Hammond’s ‘Wine And Canvas’ Brings Together Art And Entertainment

The City of Hammond, on Friday evening, hosted Wine and Canvas at the Jean Shepherd Community Center. Around sixty painters enjoyed drinks while trying their best to learn and recreate the moonlit winter forest scene called “Snowy Moon.” The event was the second Wine and Canvas held by the City and like the first event, sold out rather quickly.

Coordinating the event for the City of Hammond was Donna Muta, Special Events Coordinator for the Hammond Parks and Recreation Department.

“Our Building Manager, Megan, attended an event like this at Buddy & Pals and another one in Highland and she thought it would be a good fit for our building,” Muta said. “Wine and Canvas aren’t local so we called them up to see when we could schedule an event. Last month we held a Wine and Canvas event and it was so well received it sold out so we decided to host another one this month and it sold out again. Normally they have them in south Lake County and we haven’t had one in northern Lake County so we said ‘Let’s do it!”

Click here to see all the photos from the Hammond Wine and Canvas Party!

“They take care of everything,” said Muta. “It’s like a turnkey operation. You go online, it’s $35, they bring the supplies, they have the instructor and we don’t have to collect any money so basically all we have to do is the event in our building. It’s sort of like a service for the residents to do something artistic and fun.”

Hammond’s Wine and Canvas event attracted aspiring artists from around Northwest Indiana and even into Illinois.

“There’s people from all over the county here,” Muta said. “I asked a few of the girls and they said they were from Schererville. A lot of them said that they just go around and do as many of these events as they can because they love to paint and you don’t have to buy the supplies. This is our second event and we’re planning for another one in March. They also do a Cookies and Canvas event for kids and we’re looking to host one of those sometime when the kids are out of school or during the summer.”

Wine and Canvas was started in Indianapolis in 2010 and brings an art and entertainment experience to studios, restaurants, corporate tabletops and community centers around the country.

Thom Miecznikowski served as the instructor for the evening and has been with Wine and Canvas for over a year. Miecznikowski, a commercial artist based in South Bend, has been painting for fifty years.

“People are always looking for things to do that take them out of their regular, everyday experiences,” Miecznikowski said. “At Wine and Canvas we try to teach a little, it’s mostly entertainment, but we do try and teach a little basic painting. People who come to our events paint at home as well so it’s a way for them to get started. They get together with their friends and it’s very social but at the same time you do get to learn something and take home your painting.”

“The paintings are all over the place,” said Miecznikowski. “Some of them are whimsical, some are crazy. Even someone who’s never painted can create something and have a great time in three hours. Most people here did and did a pretty successful job. I would say half of the people haven’t held a brush since they were in school. I really enjoy the social aspect of it as well as the challenge of helping everyone who comes out get a good result.”

To find out more about upcoming events and what’s happening in Hammond, visit: http://www.gohammond.com/