Carrollton Main Street is hosting the second annual “Art Takeover” on Thursday, March 30, 2017. Main Street member businesses in and around Adamson Square are partnering with the University of West Georgia School of the Arts for a festive evening in Downtown Carrollton from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The Art Takeover features 30 host locations featuring local artists from the Carrollton Artist Guild, artist from the UWG School of the Arts faculty and UWG student artists. In addition to the works of art, the Art Takeover will also feature musicians in several of the venues, including Carroll Symphony Orchestra musical director, Terry Lowry, and the Carroll Community Wind Ensemble performing at the Carrollton Presbyterian Church. Central High School’s singing quartet will “stroll” the square singing tunes, and various guitarists will play in host sites. The Cultural Arts Center proudly will showcase Joseph Snipes on the piano.
In the business world when the word “takeover” is used, it suggest the act of assuming control of one company by another, usually in a hostile acquisition. Carrollton Main Street offers a different type of takeover for you to not only experience, but also embrace. Art Takeover grew from an idea local downtown business owner, Michael Stone and his wife, Andrea, conceived to call greater attention to the growing art community in Carrollton. Their idea was to build a collaborative effort between the UWG School of the Arts, the Carrollton Artist Guild and the downtown merchants. The concept of a sophisticated walking event in and around Adamson Square featuring downtown businesses, local and university artists, and local musicians became a successful reality last March with host locations displaying a wide array of tasteful artistic creations.
Michael and Andrea Stone have a strong passion for promoting the arts. In 2013, they partnered with the UWG College of Arts and Humanities to create an endowment called the “Michael and Andrea Stone Visiting Artist Series” which features one nationally recognized artist each semester, rotating among the programs in art, music, theatre, creative writing and film. Michael Stone, CEO and founder of Milestone Investment Management, said “We hope to build on the success of last year’s Art Takeover event, and we believe the excitement created by this shared commitment to the arts by the Main Street Merchants and the UWG School of the Arts will ensure a large turnout by the community. We believe art sets the tone to draw people together, and a community is literally empty of culture or soul without art. Also, art can drive tourism.”
Andrea Stone, a retired art educator, said “Supporting local art enhances the quality of the cultural life of this community; and our encouragement of local artists to create and explore new directions both individually and collectively can enrich our individual lives in ways impossible to measure. The arts are especially important for the children of Carroll County. Despite the current trend in our local public school system to reduce or eliminate art education in the classroom, students with an education in the arts have higher GPAs and standardized test scores, with lower drop-out rates.”
Visitors and guests participating in this year’s Art Takeover are encouraged to visit at least 10 host locations to be eligible for a drawing at the end of the evening for a Carrollton Cultural Arts gift basket. Maps of Adamson Square and the surrounding Downtown area will be available at all host locations. These maps have must be signed by host sites to participate in the drawing. For additional information, please contact Carrollton Main Street (770) 832-6901.
