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Give it a listen! What a fun experience with the folks at Environmental Professionals Radio. On this week's episode, Nic and Laura chat with Martina Sestakova, Textile Designer, Art Educator, and Abstract Painter, about art, the beauty of nature, and overcoming your fears. Check it out here. 
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Randomly flipping through the current Washington Metro issue of the Beacon Magazine and look what I found! BTW, Bessie is 104.  I am honored to be featured in "Creating with a Vision: In the Studio with Martina Sestakova" on January 28 (7-8:30pm). This event is organized by Silver Spring Town Center and you may register for this free Zoom program here.  Woohoo! What a cool moment to see my art and ideas published in a magazine! And it's even better that it is Kensington Neighbors, which highlights the happenings in 20895. A wonderful zip code to live and create. I am so grateful for the support of the local community. Thanks @kensington_neighbors!
Scan this QR code to be taken to your ticket for "Colorful Blooms" art workshop (in person) at Locally Crafted in Gaithersburg, MD, on December 3 at 6:30pm.  Register here.  Such a great time yesterday at Marymount University School of Design and Art. I was a guest lecturer for "Entrepreneurship in Design & Art." What a lovely experience meeting the students, chatting about our life journeys, and creating together. Thank you for having me!  An outdoor holiday art market featuring local artists and makers from the DMV. Get your holiday shopping done early with original paintings, jewelry designs, and more! I will be there with my RADOST scarves and original abstract paintings on yupo; all inspired by the beauty of nature. Cherrydale United Methodist Church, Parking Lot on Nelly Custis Dr, 3701 N Lorcom Lane, Arlington, VA 22207.  Please join us for a family friendly Ch/Art Art Walk 2021, presented by our community arts organization www.chevychaseart.org. Guests are invited to visit the work of 43 local artists in 22 different home and studio settings around Chevy Chase DC and Maryland. Artists whose work is both two and three dimensional will be exhibiting during an expanded event over two consecutive days, Saturday and Sunday, October 23rd and 24th. Each day’s event will run from noon to 5pm This talented group will offer work in a wide range of media including abstract and representational painting, sculpture, jewelry, pottery, ceramic art, photography, fabric art, mixed media and video. Don’t forget to pick up your Prize Passport which will be offered at each of the Studios - collect stamps from 9 studios with chances to win one of three cash prizes! The walk will be held rain or shine while observing Covid protocols, specifically wearing masks indoors. The art Walk is free and open to the public. Printed brochures with the artists’ names, media and a map of the locations will be available at most local businesses on Connecticut Avenue as well as throughout the community including on the Ch/Art website. We look forward to seeing you at the Art Walk! Note: House 18 is not open. Anne Albright is at #14 Ruth Beer Bletzinger is at #22   LOCALLY CRAFTED is open! Enjoy a new unique shopping opportunity at @locallycraftedshop at the Rio in Gaithersburg, MD! This store - owned by Stacey Hammer and Heather Luxenberg - features items by makers in the local community. Including me! Stop by 125 Boardwalk Place and support over 60 small businesses at this women-owned shop. I have my RADOST scarves and pillows and abstracts and heart paintings on display.  "I love it! It sits next to me on my desk where I can look at it whenever I want to, and it brightens my day. Thank you for creating it."  "Cultivating Joy" is a show of Capitol Hill Art League at the office of Nishan Halim DMD Dentistry. I am excited to have two pieces on show!   Enjoy a new unique shopping experience at Locally Crafted at the Rio in Gaithersburg, MD. Opening on Oct 16, 2021, this store - owned by Stacey Hammer and Heather Luxenberg - will feature items by makers in the local community. Including me and my scarves, pillows, and paintings! Visit 125 Boardwalk Place.  Yay! So pleased to have received an honorable mention in the September challenge (with the theme of 'change') through the Capitol Hill Art League. The juror, Erik Ramsey, kindly shared his insights into the selection process. "One honorable mention is Martina Sestakova's honorably abstract (and colorful) watercolor and ink "The Bridges We Have Made". The interplay of colors and the subtle flow of lines captivated my attention from the first. I felt it definitely had that something significant. Interesting how you tied it into the theme."  