Artists converge on Solomons for open air painting

Writer'S NOTEBOOK

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

The artists are traveling from across the country to participate in the town's first "plein air," or outdoor landscape painting, art contest in years, according to Carmen Nance Sanders, owner of Carmen's Gallery on Solomons Island. Painters have from Thursday until Saturday to produce up to two paintings to be judged by Rockville oil painter Bill Schmidt.

Schmidt's own paintings of Solomons Island and other places will be on display and available for sale at Carmen's Gallery on Saturday evening.

On Sunday, May 17, the paintings will be on display at Annmarie Garden in Dowell from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The works will be available for sale, with profits going to benefit the Solomons Business Association and going toward funding the Christmas Walk, July 4 fireworks, the Taste of Solomons, and the Solomons Paint the Town event, according to a release.

Nance Sanders welcomes the chance to bring fine art to Solomons.

"This is really a huge step forward for us down here," she said. Also, plein air art has become trendy recently, making now an auspicious time to revive the contest, which the gallery hosted on its own in years past. "It's the in thing to do these days in the art world," Nance Sanders said.

SMECO board of directors election coming up

On Saturday, May 9, the 2009 Nominating Committee for the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative chose candidates for the five available seats up for election on SMECO's Board of Directors, according to a release:

Calvert County: Samuel "Jack" Hammett;

Charles County: Fern Brown and Kenneth L. Dyson;

St. Mary's County: Samuel M. "Bo" Bailey Jr., Walter Rayner Blair III, William Greene and George M. "Mike" Thompson.

In addition to nominations made by the Nominating Committee, any 15 or more members acting together may make other nominations by petition by Friday, June 26.

SMECO customer-members will elect five directors to serve three-year terms by voting for one board seat in Calvert County, two seats in Charles County, and two seats in St. Mary's County. There are no seats available in Prince George's County in 2009. Members will also vote on proposed bylaw changes.

Members may vote in person at the annual members meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 26. This year's meeting will be held at the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf. The new venue will provide ample parking, more comfortable seating and improved accessibility, according to the release.

Absentee ballots are also available to members who wish to vote but cannot attend the meeting. To request an absentee mail-in ballot, call 1-888-440-3311, Ext. 4722 or go to the co-op's Web site at www.smeco.coop. Requests for absentee mail-in ballots must be made by 4 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 13.

SMECO will mail annual meeting notices with registration cards, details about the meeting, candidate biographies, and proposed bylaw changes to each customer-member by the end of July.

Water outage scheduled for Ches. Beach tomorrow

On Thursday, May 14, repairs to the water system will leave residents from 28th Street north without water from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to a press release from Town Hall.

Arts camp enrolling children for summer

The Arts Council of Calvert County will host two summer art camps: July 13 to 17 at the Broomes Island Community Center and Aug. 3 to 7 at Emmanuel Baptist Church in Huntingtown. These hands-on, weeklong sessions, designed for children ages 7 to 12, feature a diverse selection of art activities taught by a variety of artists and teachers from throughout Southern Maryland.

For more information, go to www.calvertarts.org to download a camp application or contact the Arts Council at 410-257-7005. A limited number of junior counselor positions is also available for qualified youths ages 15 to 18.

The mission of the Arts Council of Calvert County is to invest in and encourage the arts in Calvert County. In support of this mission it provides grants to schools and organizations for arts-related programs; hosts the Summer Arts Camp; and sponsors the CalvART Gallery, a co-op gallery featuring regional artists and located within the Prince Frederick Shopping Center.

Calvert County celebrates tourism week

In Calvert County, residents and visitors are invited to learn more about attractions, events and activities by first exploring the county's two visitor information centers this week, which is National Tourism Week, according to a release.

Visitor Center staff will be on hand to provide free travel kits, useful information and advice on places to visit and things to do in Calvert County. For information on the Calvert County Department of Economic Development and services available to businesses, go to www.ecalvert.com.