The Foundry Artist Cooperative, located at 100 South Main Street, Chambersburg, is currently displaying a collaborative painting by 36 women artists from the area, with individual canvases being sponsored to benefit Women in Need of Chambersburg. “Women@Work” will be on view at the Foundry through November 1, with gallery hours Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 11am-3pm.
“We had to work creatively to find a way to foster this collaboration while in-person events were not possible,” explained Foundry artist Anne Finucane. “We reached out to artists outside the Foundry and were very gratified to have 23 artists from the community join 13 artists from the Foundry in contributing individual squares to create the whole “mosaic” painting.
The 36 women artists have each worked in their home studios – not knowing what the final product would be – to create panels which have been brought together and assembled to form a large multi-media mosaic painting. The 36 panels represent diverse artistic expressions unique to each individual artist, but when viewed together, the work speaks with one voice depicting Women@Work.
The painting depicts Chambersburg’s beloved Falafel Shack restaurant, located on the Square, at 9 North Main Street. The Falafel Shack was created by the family of Amer Chaudry and Jasmina Ademovic, with the goal of “expanding peoples’ palates and minds with their food!” They began with a stand at the North Square Farmers Market in 2013 and have just celebrated the 3rd anniversary of the restaurant. The painting depicts their kitchen on a typical summer day, with workers including Daniela Crawford, Aaron McKenzie, and in the background, Amer Chaudry.
The Foundry artists have decided to use the painting to raise awareness and funds to support Women in Need. WIN has provided services to victims, survivors and significant others of individuals who have experienced domestic violence and sexual assault for over three decades. With a suggested sponsorship donation of $50 to $100 per panel the Foundry hopes to achieve a fundraising goal of $2,500 for WIN. Each sponsorship will go directly to Women in Need, while the squares will remain together as a tribute to women in the community. Sponsorships can be purchased in person at the Foundry, or online at www.foundryartmarket.com
Home to an eclectic mix of handmade works by artists from around the Cumberland Valley, the FOUNDRY houses a retail shop where guests can purchase unique, one-of-a-kind pieces that are made locally, view rotating exhibits featuring the work of artists both local & regional, and shop the Salvage Supply area of the store, where used art and craft supplies are available at rock-bottom prices!
For more information about the Foundry, call (717)261-0706, email foundryarts@gmail.com or visit www.foundryartmarket.com