7th annual Docent Art Exhibit at Riverside Arts Center

My boyfriend, Tom, is a very accomplished artist and writer; and starting Thursday, eight of his digital collages will be part of the extremely prestigious seventh annual Docent Art Exhibit at the Riverside Arts Center in Ypsilanti.

"After Nancy Left Him, Roy Painted Everything Pink" by Thomas Boulan

The exhibit runs from March 31 - April 30. The reception — where you get to schmooze with the artists — will be this Saturday night, April 2, from 5-7 p.m. Come that evening and enjoy a buffet of treats, a jazz trio, and immersion in some of the best that the Ann Arbor-Ypsi art scene has to offer.

It's wonderful for Tom to have such a fabulous opportunity to showcase his work! There are abstracts as well as figurative pieces; and I haven't even seen them all, so it's very exciting that my first viewing will present them matted, framed and hanging in an exhibit as the works of art that they are, rather than merely as thumbnails on Flickr.

Of course, in addition to supporting Tom as well as the other docents and the gallery itself, we all know that I'm all about the food. And I always look forward to mixing two of my very favorite subjects in life — art and eating — as I'll be able to do at Saturday night's reception.

Each of the exhibitors is expected to contribute treats for the guests. Tom has his heart set on my making chocolate-dipped pretzel sticks, rolled in crushed peanuts — they're easy to do, inexpensive, flavorful and readily totable while walking around and admiring the artworks. We're also bringing a special festive surprise dessert, but that's still a secret... shhhh.

Feel free to come on down to join us for the reception — we'd love to see you! You can also check out Tom's photostream on Flickr. And he's just been featured on Downtown L.A. Life, an online magazine which offers some samples of his work as well as a brief biographical statement.

All of the docents who work at Riverside are volunteers, and it is truly their dedication — whether newcomers, like Tom, or those who've maintained regular shifts for years and years - that keeps the gallery open and available to the community for no admission charge. So that they get the honors that are due to them, here are their names:

Steve Allen, Tom Boulan, Laurie Clark, Lois Dowling, Dennis Gordon, Bill Knudstrup, Joan Miller, Joan Newberry, Marilyn Prucka, Sebastian Rataezyk, Michelle Shankwiler, Tara Truax, Corrine Vivian, Ken Warner, Carolyn Weins, and Angela Wilson

Special accolades must also go to Dee Overly, curator of the Docent Exhibit and a one-woman force of nature who supports the art gallery through coordinating shows, managing staffing, envisioning exhibits, and investing her passion into the Center. She and her team of docents (whether artists whose work is on display or not) are amazing... and you have an opportunity to reap the rewards of their efforts for yourself and also meet them all on Saturday night! Don't miss it!

P.S.: Many of the artworks will be available for purchase ....

Riverside Arts Center
76 N. Huron St.
Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197

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Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures in the kitchen. She was thrilled to have her post about Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread named as one of the daily "Best of the Blogs" by the prestigious Food News Journal.

Go visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — in which she cooks, reviews restaurants and generally enthuses and effuses over all things food-related. And feel free to email her with questions or comments: yentamary@gmail.com.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured at the top of this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here.