MOOSE JAW — As plans unfold for the upcoming Moostletoe Artists Spotlight event, three artists have been added and the event will now switch from one venue to two. To confirm this — and to introduce the first artist in this year’s lineup — Nissa Gieni-Wareham, owner of artisaNGrounds, shared a few words.
The Moostletoe Artists Spotlight will now feature the works of eight local artists and will take place at artisaNGrounds and the Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 23.
To the existing list, Marie Bophoha, Dave Pelletier, and Jai Stuart have now been included.
Gieni-Wareham will be hosting this year.
“Moostletoe kind of landed in my lap unexpectedly,” she said. “Laura Hamilton, who’s run it in the past, stepped down this year. She returned back to the classroom. So, I volunteered to organize (it)….”
Moostletoe is a traditional fall event where local artists showcase some of their finest works, promote the artistic community, and guests are invited to meet the people behind these creations. The works range each year from paintings to pottery, jewelry, and photography.
“The two locations are so close together, which is nice,” she said. The event — normally held in October — will also be switching to November because of administrative changes as organizers regroup after the change of ownership.
“It will be a little colder, but… you’re close and you don’t have to drive far. We have hot drinks, snacks, and all of that,” she added.
Gieni-Wareham has been creating art since “forever.” “It seems like I came from generations of artists and women (who made) all kinds of creations,” she said. “I started off really young, looking at the old Snoopy comics and tracing those… Then in school, I went through an arts and education program.”
She earned her degree in visual arts and holds an education degree in arts education from the University of Regina. Gieni-Wareham now holds a full time job as an art teacher at the Phoenix Academy and runs her business outside of that.
Gieni-Wareham said it’s hard to pinpoint only one preferred medium but said painting and pottery are her go-to media. Aside, nothing can quell her artistic curiosity. “If I’m creating, I’m happy,” she explained. “I will get my hands into anything I can try. I’ll pick up something new and give it a whirl.”
One crucial element of Moostletoe is the support it brings to Moose Jaw’s artistic community.
“A lot of people don’t know that I offer painting and clay parties…,” Gieni-Wareham said. “Even if they’re not looking to purchase (any of my works at Moostletoe), they can find out, ‘Oh, I can have my kid’s birthday party here, or my stagette, or anything else.’”
Since moving to her new location from the Hammond Building this July, Gieni-Wareham now has the space to expand her business. She now hosts more pop-up events each month and has included a gift shop featuring her fun, unique, and whimsical creations.
Guests will enjoy a live tutorial each hour starting at 11 a.m. Gieni-Wareham isn’t quite sure what she’s going to offer yet but said she’s thinking about a hands-on pottery demonstration.
“At my open house (in the past)… I… did a micro project where people could come and make a quick 10-minutes fall pumpkin that they could take home and test their hand at pottery,” she said. “So it will be something quick and easy that people can take, just enjoy, and kind of get a feel for pottery.”
Moostletoe transitioned from a tour of each artist’s studio to a focus on the artists themselves. Much of the reasoning behind this, she said, is because several artists no longer operate from one fixed location.
“Instead of saying it’s a studio tour, it’s an artist’s spotlight where you can see what they create. So, we all come together and we support each other, and it’s going to be really great.”
To learn more about Nissa Gieni-Wareham and her works, visit ArtisanGrounds.net or follow her on Facebook at ‘artisaNGrounds.’
The artisaNGrounds studio is located at 262 Athabasca Street East and the Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery is located at 461 Langdon Crescent.
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