The Society of Creative Arts of Newtown (SCAN) is presenting its annual "Color In Winter Art Show & Sale" at Newtown Municipal Center. The public is invited to visit the exhibition, being presented in the building's main corridor, weekdays through March 31.

An artists' reception is scheduled for Wednesday, February 22, from 3 to 4:30 pm.

The annual presentation of works by members of the local artist's collective went on view Friday, February 3. Members of SCAN spent a few hours curating the show that morning, deciding where best to place each landscape, seascape, portrait, abstract work, and still life that had been submitted.

Show Chair Dorothy Wilson said 39 artists submitted works this year. Each artist was allowed up to three original works, and Ms Wilson reported on February 7 that most SCAN members opted for two or three pieces.

She was happy, she said, with the presentation once all of the art was in place last Friday morning.

"It's always a struggle," the show chair said. "But we hope people are pleased with the art. We're hoping the people who work at town hall are enjoying the selections."

The exhibition stretches the full length of the main corridor at Newtown's government center, nearly 200 feet on either side of the hall, with two and three artworks on hangers in most locations. During the receiving on February 2, Ms Wilson was already pleased with the pieces that were arriving.

"There is a great variety of work, and a lot of talent here," Ms Wilson said Thursday afternoon, looking at the tall white walls she and others were going to fill with art the following morning. "This is such a perfect place for an exhibition. It's great to get the halls, and walls, used like this."

For this exhibition, artists were encouraged to submit work already in frames and ready to hang. Artists are also allowed to offer work on stretched canvas with finished edges. The contrast between dozens of works in frames ranging from plain to ornate and the few canvases that were painted right around their edging is enjoyable. Each makes the other appreciated.

The majority of the works also pop with color, which was certainly the intention of the show when it was created. To walk indoors from the cold days of late winter and be greeted by colorfully dressed children standing within colorful gardens, or bright red flowers atop a blue glazed pot, has been the show's mission since its creation in 1994, when it was called "Color in January" and presented at the former Lexington Gardens.

Elsewhere this year, viewers are greeted by Jeanne Eleck's "Protector," in which a purple horse with yellow eyes looks outward from its frame, a look of confusion on its face as a red-haired damsel runs into a hallway behind him.

Even snowy landscapes can offer color, when the scene includes a bright red barn, as found in one of Ruth Newquist's "Color In Winter" entries. Better known for her bold watercolor cityscapes, the Newtown artist is also well versed in oil, and shared at least one for this year's winter exhibition.

One of the requirements for an artist to enter work into "Color in Winter" is that the work must be available for purchase. Each piece on view has a price tag on it, and visitors are encouraged to contact Ms Wilson or Suzanne Molineaux, who has also chaired SCAN shows, for purchasing options. Lists of artists represented in the exhibition have been printed, Ms Wilson said this week. The lists also include contact information for the two women who are handling show purchases.

In addition to the full-size works being offered in "Color In January Art Show & Sale," SCAN is also presenting a collection of smaller works donated by members. These works are presented on a table and easel just inside the Simpson Street entrance of the municipal center.

There is no particular theme to these works, most are simple unframed pieces, and all are priced at $25 each. The sale of these pieces, according to SCAN member artist Lisa Willvonseder-Greto, will benefit SCAN's scholarship fund. Scholarships are presented each year to high school seniors in Newtown who have been accepted into art school.

Newtown Municipal Center, at 3 Primrose Street, can be visited weekdays between 7:30 am and 5 pm. The building's corridor may also be accessible during town meetings and special events.

In addition to the artists' reception on February 22, SCAN will also present its monthly Wednesday afternoon artist demonstration at Newtown Municipal Center within the setting of "Color In January Art Show & Sale." Guest artist Charles Ray will create a seaport scene using oils. That program will begin at 1:30 pm Wednesday, February 22. Admission is free. The reception will follow at 3.

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