PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
Well. Our 75th year is finally here. We should feel proud to be part of an organization that has perservered for so long. This is a good year to say, "Yes, I am a Lehigh Art Alliance member." The enclosed insert lists our activities for the year. In order to help celebrate our anniversary, here’s what you can do:
Rejoin the LAA this year; let’s get our membership to an all-time high.
Get another artist to join the LAA for the first time.
Make sure you are represented on our website with a photo of your work.
Attend all of our extra events this year.
If you are an artist, enter our annual Spring and Fall juried exhibitions – the more entries, the more jurors have to choose from to build great shows.
Whether an exhibitor or not, round up friends and family and attend our Spring and Fall exhibition openings.
Send announcements of your own shows and activities to the newsletter.
Promote the LAA – tell your artist and non-artist friends how great it is to have this organization thriving through 75 years of regional history.

LAA's 75th Fall 2010 Exhibit at Allentown Art Museum
This Fall the Lehigh Art Alliance will return to the Allentown Art Museum for its 75th Fall Exhibit. Drop-off of work will be held Saturday September 18th from 12-3 PM. The show will run from September 26th to November 12th, 2010. The LAA has the privilege of being the final exhibit in the upstairs galleries before the Art Museum closes for renovations. More details and prospectus to follow.


GOOD NEWS
The LAA has recently been notified that we are to be honored with the Bethlehem Fine Arts Commission’s "Arts Organization Award" for 2010. The presentation will occur at a May reception held by BFAC at Payne Gallery, Moravian College. More information will be forthcoming in a future newsletter. Certainly this comes as wonderful news, coinciding as it does with our 75th Anniversary.

TC SALON SPA EXHIBIT
Our first mini exhibit of selected artists is installed at the TC Salon Spa on Walnut Street, Bethlehem, a block east of Main Street. Owner Frank Shipman, a long-time supporter of the arts in the Valley, selected Kim Robertson and Ron Delong to exhibit in March and April. Stop in and enjoy! In July and August, Barry Assed, Jack Dickerson and Jerry Steward will be featured.

TIMEZONES EXHIBIT
Our second mini exhibit of selected artists will be at Timezones Global Goodies & Framing Gallery, 7 East 3rd Street, Bethlehem. The featured artists will be Louise Cosgrove, Janet Dean, Miriam Landes, Jacqueline Meyerson and Jean M. Perez; they were selected by Timezones owner Roz Bachman. The show runs from 2 April until 30 April, with an opening on First Friday, 2 April, from 6:00 – 9:00. Naturally, all LAA members, friends and family are invited.

REGARDING OUR 74th FALL EXHIBITION
Our last newsletter should have mentioned that the LAA linked up with the Bethlehem Historical Society’s art auction at Lehigh’s Iacocca Hall. Through a scheduling mix-up their organization was to hold its event before we de-installed our show, so we worked together to incorporate our artists as part of the event. Two LAA works sold, and the commission was split between BHS and LAA.
Also, belated thanks go out to Katie Graul and Mike Venanzi who staff the reception desk at Iacocca Hall. They were extremely helpful to, and cooperative with our work crews, and made the delivery, jurying and installation easier for us.

75TH ANNUAL SPRING JURIED EXHIBITION
This year we return to the Martin Art Gallery and Lobby at Muhlenberg College, in the beautiful Center for the Arts building designed by Phillip Johnson, for our Spring show. It will run from Tuesday 8 June to Friday 30 July. 

MEMBERS OUT AND ABOUT 

Kim Robertson was honored as ACE (Arts Community of Easton) Artist of the Year for 2009 – 2010. Also, she exhibited in "Art Connections 6," at George Segal Gallery, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ in January and February; also, she has a one-woman show "Love, Fear & Juice" at ConneXions Gallery, Easton, 26 February – 4 April 2010. 

Barry Assed exhibited in "Anonymous Drawings No. 10" in Berlin, Germany from mid-December to mid-January.

Ben Gilmore had three paintings in the recent ACE exhibition, State Theatre Gallery in Easton; also, he received the Award for Excellence at Somerset Art Alliance’s Juried Show, Bedminster, NJ; also, two paintings in Bethlehem Palette Club’s Heller Homestead Exhibit, Allentown.

Peter Schnore won the Alden Bryan Memorial Medal and $3000 at the 96th Annual Allied Artists of America juried show held at the National Arts Club in New York; also won the Hill School Award at the 54th Open Juried Exhibition of the Perkiomen Valley Art Center.

Jacqueline Meyerson is giving a Pastel Workshop on Florals and Still Life every Tuesday at Blick Art Materials, Lehigh Street, Allentown. Morning sessions, 10:30 am – 12:30 pm; evenings, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm. Call for information: 610.336.0589. Cost: $85 / 6 weeks.

Janet Dean is offering a series of courses, Introduction to Pastels, at Blick Art Materials, Lehigh County Community College and East Penn School District. Sessions run 4 – 6 weeks. For information call 610.767.7907.

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
If you were ever going to be an LAA member, this is the year. Please fill out your renewal form and mail it and your check to our new treasurer, Jackie Meyerson. And thank you for continuing to support the LAA.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

PASTEL CLASSES – for adults

Explore the art of Pastels with regionally know artist Janet Dean.  Janet has exhibited and received numerous awards for her fine art in oils and pastels for the past 30 years.  She combines her experience as artist, photographer and picture framer to introduce you to an exciting and versatile medium capable of producing a wide range of drawing and painterly effects. With a concentration of the Landscape, these classes will serve as an “Introductory” to pastels with instruction on the fundamentals of basic techniques, use of many grounds (surfaces) available to use, and the various types of pastels available.