press releases
In addition to design, I also assist customers with marketing and public relations. This includes writing a good old-fashioned press release and sending it out to the media for distribution. In some public publications it's printed verbatim, but often what it does is garners attention for my customer and a news story or coverage of an event by a reporter from the media. Below are a few sample press releases.
- "Remembering Our Animal Companions on Pet Memorial Sunday" for Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation
- "Dale Property Services Penn presents the Carnegie Art and Heritage Festival September 10, 11 and 12" for Carnegie's Arts & Heritage Festival
- " Animal Lovers Comforted by New Pet Loss CD" for the release of the "Heal Your Heart: Coping with Pet Loss CD"
- "Join a Long-standing Organization" for the South Hills Art League's biannual new member screening
- " My Home Town art exhibit features images of Carnegie" ...Yes the last one is about me, written for an art exhibit I recently held...
For Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation's 2009 Pet memorial sunday gathering
PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Event is Sunday, September 13, 2009
For more information, contact:
Deb Chebatoris at 412-220-7800
Bernadette Kazmarski at 412-429-9553 or bernadettekazmarski@comcast.net
Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation website at www.ccpc.ws.
NOTE: This is Deb’s fifth year in business and fifth year hosting this event.
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Remembering Our Animal Companions on Pet Memorial Sunday
For anyone who has loved and lost an animal companion, the need for respectful grieving and memorials is clear. Animals fill a deep place in our lives; for children they are sometimes the closest friend and confidant, for seniors they are often a singular daily companion. All who share their lives with an animal find a unique personality and a bond that’s hard to replace when gone.
The second Sunday of September is designated as Pet Memorial Sunday by the International Association of Pet Cemeteries and Crematories, and for every year in which she has been in business, Deb Chebatoris of Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation has hosted a ceremony on this day dedicated to remembering our animal companions for anyone who has lost a pet.
This year the ceremony is on Sunday, September 13, 2009 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Melrose Cemetery in Bridgeville.
“Rituals build community, creating a meeting ground where people can share deep feelings or…keep a solemn silence,” Chebatoris says. “This event is for anyone who may have experienced the loss of a beloved pet, no matter when the loss occurred.”
Chebatoris invites speakers to discuss our relationships with our pets before, during and after their death. This year, Dr. Brad Carmichael of Pleasant Valley Veterinary Hospital in McMurray PA, will speak on “Our Last Moments Together”, Allison Holst, Bereavement Specialist, will talk about “Our Initial Grief Response”, and Barbara Golden, Animal Behaviorist, will discuss “The Joys of Pet Companionship”.
These speakers are followed by a reading of “Words of Tribute” written by pet owners who attend. Chebatoris encourages participants to write a 50-word tribute to commemorate and remember the lives they shared with their special pets, and has tips and examples on her website for composition.
“Keeping a tribute to your pet to only 50 words can be a challenge,” Chebatoris remarks, “but limiting your remembrance to 50 words helps you to focus on the essential elements that made your pet special.”
Also, attendance is usually between 30 and 40 persons, and Chebatoris wants to make sure everyone’s tribute is heard in the limited time scheduled for the gathering.
Families are also encouraged to bring a photo of their pet to be displayed during the ceremony.
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Possibly the most moving part of the event is the dove release. After all the speakers and the readings and the candle-lighting ceremony, “we release a flock of white doves to symbolize our ability to let go of our precious companions,” Chebatoris explains.
“I’m so glad to be in my fifth year of hosting this ceremony,” Chebatoris says. “When I read through my thank you notes, I can see how grateful people are, and many people return year after year even if they haven’t lost a pet.”
The gathering will be held under a tent in the cemetery with light refreshments served afterward as families are invited to share their experiences with each other and speak to the presenters. The public is invited to attend, but Chebatoris needs an RSVP to know the number who wish to attend. Also, in order to provide a peaceful environment for all, it is not appropriate to bring live pets to this event.
For more information or to RSVP, please visit the website at www.ccpc.ws or call Deb at 412-220-7800. The Pet Memorial Sunday page on the site includes an e-mail address for Deb as well as instructions for composing and sending your Words of Tribute.
