How Art Creates Connections: Seacoast Artists Guild & Gallery

A local non-profit organization, the Seacoast Artists Guild was established to be a home for artists and a place to connect with others who appreciate art as a creative outlet. Memberships are open to all artists and art lovers within the Carolinas. Incorporated in 2003, the Guild’s mission has always been to stimulate an increased awareness of art and its benefits throughout the area by engaging a group of artists interested in sharing their passion with others in the coastal area.

In 2013, the Guild opened the Seacoast Artists Gallery to show off art featuring a wide genre of styles and techniques. With approximately 70 members, the artists involved are dedicated to advancing the visual arts through teaching, exhibits, workshops, and special events. The Guild holds a monthly meeting on the second Saturday of each month to discuss matters involving the Guild and gallery along with Guest Speaker presentations on a wide variety of art-related topics. Art classes are currently held on Mondays and Tuesdays at the Gallery and are open to all Guild members. They take pride in nurturing all artists-to-be through an array of classes and workshops.

In 2013, one of the Guild’s original members passed after dedicating himself to both the Guild and furthering the appreciation for art in young adults. The Walter Cushman Fund was subsequently established and provides financial assistance to aspiring artists in the area. The Guild is currently working with Coastal Carolina University in this endeavor and has provided scholarship assistant awards to winners of the University’s annual Juried Student Art Show for the past two years and is hopeful to continue this relationship.

Although The Market Common is a popular local and tourist destination, several people in the area are still unaware that the Art Gallery is located there. It is not just a matter of selling art to support local artists and provide funds for future scholarships, but rather having a place for artists and those interested in art, where they can gather, socialize, teach, and take classes on various forms of art. The Guild and Gallery hold two art shows annually, one in the Spring and one in the Fall.

For more information visit either the Gallery’s Facebook Page
or the Guild’s website at www.seacoastartistsguild.org.