MILWAUKEE — For its 100th anniversary, a Milwaukee arts club is shaking things up.
In 1922, the Men's Sketch Club of Milwaukee was formed as a way for men to gather and draw. In 1998, the group changed its name to the Milwaukee Sketch Club to include women. In 2022, the group has elected its first woman president, Madeline Glaspey.
"So (we're) changing things up around here," Glaspey said with a smile.
The club meets at the Find Your Light Art School in Cudahy on 3701 E. Layton Ave. Glaspey is also the owner of the studio.
"Everything seems to float away when you’re creating, and so you can really just get very focused on the moment at hand, and that’s a very therapeutic thing," she said.
The group meets every Tuesday at 7 p.m. for two hours. While there, painters and drawers alike can work on creating a work of art based on a portrait or a nude model. Both arrive at the studio and you can chose to paint either one.
The group is open to all members. It doesn't matter what skill level you currently have. It's more important that you get rid of any notion that 'you aren't an artist' and just put brush to canvas and create.
"It's really about whether you enjoy the process of making art. There’s not some people who are worthy of making art versus other people who are not worthy of making art," Glaspey said.
Sketch club member Michael Gundlach quit making art for about 25 years. However, 15 years ago, he went to a sketch club event and he has since gotten back to his artistic roots.
“There's an energy floating in the air, and I'd not experience that if I go to a fishing meeting let's say or a real estate appraising meeting," he said.
It costs $112 for a season long membership which runs from about September to May. If you join in the middle of the year, the price is prorated.
