History:
The Yachats Arts Guild has been meeting since 2007 when the group formed in response to a communal desire to see local artists come together to showcase the beauty and varied talents of the local artists along the Oregon Coast. The Guild began with a few artists and continues to grow with both active artists and supportive members.
Purpose:
The Yachats Arts Guild was formed in 2007 for the following purpose:
- to promote and support the arts
- to provide local artists an opportunity to show and sell their work
- to expand artistic ability through special seminars and periodic workshops
- to enrich the lives of people in our community through the arts
ANNUAL SHOWS:
Yachats Arts Guild currently has two shows each year; Memorial Day weekend, and Labor Day weekend. Art shows are held in the Commons Building in Yachats, Oregon.
A BRIEF HISTORY
Yachats Arts Guild began in 2007 when the City of Yachats represented by Susan Garner contacted local artists, Nina Toepher and Georgia Beard, to discuss the possibility of creating an organization of fine artists on the Central Oregon Coast. There were many venues for crafts of many kinds but no similar group existed for the fine arts. So each weekend from November 23 to December 23 of 2007 a a small group of artists rented Room 8 at the Commons and invited artists, oil, watercolor, and acrylic, along with photographers and others to join them in their first shows.
In 2008 six artists formed a Steering Committee to create guidelines for a group which was originally called Village Art Gems. When visitors came expecting a rock show the name became Yachats Arts Guild and welcomed artists from Seal Rock to Tenmile along the Oregon Coast.
Formal guidelines were agreed upon and signed on February 10, 2010. Charter members were David Baldwin, Georgia Beard, Kaye Gregory, Jerry Kimmel, Carol Summers, and Nina Toepher. Through their hard work, devotion, and a lively portion of fun, they and others have kept the Guild alive. Membership has varied between 10 and 32 to its present 40 members. Sustaining members also support the guild.
The Mission Statement of the Yachats Arts Guild is:
To promote and support the arts, to provide local artists an opportunity to show and sell their art, and to enrich the lives of the people in the community through the fine arts.
The Friends of the Commons soon bought professional hanging rods for Room 8 for the proper hanging of framed art for the yearly shows. With the expanding membership, the Guild now rents both Room 8 and the Multipurpose Room at the Commons for the annual shows.
The Guild has an ongoing show of their art at the Yachats Library changing the art each quarter. YAG artist also show their work at the Yachats City Hall,
A three-day show during the July 4 holiday and a show over Labor Day weekend has been held at the Yachats Commons building each year with shows also at the Florence Event Center, the Runyan Gallery at the Visual Art Center in Newport, the Siuslaw Library, Canyon Way, and cooperating businesses such as the Drift Inn, Ona Restaurant, and Toad Hall, in Yachats. In 2024 the Guild is planning two shows, three days each, on Memorial Day weekend and on Labor Day weekend.
Membership presently includes block printing, altered storybooks, intarsia, stained glass, pen and ink, felting, pottery, and jewelry, as well as traditional oil, acrylic, watercolor, and photography. Membership applications can be found here. Artists located from Newport to Florence are presently eligible.
The guild is now sponsored by Polly Plumb Productions of Yachats, a 501c nonprofit organization, which has been a wonderful help to YAG. Friends of the Commons were a great help in the early years.
Workshops have been added to the events in recent years. These workshops are open to the public and are enjoyed by local people and visitors to the community as well. Workshops will be announced here on the website.
Another ongoing gathering has been Art in the Kitchen which is not restricted to members of YAG. The group meets once a week in the kitchen at the Commons building in Yachats and welcomes artists of all ages to bring their art and share the creative spirit found there. In 2023 live models were hired for the first time.