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for carnegie's arts and heritage festival 2009
Dale Property Services Penn presents the Carnegie Art and Heritage Festival September 10, 11 and 12
Want pierogies? We got ’em. Want 15 different kid’s games? We got ’em. Want bellydancers? We got ’em. Want Jill West and Joe Grushecky? We got them, too.
You’ll find food, music, fun and games on Carnegie’s Main Street again this September during Carnegie’s 22nd Annual Arts & Heritage Festival.
This year the festival is generously sponsored by Dale Property Services Penn of Canonsburg, a privately held oil and gas leasing company focused on the development and education of our natural resources in the community and currently leasing oil and gas rights in Allegheny, Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland Counties.
“We’re looking forward to a tremendous turn out. The foundation of our business relies on community partnership and involvement. We’re looking forward to an exciting time and meeting a lot of people,” said Chad Mackert of Dale Property Services Penn.
In addition, Adventist Community Services of Greater Pittsburgh will once again sponsor and manage the Family Fun Area, Standard Ceramics has sponsored the Creative Marketplace for a the second year in a row, and KDKA joins as a sponsor as well.
Two new features will provide special entertainment for those who visit on Thursday night and Saturday afternoon.
First of all, festival attendees will be able to watch the Steelers’ opening night game while they enjoy the festival on Thursday night.
“When we heard the Steelers were playing the season opener on Thursday, the first night of our festival, I first thought all was lost,” said Leigh White, CCDC executive director and festival committee chair, “but then I decided that, if we could, we would use it to our advantage.”
“We’ll have a big screen TV set up in the main stage area where viewers can also purchase beer,” White explained. “A band will play before the game and at halftime, so you can get some dinner, listen to some music, watch the game, hear another band, enjoy some beverages—what could be better?”
The second change is an addition to this year’s musical line-up on Saturday from noon to 4:00 p.m. Five local bands will compete in the first ever Battle of the Bands for prizes of $1,000 and an official gig in next year’s festival.
“Saturday afternoons have not always been well-attended,” said Leigh White, festival chair. “We decided to use the time to give voice to some less-known but excellent bands who wouldn’t usually get to play the festival.”
Each band will have a 30- to 45-minute set to play, and at least four judges will watch every performance. We have some exciting judges lined up as well, including several well-known Pittsburghers. A People’s Choice Award will allow listeners to vote for their favorites, and will also be factored into the band’s score. The event is hosted by Nick Kratsas, radio producer for KDKA.
Aside from the battling bands, the stages will see some favorite performers returning. Jill West will headline Friday night and Joe Grushecky on Saturday night.
“We wanted to offer new sounds every year,” said Wes White. “When we know someone like Jill West or Joe Grushecky is a favorite and they look forward to playing our festival—we don’t want to change that,” he said, “but we not only want to give our audiences something new to look forward to, we also want other bands to have a chance to play in Carnegie.”
The full line-up of bands is on the festival website at www.carnegieartsandheritage.com.
The Creative Marketplace is even bigger this year, with two full tents, one for 8 artists and one for 10 crafters. In the fine art tent, visitors can stroll under the tents and see artists painting, sketching and creating jewelry, and choose from a variety of original art and prints, handmade jewelry and ceramics and even apparel.
“We have eight artists who’ve shown all over Pittsburgh and beyond at our festival,” said Bernadette Kazmarski, Creative Marketplace chair and exhibiting artist. “The quality of work is astonishing to look at, and the variety of styles and subject matter should bring anyone here who wants to purchase anything from a notecard to an original painting, a ceramic sculpture, handmade garment or unique piece of jewelry.”
Crafters also offer a big variety of products from jewelry to house wares to decorative items, all handmade by the artist. “This is where you begin your holiday shopping, and many artists and crafters will often customize or custom-make an item,” Kazmarski continued. “It’s amazing to see what people can crochet, knit and sew, string into jewelry, make from old scraps of wood and other found objects. The creativity of these people is overwhelming.”
