MEDALTA in the Historic Clay District

Posted by Dan Kammerer 
on Aug 05, 2014
 

TUESDAY August 5, 2014

The regular weekly meeting of the Sunrise Rotary Club was called to order by Past President Craig Elder at preciously 7:18 AM in the Board Room at Chinook Village.

After a rousing rendition of the National Anthem Sergeant-at-Arms Claire lead the group in a time of reflection and introductions were made.

Guest speaker was Aaron Nelson the Artistic Director from Medalta who shared an interesting overview and fast facts regarding the Artists in Residence Program.  Aaron’s knowledge and enthusiasm for the art of ceramics as well as the many projects at Medalta were appreciated by all those in attendance. 

 

Interesting facts include:

  1.  Medicine Hat has a proud history of 130 years of ceramic production.
  2. The Artist in Residence MAIR program began as an exchange for one month a year and developed into a full year program.
  3. Artists work in all aspects of Medalta including the retail and event areas.
  4. Artist are attracted by the history, the mechanics of the ceramic production and the geography.
  5. Many artists are enticed by the cultural experiences as well as the positive community interaction.
  6. The Medalta site includes 150 acres and three main attractions.
  7. Traditional methods for production as well as highly technical methods are combined at the Shaw center
  8. The Artist in Residence program as a community focus where craft, art and design meet for fabulous experiences and results.
  9. Artists from every continent have participated in the program with the majority from the US and Korea.
  10. There are over 40,000 visitors to the site in the last year.

Aaron explained that through Medalta and the Artists in Residence Program the entire world has access to Medicine Hat and vice versa.  What a  unique treasure we have in our backyard with opening to the world!!

Meeting Notes:

  • Glen announced that Sunrise Rotary has received 3 Rotary Foundation District grants including 2 for scholarships totaling $1,500 as well as a $2,000 grant for the Ride the Road to Reading project.
  • Claire gave an overview of the Ride the Road to Reading partnership with the local Library.  Stats include:
  1.  Over the 6 years of the project 205 classes and 4,433 students have benefited. 
  2. In 2013-2014 30 classes were visited with a total of 661 students.

Measurable outcomes and successes for both Sunrise Rotary and the Medicine Hat Public Library.

  • Lucky new Sunrise member John Hallett WON the card 50/50 draw and the accumulated winnings of $425…CONGRATS John!  Back to square one searching for the elusive ace of spades next week!