Paint By The Ocean: The Artwork of Annette Sykes
Creating Community
By hosting projects and building spaces and events with other community leaders in Lynn and beyond, I am creating spaces for everyone to feel the sense of community that I, myself, so much need these days.
GALA (Galleries At LynnArts)
GALA is a nonprofit art gallery that supports the whole artist - it is run by an amazing group of talented artists that I have the pleasure of calling my friends. I have had the honor of being the founder of this nonprofit since 2019 during the inception of it and throughout the pandemic as this team has created programming and exhibits on an ever expanding basis. This is a project that I am passionate about and through which I continue to develop my leadership skills and meet new friends. My ideas about art are continuously challenged and expanded by this incredible project.
Intro to Painting Class at Lynn Community Enrichment Program
Spring of 2022 I began teaching an art class for the LCEP. It was a prototype class called Intro to Oil Painting and we have been able to continue and expand it. I've changed the title to Intro to Painting and now give students the choice between using either oil or acrylic paint. This program creates opportunities for Lynn residents to learn various subjects at an affordable cost.
Plein Air Painting on Kings Beach
and at Red Rock Park
In 2021 I started taking my easels to the beach and to the park to share plein air painting with my community. In 2022, Abby Valencia joined me in this project. We have been able to share this project with Lynn and other people from the North Shore of Boston thanks to the Better Beaches Grant and Save the Harbor Save the Bay.
Monday Night Figure Drawing Group
at GALA
We have been meeting for almost 7 years at GALA's main gallery to draw from a model. Alternating weeks clothed / unclothed models. I hire the model and invite artists to draw/paint together. At these sessions I announce a lot of local art events and upcoming exhibits.
How to Draw People Class
I received an LCC Grant in 2022 to teach a couple of classes of the "How to Draw People class" I taught one in the spring and am teaching one in my classroom at LVTI the fall and I will teach one more in January/February at GALA. These classes bring artists together for a fun learning activity.
LVTI Life Skills Vocational Workshop
As a Lynn Public School Teacher, I have brought my Life Skills students to the LynnArts Building for their vocational workshop training to do cleaning and maintenance but also to do mural painting! We have loved to paint these murals in the halls and bathrooms of the LynnArts building!