The Family Fun and Entertainment Area, sponsored by Adventist Community Services – Greater Pittsburgh, will feature even more games of skill than last year, so brush up on tossing a bean bag and a plastic ring in time!. Other activities will include the Velcro Wall and the Moon Walk, among other things, and the ever-popular face-painting will also be available. As last year, you’ll purchase a strip of tickets to play games in the Family Fun area so children don’t have to handle money in the game tents, and winners can visit the Prize Shack to choose their prizes when they’re done with the games.
And on the community stage—well, if you don’t like the current act, wait a half hour and you’ll see something entirely different. During the three days of the festival you’ll not only enjoy jazz, folk and alternative rock, but also belly dancers, Irish dancers, Ukrainian dancers and student ballet dancers, plus klezmer, pop and a taste of the Chapman Stick. The schedule for these performers is also posted on the festival website at www.carnegieartsandheritage.com.
For some people who frequent festivals, it’s all about the food and this year’s Food Court features everything from snacks to full meals representing over a half-dozen nationalities. Sts. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Church and Carnegie United Methodist Church return with homemade ethnic specialties including pierogies, halushka, stuffed cabbage and kielbasa. The Food Court also features three of Carnegie’s restaurants: Duran’s, Babyface’s Carnegie Grill and Barb’s Country Junction with specials that folks who frequent their restaurants will recognize. Mr. Ribs and Sarge’s Ribs are back as well. Other local eateries which festival-goers might find familiar include Niko’s Coffee Shop, Philly Pretzel Factory and Tambellini Catering.
Local organizations Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall, Historical Society of Carnegie, Carnegie Children’s Events Committee and Fidelity Lodge will have a booth as well as State Representative Nick Kotik.
Also new this year is the Business Bazaar on the Bridge, featuring Carnegie area businesses with information and/or merchandise.
Heather Kratsas, volunteer coordinator would like to invite people to consider volunteering for the festival, either with setup or during the festival to help vendors set up and tear down and take breaks, direct people, run children’s games and sell beer tickets.
“Last year we had 151 volunteers who put in 612.5 hours of volunteer time, and we couldn’t have done it without them,” said Kratsas. “We can always use more volunteers—honestly, about 300 to 350 would be great!”
About 1,000 volunteer hours go into the festival, including the steering committee and people who step in where needed but don’t actually sign up for a shift. Volunteers work three- to four-hour shifts, and training is provided for any volunteer area.
“Volunteers sell tickets for alcohol if they are over 18 and they pour alcohol if they are over 21,” Kratsas explained, “they staff the info booth two or three at a time, and in the Family Fun area they run games and make sure they are being played correctly.”
Those interested in volunteering should attend an information and training meeting on Wednesday, September 2, 7:00 p.m. at the Carnegie Borough Building at 1 Veteran’s Way.
The entertainment is booked, and the full list is available on the website along with links to performer websites. Creative Marketplace vendors are also listed on the website along with images of their work and links to artist websites. A list of food vendors and others is also available on the website, as well as a map, driving directions and available parking. Check the website at www.carnegieartsandheritage.com for details.
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for the relase of the "heal your heart: coping with pet loss" CD
FOR RELEASE AFTER AUGUST 1, 2009
Please feel free to use the following contact information.
Main Contact:
Karen Litzinger, Heal from Pet Loss, 7625 West Hutchinson Street • Pittsburgh, PA 15218
412-242-7045, Media cell phone contact: 412-977-4029
E-mail: Litzingerkaren@aol.com.
Product website: www.HealFromPetLoss.com
Karen Litzinger’s professional website: www.KarensCareerCoaching.com
Also contact: Bernadette E. Kazmarski, illustrator, artist and writer, 412-429-9553
Doug Wilkin, Wilkin Audio, 412-871-5325
James Manly, Red Caiman Media, 412-434-1630
Animal Lovers Comforted by New Pet Loss CD
Our animal companions have become more respected members of our society in recent years. From recognizing that people will not evacuate even a life-threatening situation if they can’t take their animals to realizing that a close bond with an animal can help people heal from both physical and emotional traumas, we’ve come to accept animals not simply as possessions but as friends or even members of our families.
