LOCAL

Want to own a box of art from York artists?

David Weissman
505-5431/@DispatchDavid
  • Creative York commissioned nine artists to produce 20 pieces art each for the CSA program.
  • Twenty shares are available for $250 per share, with each shareholder receiving art from each artist.

A project spearheaded by Creative York to offer numerous pieces of work to community shareholders has drawn significant interest from local artists.

Creative York spokeswoman Laura Abbott said the organization got the idea for the Community Supported Art (CSA) program from a similar program occurring in Minnesota.

Nine York-area artists have been awarded $500 stipends to individually produce 20 pieces of art, Abbott said, and 20 shares are available for purchase, with each shareholder set to receive one piece of art from each artist.

Terri Yacovelli fuses layers of painted beeswax and damar varnish as she creates her encaustic artwork at her home in York Township, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. Yacovelli is one of nine local artists who will create 20 pieces of artwork that will be sold to shareholders for Creative York's community-supported art program. Dawn J. Sagert photo

Creative York has sold six shares thus far for $250 apiece, she added.

The CSA idea stems from community-supported agriculture, which offers consumers the opportunity to buy seasonal foods directly from local farmers, according to Abbott.

Terri Yacovelli, an art teacher at West York High School, is one of the local artists chosen to participate in the inaugural program.

Yacovelli said she loved the concept of the program, placing a emphasis on the community.

"We're working on our projects independently," she said, "but York has such a small, close-knit art community that we all know each other."

Texture and contours are seen in encaustic artwork by Artist Terri Yacovelli at her home in York Township, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. Yacovelli is one of nine local artists who will create 20 pieces of artwork that will be sold to shareholders for Creative York's community-supported art program. Dawn J. Sagert photo

Yacovelli said she will be painting 10 abstract and 10 nature-themed works using a mix of oil-based paint and beeswax, which is known as encaustic painting.

Local poet Carla Christopher is  participating in the program by joining forces with craft soapmaker Haley Combs.

Christopher said she met Combs at a York Crafted event, and the two have looked for a way to work together ever since.

For the CSA project, Combs will create soaps with original scents, and Christopher will write poems based on how those scents make her feel.

The poems will be written by hand in calligraphy, and certain lines printed on a water-soluble paper will be inserted within the transparent bars of soap, Christopher said.

Drippings of fused painted layers of a wax and damar varnish are seen on the edges of encaustic artwork by Artist Terri Yacovelli at her home in York Township, Tuesday, July 5, 2016. Yacovelli is one of nine local artists who will create 20 pieces of artwork that will be sold to shareholders for Creative York's community-supported art program. Dawn J. Sagert photo

The other local artists participating in the program are Karen Fornadel, Judeth Hawkins, Jiman Hively, Steph Holmes, Fiel Patricio, Dillon Samuelson and Emily White.

The end result is being marketed as a box of art, according to a Creative York news release, but Abbott said organizers are still discussing the best way to package each shareholder's collection.

A pick-up event for the shareholders and artists will be held at Creative York's downtown gallery in September. Those interested in purchasing a share should call the organization at (717) 848-3200.

— Reach David Weissman at dweissman@yorkdispatch.com or on Twitter at @DispatchDavid.