SMALL NONPROFIT GIVES $15,000 TO LOCAL ARTISTS, STUDENTS, AND SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS FOR #GIVINGTUESDAYNOW

Chula League switches up Giving Tuesday with new initiatives to continue supporting local artists, students, and the community

AUSTIN (May 4, 2020) — Chula League launches Artist Relief Fund to support local artists impacted by COVID-19, with a portion of the funds designated to send Art Kits to Austin ISD students, and will match one small business’s efforts to give free sack lunches to those in need.

For 15 years, Chula League’s mission has been to fuel and sustain the arts in East Austin. During these uncertain times with stay-at-home orders, the producers of the beloved Cherrywood Art Fair are finding new ways to support the local art scene. These programs include direct monetary relief to artists, keeping 5th and 6th-grade students engaged with the arts and partnering with a long time local sponsor, Crema Bakery & Cafe, in an effort to #FeedAustin.

The Chula League Artist Relief Fund will provide local artists with $150 to help recover lost revenue from shows canceled due to COVID-19. Former staff and participants of Cherrywood Art Fair, or the free arts-mentorship program, Little Artist BIG ARTIST are invited to apply for relief starting 9 AM, May 5, 2020, through 5 PM, May 12, 2020, at chulaleague.org/relief

Chula League will work with six East Austin elementary schools: Allison Elementary, Blackshear Elementary, Barbara Jordan Elementary, Govalle Elementary, Oak Springs Elementary, and Maplewood Elementary to supply over 40 Art Kits to students currently enrolled in the 2019-2020 calendar year.

The small nonprofit will also match partner donors’ Crema Bakery & Cafe’s hunger relief initiative dollar for dollar, up to $5,000. This will provide free sack lunches with “no questions asked” to those impacted by COVID-19. With this $5,000 match, Crema Bakery + Chula League can feed up to 1,500 Austinites. Chula League will award Crema Bakery & Cafe with a commemorative check on May 5, 2020, at 10 AM at their Southwest Austin location, 9001 Brodie Ln b3, Austin, TX 78748 and they encourage the public to donate to Crema Bakery’s GoFundMe page, https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-crema-bakery-feed-austin

Many of our artists, Little and BIG, have been affected by the pandemic in ways that we’ve not experienced before. Our grassroots Board of Directors felt it was our duty to provide resources so our community can continue to create and stay safe,” says John Mathew Bernal, Chair of Chula League Board of Directors.

We saw Crema Bakery & Cafe’s selfless efforts to #FeedAustin and were inspired to contribute to their cause and flip the script on what it means for non-profits to celebrate #GivingTuesdayNow.

If the Austin community would like to participate in #GivingTuesdayNow and contribute to our mission in fueling and sustaining the arts in East Austin, we encourage them to donate via our website: chulaleague.org/donate

Social Handles:
@chulaleague
@cremabakerycafe
#FeedAustin
#GivingTuesdayNow

ABOUT CHULA LEAGUE
Chula League is a nonprofit formed in 2005 to support the arts, and art education in East Austin managed by a small, grassroots board of directors. Chula League ensures that the arts play a valued role in the educational, economic, and cultural well being of the neighborhoods in East Austin. Chula produces a variety of projects to achieve its mission and purpose, including its flagship event the Cherrywood Art Fair and the arts-mentoring program Little Artist BIG ARTIST, and their professional development series, Cultivate.

Cherrywood Art Fair is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.

MEDIA CONTACT:
John Mathew Bernal / Chair of Chula League Board of Directors
jmat@chulaleague.org / 512.913.1523

# # #

CHERRYWOOD ART FAIR TO TAKE FINAL BOW THIS WEEKEND

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

East Austin’s Longest-Running Nonprofit Art Fair to End in 2019

AUSTIN (Dec. 3, 2019) — Cherrywood Art Fair announces that the 2019 event taking place on Dec. 7 and 8 will be the last run for the beloved holiday market. After 18 years, the juried fair in its current format will hang its hat to allow for Cherrywood’s producing partner and beneficiary, Chula League, to pause all programming, restrategize its mission and reassess its priorities. Community members are encouraged to come out in support of the final event and enjoy more than 90 curated artists and makers from around Texas, plus a full roster of live music and entertainment. In its final act, Cherrywood Art Fair will — in true spirit — offer families a festive and interactive holiday event highlighting the best in Texas arts.

Each year, Cherrywood Art Fair is tirelessly produced by a small crew of contract staff, a large group of event volunteers and a volunteer panel of jurors — all overseen by the grassroots-run Chula League board. Much of the event’s support has come from sponsorships and volunteerism — both of which have declined over the years. Of the “big three” Austin holiday markets, Cherrywood is the only free event supported by and run by a nonprofit organization. As the East Austin community and the city’s demographics have shifted, so too have the challenges and opportunities for producing a large-scale free two-day event.

