational has grown into the Center's premiere large-scale educational event for the public around the work of clay artists. "The Pottery Invitational is part of Worcester's creative economy," said Honee Hess, executive director of the Crafts Center. "It markets the work of artists who sell their work. People come from far and wide, stay in hotels and eat in local restaurants, and we move closer to our mission -- sustaining crafts as an important part of our community and society." An appreciation of all things hand-made is good for artist, business, and the community. The Worcester Center for Crafts (WCC) is one of the oldest non-profit institutions for craft study in the United States. Founded in 1856 as the Worcester Employment Society to help immigrant women produce and sell handcrafted wares to support their families, the Center evolved into New England is leading center for craft education, exhibition, and entrepreneurship. In 2004, the organization expanded and opened the New Street Glass Studio - an off-campus, 8,000 square foot, state-of-the-art, multi-studio glass facility. The WCC offers the only comprehensive glass studio program in New England available to the public. Through an affiliation begun in 2009, the WCC is home to the Worcester State visual arts studios. The Craft Center's mission is "to sustain craft as a vital part of our community" by providing high-quality craft education and training, by supporting craft artists in their professions, and through advocacy and public education initiatives including adult education classes and workshops, youth education and outreach programs, exhibitions showcasing the work of established and emerging artists, artist residencies, lectures, family events, studio rentals, Gallery Store, and major events. The WCC is a member of the Worcester Cultural Coalition and it's WOO card program, and receive funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, May 13 5:30   Show opens with Benefit Preview celebration. $35.00 pp. Mingle with the curators and artisans while enjoying a "Whiskey Tasting" (in a free hand-blown glass by New Street Glass) sponsored by Austin Liquors and enjoy handcrafted cheeses by Westfield Farms of Hubbardston MA and chocolates by Stewarts of Jefferson, MA.   7:00   Show opens, free to the public 8:30   Show closes SATURDAY, May 14 10:00    Show opens, free to the public 11-12:00 AIR demos in ceramic studio 11:45 Pop up talk in Krikorian Gallery by Hayne Bayless 12:00-1:00 lunch in multimedia for potters 1-2:00 AIR demos in ceramic studio 3:00   Flower Styling demo by Sarah Ribeiro, illustrating the use of handmade pots in the home for flower arranging 4:15 Pop up talk in the Gallery by Maureen Mills 5:00 Show closes SUNDAY, May 15 11:00 Show opens, free to the public 11:00-12:00 AIR demos in ceramics studio 1:00-2:00 Food Styling demo by Elaine Pusateri illustrating the use of handmade pots for serving and entertaining 2:00 -3:00 AIR demos in ceramics studio 3:00 Pop up talk by Aysha Peltz  4:00   Show closes