Heal Your Heart: Coping with the Loss of a Pet by Karen Litzinger , MA, LPC, is a newly available CD and booklet combination which helps to guide the pet owner through the process of grieving their lost pet. The CD includes Litzinger, a Licensed Professional Counselor with specialized bereavement training, reading comforting messages, pet-focused affirmations, and even a guided meditation along with comforting accompanying harp music. The booklet provides supportive suggestions, information explaining the stages of grief and resources such as books and hotlines to assist the grieving person.
Heal Your Heart is one of only a handful of audiobooks in the pet loss publishing market. The unique contribution of the CD is that it goes beyond giving educational information or a personal story. It contains powerful affirmation statements rooted in cognitive psychology.
“What makes Litzinger’s Heal Your Heart CD unique to anything that has been published is that it is more than an educational audio book. It is an experiential journey of healing,” states Lorri A. Green, Psychologist and author of Saying Good-bye to the Pet You Love. "It touches insightfully upon the great loss many of us experience when we lose our pets."
Grieving over the death of your pet used to have people rolling their eyes or seriously suggesting a mental health evaluation because “it” was “just a dog” or “only a cat”, a horribly disrespectful and painful comment to a person already in pain over a loss.
Not so today. Our companion animals are recognized not only for what they can do for us, but also for their own individual needs, personality and style, and so their loss is also recognized as the loss of a distinct individual.
Litzinger wrote the text for the booklet and the readings and designed the entire concept as part of her grief response from her own loss.
“The CD is dedicated to my beloved dog children, Pepper and Zep,” Litzinger says without hesitation.
“My inspiration for the Heal Your Heart CD came while driving home from the veterinarian with the cremains of my 15 year old dog, Pepper, who I had had since a puppy from a local rescue league,” Litzinger explains. “I was further motivated on my journey to create this CD when my 13 year old dog, Zep, died just four months after Pepper.”
She originally planned to create something for veterinarians to give grieving clients right after the euthanasia procedure to supplement the personal support and follow-up sympathy card. “I am still planning to develop a small booklet for veterinarians to distribute, but the CD is what I hope will serve grieving pet owners in a more profound way,” she continues. “Just as I found comfort in listening to a special music CD as I grieved for Pepper, I hope that some part of this CD will help in the healing process for others who have lost a pet.
Her loss has not only become the gain of others who will find comfort from her CD and booklet, but also her own gain in finding this new professional outlet. Litzinger is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania, and although her specialty is career counseling, she is expanding her offerings to offer pet bereavement counseling.
She has had a long time interest in pet bereavement. Periodically since 1995, Litzinger has conducted numerous non-denominational animal blessings and memorial services on a personal and professional basis. “I always felt there was more I was destined to do in the field of pet bereavement, so I stayed involved with pet loss bereavement through the years.”
Litzinger attended a weeklong training through the American Academy of Bereavement to become a Certified Bereavement Facilitator. As part of renewing the certification, she did an internship under the direction of a psychologist through the Association of Pet Loss and Bereavement, an organization that hosts on-line chat rooms about the euthanasia decision and pet loss.
The CD and book were positively reviewed by Nancy Peterson of the Humane Society of the United States, noted pet loss authors Lorri A. Green, Moira Allen, and Sherry B. True and animal journalists and writers Darlene Arden and Michelle West. In addition, during the two years Litzinger worked on creating the set, she asked friends and associates to review the product to ensure that the content universally appealed to the greatest number of people.
(for local release) Producing Heal Your Heart involved multiple Pittsburgh area artists and businesses. Local harper, Faith Stenning, played original music composed specifically for the project. The illustration was created by artist Bernadette Kazmarski, whose business includes animal portraiture in addition to illustration, design and writing. Audio recording and engineering was done by Doug Wilkin of Wilkin Audio in Regent Square. The CD was designed and manufactured by Red Caiman Media located in downtown Pittsburgh.
More information on the CD including reviews and excerpts as well as further resources for healing from pet loss can be found at www.HealFromPetLoss.com.
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Attachments:
1. Heal Your Heart CD Cover.pdf
2. Karen L with Pepper and Zep.jpg
Additional links for information about pets in society.
