Art Awakenings At Pleasant Lake Villa

Art from residents on display at Pleasant Lake Villa during a recent Art Walk Event.

We continue to discover that the Parma Area is blessed with an abundance of talented artists, and their fabulous creations can be seen in places that you might not expect, including the Pleasant Lake Villa Nursing Facility at 7269 Ridge Rd. I attended an Art Walk there in December, and what a profound experience this event turned out to be! Georgeta Hanna, the Art Therapy Instructor for the past 10 years, is surely one special lady. First of all, she is from Transylvania (how cool is that!) and is certainly a delightful woman to have a conversation with. Not only that, but she obviously has a gift of being able to help her students find their artistic soul, even with some people who have never before created art. Five of her artists who entered their work in the Annual Art Show at the Cuyahoga County Fair were awarded first place ribbons. 

One artist, Tom Platton, won a first prize ribbon for his work, and it was the very first piece of art that he had ever created! Similar for Judy Presley, who admits that before she ever came to Pleasant Lake Villa, she had no experience with art whatsoever, yet she won 3 first place ribbons in the show. Bob Hagley, Elsie Kranik, Theresa Wasielewski, and Jean Gratcyk also garnered first place ribbons and an honorable mention as well. If you ask me, this can't be just a coincidence; there must be some magic going on in the art room at Pleasant Lake Villa, and it just goes to show that great art can be anywhere, and it always makes life better. Kathryn Mabin, Board Member of the Parma Area Fine Arts Council whose column "Artist Of The Month" appears in the Observer, has discussed with other members the possibility of inviting these artists from Pleasant Lake Villa to display their works in the Spring Art Show at the Donna Smallwood Activities Center. Just a fine example of the networking efforts occurring in Parma as we move forward with consolidating our considerable artistic presence into a growing community of Arts and Culture. There is a video of this Art Event at Pleasant Lake Villa on the Parma Observer Facebook Page, and it is well worth going there and watching. Stay tuned, and by all means support and encourage our local artists wherever and however you can. 

Daniel P. McCarthy

I am the publisher of the Parma Observer. Lifetime resident of Parma for over 50 years.

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Volume 7, Issue 2, Posted 2:05 PM, 02.02.2015