Art Party 3 will be held in the Oxford Treehouse Gallery tonight.COURTESY: VIVIAN NEILL
Oxford residents are invited to make themselves at home and meet local artists at the Art Party 3 event, today at the Oxford Treehouse Gallery.
The party, created by Wayne and Mary Margaret Andrews and co-hosted by the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council and The ‘Sip Magazine, features 12 local artists with strong Mississippi ties.
“The whole concept of this party is not necessarily about the art you are going to see but about coming and meeting artists,” said Wayne Andrews, director of the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council.
The first Art Party originated five years ago when the Andrews first moved to Oxford and recognized a need for the public to learn more about the local art scene. The first two parties were held in the Andrews’ home.
“If you put people in a museum setting or a formal setting, then they think they’re supposed to know something about art,” Wayne Andrews said. “We thought if we made it personal and could make art personal and invited people into our home that maybe it would help take away the fear that people have of art.”
The success of the first two parties forced the Andrews to find a new location for the event when the amount of attendees outgrew their home.
The Oxford Treehouse Gallery seemed like the perfect fit. The gallery, owned by Walter and Vivian Neill, once served as the couple’s home before they decided to convert the space into a gallery to showcase the work of local artists.
“It was actually someone’s house, so it’s the same concept we were going for with people being invited into someone’s home to see art,” Wayne Andrews said.
The gallery has been in existence for about eight years, but only recently opened as Oxford Treehouse Gallery to host larger scale events in April of 2014.
The establishment offers a home-like atmosphere for its visitors.
“There aren’t that many galleries that have chickens roaming the grounds,” Vivian Neill said. “Usually people have a tendency to take a really deep breath when they pull up the driveway, and they start relaxing as they enter the gallery.”
The original goal was to create a space where people could enjoy art more easily. So far, the couple feels like they have succeeded in that.
“It’s not a stroll in and stroll out type of gallery. The space really invites people to have a conversation about the art,” Vivian Neill said.
Five of the nbso online casino reviews featured artists will be in attendance at the event including Matt Long, Benny Melton, Walter Neill, Trapp Tischner and Paul Fayard.
In addition to the art and artists at Art Party 3, attendees will also have the opportunity to be one of the first readers of the third publication of “The ‘Sip Magazine,” which launched in April of 2014.
Editor and publisher of “The ‘Sip Magazine,” Lauchlin Fields graduated from Ole Miss in 2003 with a degree in southern studies.
“I knew that writing about Mississippi and the people and the places and the culture was something that really hadn’t been done before,” Fields said. “I always felt like that was something missing, and I wanted to be the one to bring that to the market.”
The quarterly publication can be found at select locations throughout the state and is made free by advertisement revenue. It showcases Mississippi culture in a fun light-hearted way, featuring stories with everything from alligator hunting to squirrel dogs.
Fields said she is excited to partner for this event to introduce people to “The ‘Sip” while also celebrating and meeting artists in the Oxford Area.
“There are so many positive things about our state and our culture, and this is a great way to celebrate it,” Fields said.
Art Party 3 will be held at Oxford Treehouse Gallery from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. tonight on 328 County Road 418. Food and drink will be served, and there is no entrance fee.
