Prosper Arts & Music Festival

Local Art

380Guide’s ARTicle section seeks to be a catalyst for renewal in the 380 corridor by fostering awareness, appreciation, and community for arts and culture. We proudly support local visual and performing artists deserving wider exposure by featuring them in our magazine and on our website. We have provided helpful links to the websites and emails of the featured artists when available.

Prosper Art Festival | DCT | ARTI-facts | Archive

Mary Emersone
Mary Emerson

By: Becky Conhaug

Emile Zola once wrote “The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without the work.” Several of North Collin County’s best artists will display their “gifts” at the Prosper Arts & Music Festival on September 13, 2008 at the Prosper Town Center. We are fortunate that the 380 corridor is not only home to the Oak Point Art Society of over 40 members, but numerous other local artists.

Artists such as Michael Borne, Janette Church, Renee Collins and Mary Emerson are a few of the regional artists that will display their work during the Festival.

Michael Borne

Michael Borne is a professional architect and an amateur artist. He likes the word “amateur” since it’s derived from the French for “fancier” or “lover”. Borne has had a love affair with watercolor painting for years. He has passed that love to his students during the numerous educational workshops he has taught through the years. Borne states that “Watercolor painting is like the game of golf-every stroke counts against you. A painting should appear ‘effortless’ even though it is not.” Samples of Borne’s work can be found at www. mborne.home.att.net

Janette Church is an internationally collected artist, with over 1,050 collections in Italy, Aruba, Canada, France, Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Australia, United Kingdom Denmark and the United States to name a few. Church’s The Peanut Gallery was founded in 2004 and the gallery name chosen from her childhood nickname of ‘peanut’. Church said “I create pieces with a lot of texture and color that are interesting to look at. Many of my pieces are inspired from my memories or trips I have made.” Samples of Church’s work can be found at www.the-peanut-gallery.org.

Rene Collins
"I enjoy working in fused glass because the next morning after firing I get to look inside and see what has become of the glass ieces melted together. Sometimes I get just what I expected...and other times I have to be creative and look at the glass in a whole new perspective. That is how I have come up with some ideas for new designs. Adding texture to glass using feathers I have collected from costume shops in south Louisiana is an added srprise to some of my pieces. I look forwar do sharing my creations with you at the Prosper Arts & Music Festival this Fall."

Renee Collins, chairman of the Oak Point Art Society, is an artist who works in fused glass creating beautiful, unusual pieces. Collins stated that “I enjoy working in fused glass because the next morning after a firing I look inside and see what has become of the glass pieces once they are melted together. Sometimes I get exactly what I expected…and other times I have to be creative and look at the glass in a whole new perspective.” Collins adds texture to her glass creations using feathers she has collected from costume shops in south Louisiana. Samples of Collins’ work may be found at www. lakeshoreindustries.com/Glass-Fusion.html.

Mary Emerson, a founder of the Oak Point Art Society, has always loved art. But it was not until her children were grown and after she completed her PhD that she finally got to do what she always wanted to dostudy drawing and watercolor painting. Emerson says she paints the “colors of life” in her wide variety of watercolor subjects-bright florals, cowboy hats, chickens and anything that excites her. She currently teaches watercolor classes at the Oak Point Community Center and says “I love teaching watercolor classes and seeing others get excited about painting. It is wonderful therapy for the soul”. Samples of Emerson’s work may be found at www.maryemerson.com.

Talented jewelery designers, Donnie French and Hazel Spires, will also be participating in the Prosper Arts and Music Festival. Not only does Spires have a talent for jewelry making, but she is also a published author.

Becky Conklin, the Festival Coordinator, said “One of the goals of the festival is to spotlight the numerous talented artists and crafters residing in our own backyard. We will have something to tempt all members of the family from a large Kids Corner to talented artists & jewelry designers and a main stage featuring our local musicians and entertainers. Please join us on Sept. 13, 2008 from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm at the Prosper Town Center.”

Information regarding the Sept. 13 event may be found at www.prosperartsandmusicfestival.com or calling 972/342-8420.

Janette Church

The Prosper Arts and Music Festival is made possible by the following sponsors: Platinum: Prosper Town Center and Whitley Place Gold: Folsom Properties Silver: Action Coach Business Consulting, American Bank of Texas, Centennial Hospital, Encore Wire Corporation, Highland Homes, Prosper Dentistry & Orthodontics, Remington Realty Group, Scottish Rite Hospital and WalMart Bronze: Pat Lobb Toyota, Prosper Bank, Prosper Family Dentistry, Royal Car Wash and Scottish Rite Hospital Supporting: Atmos Energy, Gentle Creek Golf Club, Dianne Kerr, CPA, Prosper Family Medicine and Wisteria Storage. A special thanks to them!

Contact info for artists:

Michael Borne
mborne@att.net
214/544-2166 home/studio
214/818-0563 ext. 12 office

Janette Church
thepeanutgallery@gfsi.net
972/346-2842

Renee Collins
renee@lakeshoreindustries.com
972/294-7502

Mary Emerson
maryem@cebridge.net
972/294-8604

Donnie French
donniefrench@cebridge.net

Hazel Spires
hazelspire@sbcglobal.net