Because of the recent water damage sustained by the building, this exhibit is being immediately and safely relocated to the Essex County Public Library. TAG welcomes neighbor artists from CBAA:
Barbara Brennan
Nancy Brittle
Connie Canby
Andrea Clement
Rita Kovach
Kathryn Murray
Wendy Young
Kathy Waltermire
Fighting Fire with Fire | Rebuilding Prince Street
Painting Demonstration with Cate Kauffman
Art on the Wall
Catherine Kauffman | Opening Reception
Painting Class with Kathryn Murray | Sep 10 | 9 am to 1 pm
Art Camp Recap
The TAG 2022 Summer Art Camp wrapped up a successful session on Friday, July 29th. This diverse class of 14 budding artists tried their hand at a number of different projects including collage, string art, drawing objects from real life, painting Van Gogh’s Sunflowers and a whole lot more.
Watch a video to share their experience. And if you missed it this year, there’s always 2023…
2022 Tidelands Plein Air Event
Registration is Now Open!
Bringing in the Magic | August 27 | 10 am to 3 pm

Working in oil and cold wax is one way to develop texture and form, using your own unique personality to create artwork. Learn the basics of cold wax painting and experiment with a variety of materials with this fun method. Develop design skills and create starts that will become paintings that “speak to you.” During this intensive workshop, instructor Mary Montague Sikes (Monti) will demonstrate basic methods and leave you with time to explore the possibilities in your own work.
Supply List
- Matboard or any sturdy surface about 12” x 12” will work well for artists panels. Ampersand gesso board, cradled or flat, is ideal. Cradled wooden panels from Jerry’s or Cheap Joe’s are ideal. You can also work on Arches oil paper, Yupo, and Terra skin paper.
- One can Gamblin or Dorlands cold wax
- One bottle Gamsol and a spray bottle for it
- Assortment of favorite oil paints, including white
- Freezer paper to use as a palette
- Messermeister bowl scraper
- Printmaking brayer
- Paper towels, rags, baby wipes
- Old credit cards for painting
- Wide blue painter’s tape
- Wax paper to separate projects for transport
- Items to enhance texture like stencils, stamps, string, vegetable bags, yarn, collage papers. Items like paper product tubes, old lipstick tubes make good stamps.
- Thick gesso (Utrecht professional) and oil paint sticks are nice to have but not essential.
Note: You can start a painting using acrylics or work over an old acrylic painting. You can paint oil over acrylic, but not acrylic over oil.
Bring lots of enthusiasm and a readiness to learn new techniques. Questions? E-mail Monti at monti7olen@verizon.net .
To register, please complete the form below.
Mosaic Decorative Art: Techniques, Vocabulary and Skills of Trancadis | Sep 24 & Oct 1 | 9 am to 1 pm
Week 1 | Sep 24 | 9 am to 1 pm
Brief introduction to the history of mosaics and the works of Antoni Gaudi. Learn the basics of nipping tile and cutting glass to create tesserae (the small pieces of glass, stone, mirror, or other hard material used in mosaics). Begin planning individual project designs and materials that participants will gather for next week’s class.
Week 2 | Oct 1 | 9 am to 1 pm
Finalize plans and begin laying out tesserae. The focus will be on composition and adeamento (Italian for flow, it refers to how the placement of tesserae in rows creates a visual direction and movement). Adhere/finish mosaic.
To register and pay online, please complete the form below:

Instructor, Joyce Crown-Wilkins, is a local artist and art educator with a B.A. in Art Education (cum laude) from V.C.U. As a active member of the Virginia Art Education Association, the Teacher Advisorary Committe for the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and the Tappahannock Art Guild, Mrs. Crown-Wilkins has presented countless workshops to art educators and aspiring artists throughout the state. She recently traveled to Barcelona on a Fund for Teachers grant where she studied Trencadís mosaic techniques in the studio of Livia Garetta and is very excited to share what she learned with her community.