Inspired by Mary Whyte’s The Artist’s Life, the CAG Sketch Club grew out of a recent Book Club discussion about the importance of sketching as a regular practice. Her ideas - and sketchbook exercises included in the book - reminded us how powerful drawing from observation can be.
The Sketch Club will be a relaxed, welcoming gathering for artists of all levels, focused on indoor still-life sketching. It’s not a class or critique, just time to slow down, look closely, and draw together.
Join us for our first meeting on Monday, February 9, from 10:00 am–noon at Charleston County Library, downtown branch, 68 Calhoun. Bring your sketchbook and favorite drawing tools. We’ll provide the still life - and the inspiration.
Let us know if you'd like to come sketch with us! Contact Debbie Daniels at danielsdesigns@gmail.com
SECURE YOUR SPOT NOW! SPACE IS LIMITED!
We are very excited that well known photographer STEVEN HYATT will lead the next Artistic Development discussion! There will be room for 8 photographers, each one bringing one or two photographs to be discussed, and 4 additional observers.
DATE: Tuesday, February 17th, 2026
TIME:
LOCATION: CAG Gallery, 160 East Bay Street, Charleston
Sign up today! To reserve your spot, please email Susanne Frenzel at susafrenzel2@gmail.com, indicating whether you wish to participate as a photographer and bring one or two photographs or wish to attend as an observer.
Steven’s interest in photography grew during his teenage years as an extension of his general desire to create. His fascination with churches gave birth to the Churches of Charleston Project, which grew into a global initiative documenting churches worldwide. Steven's photography spans documenting Charleston, exploring the Paris Catacombs, shooting models for book covers, and capturing striking portraits of birds of prey. His quality centric printing business, Imaging Arts Printing, specializes in high quality printing of photographs or other artwork on canvas and various papers.
Our next Book Club Meeting is Monday, February 23rd at 2:30 at Charleston County Library Downtown Branch, 68 Calhoun St.
Our February book is Wild Thing: A Life of Paul Gauguin by Sue Prideaux
“One of The New York Times 10 Best Books of 2025… In this gorgeously illustrated, myth-busting work, Sue Prideaux reveals that while Gauguin was a complicated man, his scandalous reputation is largely undeserved… Wild Thing upends much of what we thought we knew about Gauguin through new primary research, including the resurfaced manuscript of Gauguin’s most important writing, the untranslated memoir of Gauguin’s son, and a sample of Gauguin’s teeth that disproves the pernicious myth of his syphilis. In the first full biography of Paul Gauguin in thirty years, Sue Prideaux illuminates the extraordinary oeuvre of a visionary artist vital to the French avant-garde. The result is “a brilliantly readable and compassionate study of Gauguin—not just as a painter, sculptor, carver and potter, but as a human soul perpetually searching for what is always just out of reach” (Artemis Cooper, Spectator).” Excerpt from Amazon Description
Please note that the February book may be hard to get so feel free to read anything you like about Paul Gauguin and we will discuss the artist and his work.
Mark your calendars that the April meeting will be held at the Gibbes Museum of Art on our usual day and time and we will tour the Rodin exhibit together and discuss the book You Must Change Your Life after our tour.
Please RSVP to Paula Borgstedt, paulasb@comcast.net
Our February plein air event will be on Thursday, February 26th, starting at 9:00 a.m. We will meet at the CAG Gallery for a coffee social and then walk to nearby Washington Park to paint, photograph and to socialize. At 11:30, we will have lunch at a Broad Street restaurant for more visiting time. Email James Byrd to join the event. CAGmembershipdirector@gmail.com
Join us for our next meeting on Monday,March 9th, from 10:00 am–noon at Charleston County Library, downtown branch, 68 Calhoun. Bring your sketchbook and favorite drawing tools. We’ll provide the still life - and the inspiration.
Our next Book Club Meeting is Monday, March 23 at 2:30 at Charleston County Library Downtown Branch, 68 Calhoun St.
Our March book will be Mona's Eyes; A Novel by Thomas Schlesser
A New York Times Bestseller and Barnes & Noble 2025 Book of the Year, “Mona’s Eyes is a heartfelt, enlightening journey across five centuries of Western art history… Thomas Schlesser’s sensational debut novel is at once a moving book about the beauty of life and a deeply touching story about the special bond between a girl and her grandfather…Ten-year-old Mona and her beloved grandfather have only fifty-two Wednesdays to visit fifty-two works of art and commit to memory “all that is beautiful in the world” before Mona loses her sight forever. The girl’s grandfather, Henry, may not be able to stop his granddaughter from losing her sight, but he can fill the encroaching darkness with beauty…” Excerpt from Amazon Description
Call for Entry and Prospectus
Juried selected art will be available online April 18-25, 2026
Prospectus and Call for Entries
Saturday, April 25th, 6–8pm. Awards at 7pm. Art drop off and hanging is from 5–6 pm. Hobcaw Brewery496 Long Point RdMt. Pleasant, SC 29464
Potluck, please bring a dish to share. Alcohol for purchase at Hobcaw Brewery. Friends and Family welcome.
Our next Book Club Meeting is Monday , April 27 at 2:30 at the Gibbs Museum of Art.
Our April book will be You Must Change Your Life by Rachel Corbett
“In 1902, Rainer Maria Rilke—then a struggling poet in Germany—went to Paris to research and write a short book about the sculptor Auguste Rodin. The two were almost polar opposites: Rilke in his twenties, delicate and unknown; Rodin in his sixties, carnal and revered. Yet they fell into an instantaneous friendship. Transporting readers to early twentieth-century Paris, Rachel Corbett’s You Must Change Your Life is a vibrant portrait of Rilke and Rodin and their circle, revealing how deeply Rodin’s ideas about art and creativity influenced Rilke’s classic Letters to a Young Poet.” Excerpt from Amazon Description
Charleston Artist Guild
160 East Bay Street, Suite 102
Charleston, SC 29401
Guild Office Hours: Tuesday - Thursday 9am-5pm Other times by appointment
Gallery Hours: Monday - Sunday 11am- 5pm
P. O. Box 21086
Charleston, SC 29413
Phone: (843) 722-2425
Email: info@charlestonartistguild.com
