Art Takes Over at the Mill Pond

The rays of the setting sun on the weren't the only colors available for the patrons of downtown Brighton to see Thursday night.

The start of June marked the beginning of the Brighton Art Guild's Art at the Mill Pond this summer.

Every Thursday night from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., local artists come to show off and sell their work between the pond and Main Street. Artists sometimes set up to work right in the park, but most of them come to set up lawn chairs to enjoy each other's company.

Betty Macleod, the vice president of the guild, doesn't describe herself as an artist, but she's still been a part of the event for the ten years that it's been around.

"I'm an art patron. I love art, the colors, the different types of art," she said.

Phil Gibbon, a guild member and the chairperson for the Mill Pond event, said a variety of mediums are represented, including watercolor, chalks, oil painting and sculpting. Sometimes musicians join the event as well.

Gibbon creates digital art through the program Photoshop and had a large canvas with a textured pink flower on display. On a nearby table he had smaller framed portraits of assorted fruits, packaged and ready for sale.

A few steps closer to the pond, guild member Peggy Brewer was working on a pastel drawing of the scene in front of her. She's created an entire series of Mill Pond portraits available on her website, and said she's had people come up and buy her works right off the easel.

"I'm looking more for an impressionistic take on the place, the mood, the time," she said about the piece she was working on, scribbling wavy colors into the scene."I'm not really looking for a photograph."

The event is an opportunity for the Brighton Art Guild to establish a presence in the community, and after hosting that event and others, residents have really responded.

"The art community and cultural side has become a very big part of the town," said Gary Brewer, who was there to support his wife.

The guild also organizes its own shows, including Kaleidoscope, its annual exhibition. Guild members' artwork appears all over the town, from the Genoa Medical Center to the . It will also be a part of the upcoming Brighton Fine Arts Festival in August.

Until then, residents can get a taste of the guild's latest creations every Thursday night throughout the summer.