Hat Art Club member Loretta Fix works on a piece in 2019 at the Cultural Centre. The group is celebrating 75 years in the community.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
mcranker@medicinehatnews.com@mocranker
The Hat Art Club has been a staple in the community for decades and is celebrating an important milestone this month – 75 years in existence.
The club sits around 100 members on a given year and was founded in 1946 by Mrs. Helen Beny Gibson and Rev. L.T.H Pearson. The group began with a program teaching people how to draw at city council chambers.
“The Hat Art Club has grown to be one of the foundational art clubs in the city,” said club president Bev Duke. “For a very long time, there were no other organizations that provided art training for adult artists in our community.
“There have been programs offered through the college over the years, but they were sporadic. The art club has offered a consistent place for artists of any age or skill to come and learn.”
The Hat Art Club has operated out of the Cultural Centre since it was built, and is now offering digital art programming. The club shifted to online classes last October and invested into its new website to help keep members in the loop.
Duke has been a member of the club for 25 years and is in her second term as president. She says the club aims to offer something for everyone.
“We have programs around all mediums,” she said. “One of our big programs is around drawing, because it is so foundational to art, a lot of people are interested.
“We offer acrylic, oils, pastels and art journaling.”
The art club’s shift to online has helped Hatters fill their time at home with fun, creative activities to focus on during the pandemic.
“Art is a creative outlet,” said Duke. “It gives you something to work on and it lets you develop different skills.”
The club has also announced a special promotion to get new members involved. For a limited time, get a membership for $75 to celebrate the anniversary.
More information can be found at http://www.hatartclub.com.