In addition to sunsetting its flagship event, Chula League will pause its other programming beginning in March 2020 including the popular Little Artist BIG ARTIST program, which provides art mentorships for East Austin elementary school students. Since 2007, the program has paired professional artists with fifth and sixth-grade students to offer one-on-one arts mentorships that help the students explore creativity, develop personal expression and strengthen social skills while engaging in positive adult communication in an after-school setting. Each year, the Little Artists’ work is auctioned off at Cherrywood Art Fair to raise funds for each of the participating elementary school’s art program. Since its inception, more than 200 students have gone through the program across seven East Austin schools and mentored by over 150 professional artists. Proceeds from this year’s Cherrywood Art Fair will go towards the 2020 Little Artist BIG ARTIST program.

To date, Chula League has endowed more than $135,000 in grants, services and programming to East Austin schools from funds generated through Cherrywood Art Fair, Little Artist BIG ARTIST auction proceeds, and their professional development workshops: Cultivate. Cherrywood Art Fair has showcased an estimated 1,200 artists from across Texas and drawn more than 100,000 visitors from around the state in its 18-year run.

“Since its inception, Chula League has strived to fuel and sustain the arts in East Austin. Just as the arts landscape in Austin has changed over the past two decades, a decline in financial support for our organization is forcing Chula League to evolve. In making the tough decision to pause all programming which includes Cherrywood Art Fair and our arts-mentorship program, Little Artist BIG ARTIST, we will be able to strategize a way to keep our promise to the arts community in the coming years,” says John Mathew Bernal, Chair, Chula League Board of Directors.Cherrywood Art Fair 2019

The final Cherrywood Art Fair takes place Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Maplewood Elementary School located at 3808 Maplewood Ave. The event is free and open to the public.
For more information, visit chulaleague.org/cherrywood.

→The 2019 Cherrywood Art Fair Facebook event can be found here.
→More information on Chula League can be found at chulaleague.org.

ABOUT CHULA LEAGUE
Chula League is a nonprofit formed in 2005 to support the arts, and art education in East Austin managed by a small, grassroots board of directors. Chula League ensures that the arts play a valued role in the educational, economic, and cultural well being of the neighborhoods in East Austin. Chula produces a variety of projects to achieve its mission and purpose, including its flagship event the Cherrywood Art Fair and the arts-mentoring program Little Artist BIG ARTIST, and their professional development series, Cultivate.

Cherrywood Art Fair is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Krissi Reeves / High Kick PR
krissi@highkickpr.com / 512.659.1385

# # #

Thank You for an Amazing 2018!

It’s been a whirlwind of a year! Thanks to all of the hard work from our amazing staff, board and volunteers, everything went smoothly, from our 10th Annual Little Artist BIG ARTIST Show to our first ever Cultivate workshop to our 17th Cherrywood Art Fair! We are humbled by all of the supporters who came out to our events and helped us fuel and sustain the arts in East Austin!

 

View the HTML Version

We’ll See You at Maplewood this Weekend!

The Most Wonderful Time of Year Has Arrived!

We are thrilled to welcome you all to this year’s Cherrywood Art Fair this weekend, 10:00am – 5:00pm! We hope you’ll join us for two days of handmade gift shopping, live music, family friendly entertainment and delicious local eats! We have something for everyone at our beloved Cherrywood Art Fair, and you can feel great about helping us fuel and sustain the arts in East Austin. Also, this year’s booth map is ready so you can start planning your shopping!

 

View the HTML Version

Your Passport to Austin Art!

Austin is one great city with three amazing end of year art shows, and we want to thank all of you who attend! That’s why we’ve partnered with Blue Genie Art Bazaar and Armadillo Christmas Bazaar to reward our loyal art supporters with the chance to win some great local art. All you have to do is pick up a Passport to Art and get the three stamps when you attend each of these events. We’ll draw one winner at random from all of the submitted Passports to take home a grand prize gift basket (over $400 retail value). Thank you for supporting local artists!

Included: Garzig Design Jacket, Fisk and Fern Dish Towels,
Rory Skagen Large Art Print, Luna Tigre Candles & Iona Handcrafted Notebook

How to Enter:

  1. Pick up your Passport to Art. They are available at all three shows and from many of the participating artists.
  2. Attend all three events, and get your stamps.
  3. Turn in your Passport to Art at Armadillo Christmas Bazaar or Blue Genie Art Bazaar.
  4. One lucky winner will be drawn from the Passports with all three stamps.

 

Event Details:

Blue Genie Art Bazaar
When: November 23rd – December 24th | 10:00am – 10:00pm
Where: 6100 Airport Blvd, Austin, TX 78752

Cherrywood Art Fair
When: December 8th & 9th | 10:00am – 5:00pm
Where: Maplewood Elementary | 3808 Maplewood Ave, 78722

Armadillo Christmas Bazaar
When: December 13th-24th | 11:00am – 10:00pm
Where: Palmer Events Center | 900 Barton Springs, 78704

We Want to Entertain You!

Announcing this Year’s Main Stage Lineup!

Our beloved Cherrywood Art Fair is just a few weeks away and we are so excited to share this year’s amazing live entertainment. We’ve planned two full days of local music and family fun activities to entertain attendees of all ages. We’ll kick off the weekend with an all-female musical lineup on Saturday and then magic, storytelling and dance on Sunday. You can shop, eat, enjoy music and so much more with your whole gang at this year’s Cherrywood Art Fair!

