Explore: Huron Valley Council for the Arts in Highland

Explore: Huron Valley Council for the Arts in Highland

(Elizabeth Schanz, July 21, 2023)

Highland, MI – Huron Valley Council for the Arts (HVCA) is a gallery, art shop and gathering space for arts in the southeast Michigan community.

Located in Highland, Michigan, HVCA provides a location that aims to make art accessible for all. The gallery hosts the work of local artists, provides community classes and cultivates culture in the surrounding areas.

“We try to bring as many people and expose them to the arts as possible,” said HVCA office manager Maggie Dashevich.

The HVCA facility is in a nationally and state-registered historical building called the Highland Station House. The structure was initially built in 1886 as the Highland Methodist Episcopal Church, was transformed into the public library in 1980 and in 2002, became the home of HVCA.

However, HVCA as an organization was established in 1999 and has aimed to become more visible to people throughout the years.

One of the biggest goals of HVCA is to host the work of local artists for attendees to view and purchase. Dashevich said the gallery hosts about 14 artists at a time whose art spans a variety of different mediums, highlights different ideas and demonstrates each artist’s passion.

“It’s unique, it’s not something you find on every street corner,” said Dashevich. “I like the exposure to the artist and all the different forms of art. There’s always something new and different going on”

Currently, HVCA art shop has pieces by  of Jeff Miller who works with wood, Jim Williams, an oil painter and Mary Bajcz who creates sustainable quilts from scrap fabric, amongst many other artists.

Daschevich said to get into the shop, artists have to go through an application and “jury” process. She says during the jury process the art group looks at the submitted work of artists to ensure there is a diverse display of pieces in the shop and to ensure the quality of the art presented.

The main gallery, which Dashevich referred to as a “one-man-show” holds a singular artist’s collection. The gallery recently held the work of Nancy Wanchik an artist in a collection called “Mixed Media.” and on July 14, the gallery will open a new exhibit titled “Small Works Big Ideas” by painter Marcia K. Hales.

One of HVCA’s early goals was to “align” with the Village of Milford, Milford, Highland, White Lake and Commerce townships through the Huron Valley School district. The partnership with local schools is still a current initiative HVCA in addition to their own event that helps to reach children in the community outside of their time in school.

“We also do one (a program) in the summertime where the local schools can display their work in the gallery,” Dashevich said. “Kids classes are extremely important because it’s trying to get the concept of the arts to younger groups that might not otherwise be exposed to it. As more and more of the schools drop their artistic programs I think that’s one of the important things that we do.”

The work of HVCA hopes to appeal to many different age groups through a variety of events. Some of these programs include “Van-Go” tours where HVCA organizes transportation for event participants to go to various locations such as hands-on art workshops, museums and exhibits. These tours help to connect HVCA and local people to the broader southeast Michigan area. Other events include Art & Greens held at the Bogie Lake Greenhouses which features art, music, food and plants, author luncheons and partnerships with community events.

To continue the work of HVCA, Dashevich said Executive Director Sioux Trujillo hopes to apply for and utilize grant money for the arts. Dashevich said these efforts hope to continue to help HVCA work locally and develop programs.

HVCA has over 2,000 people on a “Constant Contact” list which includes HVCA members and other contacts. The Constant Contact email list allows the organization to stay in touch with people via monthly email to update them on past, future and current events.

Huron Valley Council for the Arts is located at 205 W. Livingston Road in Highland. Learn more at https://huronvalleyarts.org/