Poll: Americans Consider Pets Part of the Family (MSNBC Today)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31505216/ns/health-pet_health/
Plan for Evacuating Pets is Mandated: FEMA Gets Authority to Finance Shelters (Times-Picayune)
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-6/1158829534114200.xml&coll=1
Al Franken’s First Order of Senate Business: More Service Dogs for Veterans (LA Times)
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2009/07/al-franken-dog-service-animals-troops-military-veterans.html
for the south hill's art league's biannual new member screening and juried art show
PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
This release contains three dated events:
- Artist membership screening applications accepted between August 2 and August 21, screening is August 24, 2009 (artists must prepare their work)
- Annual Juried Show screening, August 31
- Annual Juried Show opening, September 20
For more information please reply or call Bernadette Kazmarski, 412-429-9553.
Organization president, Bill Ceriani, info@southhillsartleague.org or 412-343-7576
Images and artist contact information may be found at www.southhillsartleague.org.
Join a long-standing art organization
Once upon a time in 1955, a woman named Idabell Kleinhans had a tea party and invited a number of artists to her South Hills home. It must have been an inspiring pot of tea because from that gathering was borne the idea of a formal association of and for artists, ultimately named the South Hills Art League (SHAL).
Nearly 55 years later, it has grown into a strong, vibrant league of more than one hundred artists working in an amazing variety of media and with diverse backgrounds, from teenagers to retirees, self-taught artists, and art school graduates. Members have been profiled in regional and national magazines and have won awards in shows all across the country.
“It’s critical for artists to show their work and get together to discuss media and technique, but it’s just plain fun for artists to get together and talk about being artists,” says Bill Ceriani, current president of the South Hills Art League. “We exist for artists at all levels to get together to learn from each other and show their work, and just to share the day-to-day issues of being an artist.”
Most artists don’t work as artists full-time because, as has been proven by centuries of artists, it’s difficult to make a living just selling your art. That means most artists have “day jobs”, often in some creative field such as illustration or graphic or web design, but sometimes in a totally unrelated field, like statistics or physics, which would make one wonder just where creativity comes from.
Ceriani, for example, is recently retired from a career with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, but while building that career taught himself to paint his favorite Western Pennsylvania landscapes in oil and pastel. “Painting has always provided me with a personal refuge, somewhere to go to forget my day-to-day problems while trying to capture just a little of the beauty and mystery of the world. I always fall short of my vision, but I can't imagine my life without the constant effort to put that image on canvas or paper”, Ceriani remarked.
And the above-mentioned physicist is SHAL board member Paul Trimmer, now retired, who has been painting since he was eleven years old with brief sabbaticals when he was in the Army and in college. To look at his bright, serene arrangements of oranges, lemons or onions placed simply in a bowl on a table you might not guess they were created in a highly technical mind, but, as Trimmer says, “I try to create paintings that when displayed in a home will enhance the attractiveness and tranquility.”
And for something not tied to the physical world, John Skoko creates surrealistic acrylic paintings that illustrate a variety of world views that have won awards in Pittsburgh and in the surrounding area. Most of his paintings are so bursting with symbolism that a full explanation would take an article in itself. As a partial explanation, he describes “American Inquisition” as “a surrealistic satire on the American judicial system, the judge has no eyes signifying “blind justice“, a dunce cap made of rolled up newspaper “the media connection“, the snake skin neck and arms “not to be trusted” and the money bulging from the pocket of his robe depicting the corruption found within the system itself.” You’ll just have to see one of his paintings for yourself.
SHAL is fertile ground for any artist wanting to grow in the pursuit of art. For artists who earn their living through their artwork, the League provides another outlet for their work. Others use their talent to enhance their own lives and give enjoyment to those viewing their work, with sales as an added benefit. The League gives artists an opportunity to meet other artists and share information and inspiration; artists new to exhibiting can learn about presenting and merchandising their work.
New members join SHAL by presenting three pieces of artwork in the biannual review of the screening committee, which is composed of three members who have been elected by the board. In an effort to make the screening as fair as possible, the review is anonymous so that artists must drop off work and pick it up a few hours later, and artists are not judged against each other but entirely on the merits of their art and the quality of their presentation.