View the HTML Version

Become a 2019 BIG ARTIST

We are officially recruiting for 2019 Little Artist BIG ARTIST! If you are an artist living in Austin and available to meet with aspiring young artists on weekday afternoons, this opportunity is for you. Launched in 2007, Little Artist BIG ARTIST is a unique mentoring experience that pairs professional artists with fifth and sixth graders from East Austin elementary schools. BIG ARTISTS provide their time and professional experience as working artists to guide their Little Artists in planning and creating two pieces of artwork during their 10 week one-on-one collaboration.

Become a BIG ARTIST

 

We’re really proud of what this program has become and the artists, BIG and Little, that we’ve been able to reach. Here are some inside perspectives from past BIG ARTISTS to show you more about this opportunity.

BIG ARTIST: Caitlin B. Alexander, Blackshear Elementary
I feel lucky to have been paired with Madison for my Little Artist BIG ARTIST experience. She is talented beyond her years and has a heartfelt passion for her art. I know this girl will go places if she keeps up the momentum and love that she fosters for drawing. Our sessions were always filled with laughter and I have cherished getting to know her on both a creative and personal level. Thank you, Chula League, for pairing us perfectly!

BIG ARTIST: Amanda Demock, Govalle Elementary
This experience has been quite rewarding. Watching Anthony grow in his curiosity and passion for learning new techniques in design has been awesome. He has so much talent and potential – I can’t wait to see what he does with his art in the future.

BIG ARTIST: Hannah Prince, Barbara Jordan Elementary
Working with my Little Artist has completely surpassed any expectations. The first time we met it was clear that we were a good match in our energy level. Evelyn is goofy, smart, and talented. Watching her grow as an artist has simply been a blessing. We would work in bursts with multiple pieces going at once and she was so driven and focused. We would hop up, shake out our wiggles and tell goofy stories too! She is a bright and funny girl.

BIG ARTIST: Alisha Baker, Blackshear Elementary
Having Jeralyn as my Little Artist was nothing short of inspiring. Her energy is contagious and her passion for the art of making is so exciting to witness in a young person. Jeralyn was quick to learn sewing. She was a total natural and needed little guidance after taking in the basics! She is confident in her creative decision-making and was consistently enthusiastic with each process of printmaking introduced. With an attitude like Jeralyn’s, anything in this world is possible.

 

We invite to you to join us in fueling and sustaining the arts in East Austin, one Little Artist at a time.

Become a BIG ARTIST

EAST Austin Studio Tour

Can you believe it’s already November?! That means our beloved Cherrywood Art Fair is just a few weeks away, and we couldn’t be more excited! Our artists are getting ready to share all kinds of unique, handmade art with you, just in time for holiday gift giving. Of course, if you’re anxious to get a sneak preview of their work, you can see quite a few of our cherry picked vendors during EAST Austin Studio Tour. This uniquely Austin studio tour takes place the 2nd and 3rd weekend of November, and it’s free to attend. All you have to do is pick the artists you’d like to visit, either on the website or in the printed map which you can pick up at any Austin public libraries.

As you make your plan to get out and see some of the participants, we thought we’d offer this list of Chula League artists to help guide you. We’ve compiled Cherrywood Art Fair Artists, BIG ARTISTS and Board Members that we are lucky to have a relationship with. While you can’t go wrong showing your support to any artists, we hope you’ll stop by and say hello to these who are helping fuel and sustain the arts in East Austin with Chula League.

13. Polina Novozhenets
57. Haley Lebeuf Jewelry
58. Abby Ruston
114. CBA Illustration
119. David Carrales
164. Jeffery Miles
192. Avel Glaz
218. Jessica Fontenot Art Prints
287. Claire Sommers Buck Jewelry
296. Jess Butler
324. Samara Barks
325. Nailivic Studios
344. Art by Brian Phillips
386. Brian David Johnson
387. Bee Amour Jewelry
393. Allison Swarr
396. Abby Rose Mandel
445. Eya Claire
511. Carly Weaver
512. Squidrabbit Artz
514. El Federico
559. Linda Wandt Fine Art

Who’s Hungry?

Austin Foodies: Let’s Eat!

If shopping makes you hungry, you’re in for a real treat at this year’s Cherrywood Art Fair. We have recruited a wide range of local food trucks and vendors to keep you fueled while you enjoy a weekend of handmade goods and family friendly entertainment! There will be coffee, snacks and meal options for all tastes, from flavorful empanadas and prime beef hot dogs to individual-sized cakes and gourmet elixirs. Be sure to stop by our Foodpalooza throughout the fair!

View the HTML Version

Have you RSVP’ed to Cultivate?

Don’t Miss Your Chance to Learn from these Amazing Local Art Experts!

Chula League wants to see you this Wednesday. We are excited to host our first in a new series of workshops specially designed for artists and makers! Cultivate by Chula League is where local creatives can come together to connect with content experts across various fields in the arts. Participants will gain new knowledge and tips about their fields and others to integrate into their own creative practice.

View the HTML Version