Welcome to Winter Wonderland! Nothing like snow to get you in the mood for Christmas! We will be open (fingers crossed for good weather!) on Christmas Walk night and hope you will enjoy our windows. We are donating 10% of our December sales equally between the Geneseo-Atkinson Food Pantry and the Geneseo Humane Society. We are also collecting cash or “wish list” items for these two organizations at the gallery. The windows should be visible within the next week.

We had planned to have a youth class today but the weather has delayed that; if you are interested in youth classes or have a student who you would like to have extra time or inspiration, please let us know by leaving a message at the gallery (309)944-4994 or dropping by during regular hours of 10:30 to 3 on Thursdays through Saturdays. We will be closed on Christmas and New Year’s Day, hopefully open other days unless we experience inclement weather.

Are you interested in art and in becoming a member? We meet each month, generally on the first Saturday at 10:30 a.m. for 60-90- minutes to discuss business and enjoy each other’s company, revise windows and update each other on our work and lives, etc. Membership in our nonprofit side (RutabagA, the Heart of Regional Art, NFP) is $30 per year. You are welcome to come to a meeting and introduce yourself or stop by on a gallery day and speak to another member.

If you are an artist and want to show/sell your art in the gallery, you may become a member of our for profit side, RutabagA Studio Corp. (this separate entity was a requirement to obtain our 501(c)(3) designation but it allows us to sell our work). Interested artists should bring some of their work to a meeting, have joined the nonprofit side and work will be juried by the membership of the nonprofit entity.

We were open on Christmas Open House weekend in mid-November. Guests could see our holiday spirit and that we are working on a book bench for the Geneseo Public Library. We have just completed work on two wooden butterfly wing sets which will be installed at the library’s outdoor garden also in the spring. It has been fun to work on these projects and will be focusing on the bench now that the butterflies have “taken flight”.

On Saturday, October 4, Joyce Mattan painted during the State Street Market event in Geneseo, a full-day event which draws crowds to the downtown for fall treats. Stop by and say hello and see what she has created.

Artwalk 10 in Geneseo was a blast! Many people were in the gallery to see Joyce Mattan working in pastel, Karen Vroman doing copper tooling and Les Hoste working in watercolor. We were also taking art in so it was a busy day but weather was wonderful!

Below are some past fun photos from events. :-)

Our thanks to Geneseo Foundation, The Cellar Restaurant, Central Bank Illinois, Wyffels Hybrids, Inc. and Vorac Pharmacy in addition to Blick Art Materials for their sponsorship of our 2025 Geneseo Fine Arts Exhibit. They and our patrons and members are greatly appreciated!!

Here's a sampling of the community enrichments our members have been involved in over the years.

• Sponsoring a regional judged art competition, the Maple City Fine Arts Exhibit, for 35 years and now starting our own, the Geneseo Fine Art Exhibit, begun in 2023.

• Partnering with civic groups to provide low- and no-cost instruction for children.

• Leading art projects for life enrichment at area senior care facilities.

• Teaching art for local home-schooling families.

• Teaching classical fine art techniques.

• Bringing nationally-known instructors to teach in Geneseo.

• Painting community murals.

• Giving time to area causes, such as Dress For Success, Henry County Humane Society, Braveheart Childrens' Advocacy Center, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra, and others.

Below is a group photo of members from late 2021. It is a pleasure to work with these artists and call them friends. Salute!

Blick Art Materials can be found online at: https://www.dickblick.com.