“Almost anyone can produce one good painting, but we require three works in the same medium so that we can look for consistency of technique, which demonstrates that an artist is skilled and comfortable with the medium,” says Darla Kash, screening committee co-chair.
Presentation is also important because it demonstrates the artist’s readiness to show their art in public.
In addition to these guidelines, all work must be professionally presented, clean, and secure, and mats, if used, should be neatly cut. Frames must have screw eyes and picture wire tightly attached. All 3-D pieces should be clean and undamaged. Artist must provide bases or display supports, if needed.
“Artists are more than welcome to join us at our next screening date, August 24, 2009,” says Pat Babcock, the other New Member Screening co-chair. “Pre-registration is required for the screening so that the screeners know how many artists to expect, and artists can visit the website, www.southhillsartleague.org, to download the Membership Application or contact one of the chairs.”
New Member Screening Applications are accepted between August 2 and August 21. Please visit the website or contact Pat Babcock at 412-831-0704 and Darla Kash at 724-941-7174 for more information.
And then right after that screening is the screening for the annual juried show on Monday, August 31.
“The reason for a juried show is so that we have an opportunity to offer awards to artists for their work,” said Ceriani. “For this show we bring in a juror who determines the winners in various categories, and it’s a great pleasure to reward working artists for their work.”
This year’s juried show at Vanadium Woods Village opens with a public reception Sunday, September 20 at 2:00 p.m. and runs through Sunday, September 27. Dr. R. Scott Lloyd, associate professor of art at California University of PA will be the juror, and members of the Pittsburgh Civic Orchestra Woodwind Quintet will play for the reception.
In addition to the juried show, SHAL has several non-juried shows each year for member participation, and many members use these shows as deadlines for getting a piece of artwork done. “It’s difficult to get to that painting when there’s a bunch of other stuff that needs to be done, says another member. “Knowing there’s a show coming up gives me a deadline to get the piece done and ready, and while I’m working I know that I’ll be able to get the piece out in the public.”
SHAL also holds several meetings a year at the Unitarian Universalist Church at 1240 Washington Road, the corner of Route 19 and Sunnyhill Drive in Mt. Lebanon. After a brief business meeting, members have an opportunity to socialize, as well as hear an educational presentation. Meetings are open to the public and guests are welcome. The next general meeting is October 19, 2009, and the guest speaker will be watercolor and oil painter Barry Jeter. Artists who aren’t quite ready for the August screening and September show are invited to attend the October meeting and see what SHAL is all about.
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for my own art exhibit
My Home Town art exhibit features images of Carnegie
“I’ve been drawing Carnegie since I’ve been drawing,” said artist Bernadette E. Kazmarski about the images she will be showing at her show at Babyface’s Restaurant opening July 30 at 6:00 p.m.
“People may know me as helping Carnegie’s community through Carnegie Renaissance, or they may know me as a business owner in Carnegie, or just the fool who rides her bike around town,” Kazmarski continued, “but I’ve been a part of Carnegie, and Carnegie a part of me, since long before that.”
Both the memories of Carnegie through the years and images of Carnegie today combine to create the 24 images in her current show, which are pieces that have been entered in Carnegie’s annual art show, Carnegie Painted, since 2000.
“Even though I grew up in Scott Township, both of my parents are from Carnegie, my father from Irishtown and my mother from what used to be called ‘Johnny Bull Hill’,” Kazmarski explained. “We visited family and Carnegie was really our ‘downtown’ shopping area where we stopped several days a week.”
In addition, in the 1960s Kazmarski attended St. Luke’s Elementary School through fourth grade and CCD after that, and church at St. Luke’s Church.
“My first full-time job while I was still in high school was as the cook at Isaly’s, and I used to walk from our house in Scott to Main Street, which was the Mall then, every morning to open at 6:30 a.m.,” she continued. “I accepted the job before I was accepted at college, but when the school year started, off I went.”
