Mixing business with pleasure: Art on the Veranda touts local talent

Art may not be the first thing people think of when they think of Maricopa. One group of artisans is working to change that.

The second year of Art on the Veranda had an expanded number of artists and media on exhibit at The Duke Golf Club today.

Local artist Linda Demain said it continues to be "a learning experience."

"I'm learning what people will buy and what they won't buy," she said.

Maricopa Artisans debuted the event in March 2013 to give exposure to area artists and promote the local business community.

"It's all about keeping revenue in the community," said Cynthia Portrey, one of the five artists who founded Maricopa Artisans. "We may be in the country, but you don't have to go to Phoenix for something like this."

The artisans approached the City of Maricopa about supplying some kind of bags for the attendees. The timing happened to be perfect for the City's Shop Local campaign, which seeks to boost Maricopa's businesses. The first 100 attendees received the Shop Local bags, and there were even more Herbalife bags marked with Shop Local stickers.

Further enticements included free raffle tickets (and an extra raffle ticket to those who brought food to be donated to the needy).

New this year was a wine-tasting booth.

Instead of just being around the restaurant's veranda, artists were spread out farther along the course, at the encouragement of the management.

"The Duke was extremely accommodating," Portrey said.

Making it even more of a community event, high school students helped with setup Saturday morning, hauling in six dollies of equipment. The Maricopa Police Department agreed to let cars park on side of Rancho El Dorado Parkway when the parking lot was full of attendees and golfers.

"It was really a cooperative effort," Portrey said.

Designer Michele Fredericks, also a founder of the artisans group, said the switch from spring to fall was advantageous. March, it turned out, was already hot, she said, and the November setting brought in the part-time residents returning for the winter.

Other founding members are Diane Hebert, Karen Stephenson and Bonnie Del Turco. Portrey said they want the Art on the Veranda event to be consistently high-quality fine arts and crafts.

Maricopa Artisans jury the participating artists. Some apply on their own and some are invited to submit their works for consideration (the work of Casa Grande pottery artist Lois Dieringer was spotted in a shop window).