My 3D painting - “A Long Quiet Walk” - has been accepted into the exhibition GIFTED at the Goldman Art Gallery in Rockville. It’s my first time showing art in this gallery! The show runs October 17-November 14. All works are 10x10” and priced at $125 — a great opportunity to purchase affordable art for the holidays. (Hanukkah begins November 28.)  Register here. See you in class!  Here is my client's review: "Our private art session with Martina was such a wonderful experience and great for all ages! Martina had a lovely set up on her covered patio, and our group of 3 adults and one child all loved our watercolors lesson. It was a relaxed and fun environment and rekindled the love of painting for some of us, sparked new interest in others, and encouraged my eleven year old niece to explore more of her passion for art. I am already planning my next session with another group of friends!" Contact me to schedule your own Zoom or in-person workshop.  I had such a nice time showcasing my RADOST scarves and abstract paintings at the 2021 Takoma Park Folk Festival on September 12! Thanks to all who stopped by and supported local artists and crafters. Lovely conversations; new connections. I am grateful for this opportunity.   The mission of Rainbow Place is to provide women emergency overnight shelter during the hypothermia season and assist them as they transition to a better quality of life. Since 1982, Rainbow Place has been providing seasonal overnight shelter in Rockville for women experiencing homelessness. The shelter is open each year from November 1 - April 1, keeping women safe in Montgomery County during the coldest months of the year.
Rainbow Place Shelter is holding an online basket raffle through October 24th. This is how it works. You buy a ticket, or many tickets, and then put them toward the prizes you are interested in winning. On October 25th, just before the start of our 2021-22 season, we will have a drawing and announce the lucky winners! Event Link: https://rainbowplaceshelter.basketraffle.org/ (search for an art workshop with Martina Sestakova!) #ArtHappensHere: Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County’s Campaign Promotes Local Arts7/23/2021 I am honored to have been selected to participate in #ArtHappensHere, a temporary mural/banner effort organized by Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County to bring local artists’ ideas to public places. My proposal featuring my abstract painting got selected and turned out great – literally and figuratively – as it got printed on a 10x10’ banner by Image360, a print shop in Kensington, MD, where I live and work. My artwork is now featured at the National Capital Trolley Museum in Silver Spring, MD. Let’s take a look at this fun community-building project!  The original artwork is a 14x10” abstract acrylic painting on yupo called “One Wild Precious Life,” which is a line from Mary Oliver’s poem, ‘The Summer Day’. It’s all about positive energy and celebrating being alive. And isn’t that exactly what art can bring to us and our communities? I took a section of this artwork and created a square piece to fit the required banner specifications. The piece brings the joy of creativity out in colors, shapes, and textures. I enjoy its vibrancy. I am thankful to Sierra Smith, public art & communications coordinator of Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County, who organized the call for art, reviewed submitted proposals with her team, and worked with the selected artists to bring their ideas out to communities around the county.
Working with Marsha Kaiser, of the Museum, has been a lovely experience. We met to assess the space and located a wall in the main hall to display the banner. My husband Jordan and I picked up the banner from Image360. Chris Samford, client relations manager, was so helpful and friendly; I highly recommend this business if you have any signage needs. Marsha, my husband, and I, hung the banner up (high up!) and enjoyed our time together while chatting about the Museum’s restoration efforts. You must see the amazing trolleys from several countries around the world!
To see my artwork (in display through mid-October 2021) and visit this cool Museum, please stop by Saturdays (noon-5pm) at 1313 Bonifant Rd, Silver Spring, MD 20905. Thanks again to the Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County and National Capital Trolley Museum for this unique opportunity. I have had a blast!  Installed! I invite you to stop by Martina Sestakova's Art at Plaza Art Bethesda (Through August 4, 2021). I’m sharing a selection of my abstract watercolors on yupo at this great art store. A variety of sizes and prices. All of my work is inspired by words and their role in our lives. Enjoy!  |
