Sam Winkelmeyer and his Santa Barbara Art Essentials were honored in September by the Santa Barbara Beautiful Foundation for this years Business in Art Award. Selected by the City Arts Advisory committee, the award recognizes Sam’s “outstanding support of arts activities in the community, creating a stronger, more vibrant arts environment in Santa Barbara and enriching the lives of both residents and visitors.”
A shout out to long time art industry leader Ulrich Hollmann who is recovering from an accident in Hamburg, Germany.
Renee Hile, ColArt America’s VP of Marketing, forwards some people news: Carla Friday will be moving to Trade Marketing to support marketing strategies for all brands along with social media initiatives. The Liquitex brand management will be transferred to a team in the UK under the direction of the company’s global marketing head, Ilka Lohaus. The local USA market initiatives for Liquitex will be maintained by Product Manager Alexis Dykstra. She will also be taking on the responsibilities for the Reeves brand. Christina Yoder has joined ColArt as Assistant Product Manager.
With sadness we report that Helen Sooklaris, matriarch of the Masterpiece Canvas Company, passed away on October 10th at the age of 86. She and her husband Tony began the company in San Francisco where she worked into the 90’s. Helen and Tony’s son John Sooklaris and his wife, Artemisia, continue the family business in San Diego. Donations in Helen’s memory may be made to the Annunciation Cathedral Building Fund, 245 Valencia Street, San Francisco, CA 94103 (www.annunciation.org).
New York Central Art Supply was featured in the New York Times on Oct. 14. Steve Steinberg’s iconic East Village store carries a stock of over 6,000 different papers. Click here for the full article that includes a terrific slide show.
Art Materials’ new store in Fargo, ND reports that its Grand Opening was on the 13th of September and 40 Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors showed up for the ribbon cutting!
Owners were Randy & Karen Bremer have closed their unique craft store called the Red Bee in Tustin, CA after 5 years.
Two years ago, John Wiseman came out of retirement to rescue ArtMax/Searles the Monterey company that he had sold. This month, after a real struggle, Wiseman is being honored for his incredible effort. “I refuse to participate in this recession,” said John Wiseman for a news report on the local TV station KSBW. With those words, Wiseman not only inspired locals, he inspired a nation. Made at the height of the recession, his comments went viral. The story of a man deciding to come out of retirement, to buy back his old business and rehire his laid-off employees endeared him to many. Now, Wiseman is the entrepreneur of the year, an award presented by Union Bank and KSBW. Check out the complete article here KSBW News Report.
City officials in Galesburg, IL unveiled the “First a Dream” mural on the south wall of the Discovery Deport Children’s Museum. The mural, designed by artists Kathleen Scarboro and Kathleen Farrell, is being funded by Galesburg-based Blick Art Materials as part of the company’s 100th anniversary.
Sharpie®, the preferred autograph marker of celebrities everywhere, is inviting actors, athletes, musicians, chefs and others to “ink it pink” in the fight against breast cancer. For every pink autograph signed and submitted to Sharpie Uncapped during the month of October, Sharpie will donate $1 to City of Hope, one of the nation’s leading cancer research, treatment and education centers, up to $10,000. “We’re encouraging everyone, especially celebrities whose autographs have the power to raise awareness and inspire others, to ink it pink in October and help this important cause,” said Sally Grimes, vice president of marketing for Sharpie. Here is Meredith from The Office trying to do a bit of autographing!