Judy Snook-Kean and her platoon of artists at Creative Space Avon, 33760 Lear Industrial Parkway in Avon, are giving back to the Lorain County community.
The gallery’s “Creative Women VII” show featured 32 artists throughout May, according to Snook-Kean.
When each artist agreed to appear in the show, she instructed them to design an eight-by-eight-inch quilt square with a design of their choice.
The finished quilt recently was delivered to Lorain County Safe Harbor, 2929 W. River Road North in Elyria, as a gift to the women at the shelter.
“This quilt was on display during the show,” Snook-Kean said. “I had a carpenter set it up so that we could install it at another location.
“I went and dropped it off a couple days ago. It was just to give interest to Lorain County Safe Harbor, and for the Genesis House.”
Currently, the quilt is on display at the Lorain County Safe Harbor community room, rather than the organization’s Genesis House itself. Snook-Kean said that Lorain County Safe Harbor was chosen as the recipient of the quilt to bring awareness to the organization and its residents.
“My thought was, I wanted to do something for a cause,” she said. “Some of the art in the pieces that were done… (They) were made so they were all kind of uplifting in design. Everybody can find a square that they relate to, or that gives them a smile.”
In addition to raising awareness for the work that Lorain County Safe Harbor does, Snook-Kean said she wanted to help brighten up the location’s physical space.
“Normally with a place like that, they don’t have art on the walls. This was our way of giving back to the community,” she said. “I chose them because they were the only women’s shelter that I knew of in Lorain County. I had gone to their annual fundraiser, and some of the women using that facility felt that it was a good cause.”
Snook-Kean said that over the years, Creative Space Avon’s ‘Creative Women’ shows have featured about 210 women from around the area. As one of the only art venues in Lorain County, Snook-Kean wanted to give female artists as much of a platform as she could.
In an effort to keep platforming artists, Snook-Kean will be hosting a ‘Creative Gents’ show this fall, and a ‘Creative Women VIII’ in March next year. Artists who have been involved in previous ‘Creative Women’ shows will be eligible to join next year’s showcase, she said.
More information on Creative Space Avon and its gallery shows is available on the Creative Space Avon Facebook page.
