The grand opening of the Huntly and Districts Art Trail will take place at the Woodlands Function Centre in Gordonton on Friday, March 16 at 7pm.
The free trail, facilitated by the Huntly Rotary Club and Waikato Coalfields Museum, runs over the following two days and stretches from Waerenga to Ngaruawahia and Gordonton, by way of Te Kauwhata, Glen Murray Rd, Ohinewai and Huntly. There are 16 'stations' and/or studios with an excess of 40 artists taking part. In addition, all the children who have entered an associated art competition will have their work displayed in the Huntly Library. This year, the guest country is South Africa, so the opening night will have a strong South African 'flavour'.
There will be a wonderful variety of art on show, including work painted in acrylics on canvas and corrugated iron, glass work, mixed media art, pyrography (poker work), sculptures, etchings and photography on canvas.
There will also be hypertufa, mosaics, pumice carving, mod podge canvas, paua pictures, fabric art, quilting and embroidery, culinary art, computer generated outdoor art, intarsia (a style of intricate wood art) floral art and work by foot and mouth painting artists. Guests will be welcomed with a complimentary South African wine or juice and finger food.
The evening will include an address by a guest speaker, entertainment and a chance for all the artists to view each other's work along with the invited guests. This really will be a grand opening, and a preview of the talent that abounds in the district. Tickets ($30) are available from Sweetmans Shop in Huntly or the Woodlands Homestead. Phone (07) 824 3421 for more information.