She returned four years later to rent several apartments around town and eventually buy a home in Cubbage Hill. It was after that return from college, having studied English and minoring in graphic design, that she began to take her memories and the visuals of the current day and make art in the combination.
“I didn’t have a car so I walked everywhere, and I had purchased my first camera right after graduation.” Kazmarski continued, “So began the tradition of carrying my camera with me everywhere, which I still do, and from these photographs came my first sketches and paintings of Carnegie.”
The first piece in the show is from that era, “View from Beechwood”, an autumn scene showing the downhill slope of Beechwood Avenue as it passes down from Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall to Broadway and Main Streets with the buildings and domes and steeples beyond.
“I remember that many small shops were still open then, in the early 80s, Beal’s Fruit Market, the butcher shop, the shoe store and jewelry store, and I would get off the bus and shop for dinner on the way home,” Kazmarski describes.
And so when she painted “Pear Trees on Main Street”, showing the block of Main Street from Broadway down to about Sansbury when the ornamental pear trees are in bloom, both the current day and all those memories, and all the stories her parents told her about Carnegie from their childhoods, worked their way into the painting. Kazmarski says that though this piece depicts Carnegie in 2003 and includes the pear trees and decorative light posts, American flags and yellow ribbons—and later model vehicles—that would not have been there in the 60s and 70s when she remembers Carnegie as “a big downtown”, they are there in spirit.
“It’s a big favorite, that painting, and I think in part it’s because a lot of other people who can remember Carnegie ‘way back when’ can see that memorable Carnegie Main Street under the current day image, that small town structure that makes Carnegie such a special place is still there underneath,” she remarked. “It’s been a favorite of mine from the moment I finished it, and I think that’s one of the reasons why.”
Fidelity Bank manager Mary Ann Paff purchased this painting for the opening of Fidelity’s new building at 100 Broadway Street, and it hangs in her office.
The show is a mixture of originals and prints of originals that have been sold. The art has actually been hanging in Babyface’s since April, but after a number of people remarked about the images—“hey, that’s Carnegie!”—to Kazmarski and to Brian Lorenz, Babyface’s owner, they decided to go ahead and have an opening.
“Initially Brian asked me if I had any artwork that he could hang on his walls when he moved to his new spot at 36 East Main Street,” Kazmarski said. “Have I got art?! I asked him what he had in mind and he said he liked the ‘My Home Town’ gallery I have on my website, so I got the works together, replacing the sold originals with prints.”
“And I want people to be able to purchase pieces like without paying too much, so they are photo prints and digital prints, many of them a little smaller than the originals so they fit in standard frame sizes,” Kazmarski says of the works. “Not everyone has a big wall space for even a 16” x 20” image, so most of these are no larger than 11” x 14” and less than $50 each for a framed print.”
While Kazmarski typically works in pastel, other media include watercolor and acrylic as well as pencil, charcoal and ink sketches. To see images from the show, visit http://www.bernadette-k.com/fineart/carnegie.html .
Because these pieces are only those which have been shown in Carnegie Painted, Kazmarski won’t be including any of her photography on the walls, though she may have some prints available of her favorite photographs, many depicting Andrew Carnegie Free Library and Music Hall, a subject she’s been photographing since the day she purchased her first camera.
In addition to the artwork on the walls, she’ll have extra framed prints of the pieces that have been most popular, and sets of a dozen post cards giving “greetings from Carnegie”.
And the prospectus for Carnegie Painted IX will be available as well. Kazmarski encourages artists from anywhere to see the show, pick up a prospectus and create a piece of artwork to enter for the show’s opening on September 11 during the Carnegie Arts & Heritage Festival. “The 3rd Street Gallery has hosted the show for all these years,” Kazmarski said. “Phil Salvato has been painting Carnegie for years, and the community of artists at the gallery has kept us all painting Carnegie for the past decade in preparation for this show.”
Light refreshments will be provided, and Babyface’s will be open for business during the opening so patrons can also purchase dinner. Brian serves an “all-you-can-eat” pasta dinner every Thursday.
The opening is on Thursday, July 30, 2009 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at Babyface’s Restaurant at 36 East Main Street.
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