Ten Squared brings winter wonders to the Southold Historical Museum

It’s pretty rare to find an original painting, drawing, or photograph by a local East End artist for less than $ 1,000, but the Southold Historical Museum is in the middle of a special sale where each piece costs a lot. cheaper – $ 100, no matter which one an interested collector might buy.

For the benefit of the museum, the Ten squared The online art exhibition and sale includes over 50 fabulous works of art from over 25 artists, each measuring 10 x 10 inches and priced less than a dinner for two at a mid-sized restaurant. range. The current month-long exhibition from November 15 to December 15 is themed “Winter Wonders” and the available works reflect this theme, some more closely than others.

“The artists appreciate it and it’s not put to a jury, so it’s really the artists’ interpretation of the theme,” says Deanna Witte-Walker, Managing Director of the Southold Historical Museum, adding: “We get all different works, we get work from young, very skilled and well known artists – we get a whole range of different interests and levels.

Mainly from the Hamptons and North Fork, the list of artists from Winter wonders include names such as Randee Daddona, Lee Cleary, Carolyn Bunn, Kip Bedell, Lee Harned, Kathleen Young, Ann Fox, and Kathleen McArdle, to name a few.

The paintings and photographs on display and for sale at southoldhistorical.org include a wide range of subjects, from snowy landscapes to portraits of birds, images of Horton Point and Coffee Pot lighthouses, still lifes, abstract and figurative seascapes. , trees, seashells and even historic scenes of winter life in North Fork.

Due to the popularity of the format – and surely the $ 100 price tags that go with it – Ten squared: Winter fun is actually the Southold Historical Museum’s second online exhibit in the series this year. Over the summer the museum enjoyed great success with Ten squared: summer solstice, which featured around 80 original works of art. They also produced two Ten squared shows in 2020, which was the first year the exhibit went online from the in-person format they had been using since the shows started in 2018.

“We had this first in person and then when COVID hit we moved on to doing it virtually. … We had already planned it, so we said, “How can we do it? “And we were quickly able to figure out how to make it work on our website and do the shopping,” says Witte-Walker, explaining that doing the shows online has actually been better in some ways.

“One of the advantages of having it virtually is that we can keep the exhibition for the entire month,” she continues, noting that in the past the selection of works on display decreased as the people walked away with the pictures they bought. Now, even if someone insists on getting their hands on their art before the show ends, the image is marked “sold,” but remains on the website for all to admire. “And that supports local artists whether they sell a painting or not. “

The museum announced the show and its theme in September when Witte-Walker began asking artists to submit up to three pieces each. Depending on the format, the works could be on any medium, but they had to measure exactly 10 x 10 inches and make an effort to reflect the Winter wonders theme.

At the time, Witte-Walker wrote, “’winter’ is a huge concept, so you’ll want to reduce your creative ideas into a more cohesive theme. It can be winter on the North Fork, it can be the myths and traditions of a certain culture about winter, or it can be interpretations of winter seen through the eyes of different people. What are the natural processes that govern winter? What animals and plants thrive during the winter? The seasons of change are coming. Share your interpretation, literal or symbolic, of Winter wonders. “

But in the end, the executive director said they would never turn down work unless it was in some way offensive or grossly inappropriate. Each participating artist pledges to share the $ 100 equally, giving the museum $ 50 per piece to help support their programs throughout the year.

“When an artist like Randee Daddona or Lee Harned or Ty [Stroudsburg] (which is not this sale) submit, they don’t because they are looking to make money on it. They don’t do it to publicize their name. They do it to support the museum and they want the work to be hung in someone’s house, ”observes Witte-Walker

For newbies or lesser-known artists, she says shows can be a good way to showcase their work and earn a few bucks. Buyers, on the other hand, can buy a quality piece of art for a bargain, and no matter who is selling the museum gets a bit of help keeping the lights on.

In other words, with these Ten squared shows, everyone wins.

Visit southoldhistorical.org for fun – but don’t wait, parts sell out fast.