The Shabby Tabby Café, the coffee shop that doubles as a haven for adoptable cats in Sayville, will soon hold its first-ever art exhibition: Cataphony.
The café put out a call for artists who work in a variety of mediums and themes — preferably in small postcard-sized pieces, 10 inches at maximum. While feline-focused work is preferred, all pieces will be considered provided that the imagery is non-violent, non-sexual, and suitable for all audiences. The Shabby Tabby founder, Ryan Shea, collaborated with artist and curator Meagan J. Meehan to make this show a reality.
“Art is a great way to bring people together and this is such a worthy cause,” said Meehan. “I’m an animal lover, I have three cats, and as soon as I heard about the café, I knew I wanted to organize something like this. I’m so happy that Ryan was open to the idea!”
There is no fee to submit work for consideration, but once accepted, a $35 hanging fee will be implemented. A portion of the proceeds will go toward the Golden Paw Society, which supplies the adoptable cats to the cafe. The exhibition is a juried show with prizes and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place ribbons in the categories of painting, photography, mixed media, realism, and abstraction.
As an artist herself, Meehan understood the need to make the show affordable. Thus, the $35 hanging fee will only be requested after work has been accepted for display.
“If you are invited to the show and pay the hanging fee, then you are guaranteed to have your work exhibited,” Meehan said.
The show is open to people of all ages. There will even be a section for children’s art. If a piece sells, that artist will receive 50 percent of sales and the other half will go toward the café, cats, and future shows. If it is successful, another show will premiere at the café’s Huntington location in spring of 2020.
Cataphony will enjoy its opening night on Friday, Oct. 25. All work is due to be delivered to the café (or sent via mail) so they will arrive by Oct. 21. The opening reception will also feature a raffle with wonderful cat-related prizes.
Meehan is curating this show under the umbrella of an arts organization that she recently founded called Artsy Cr8tive Initiatives. She hopes to curate similarly charitable art shows, teach a range of art and writing classes at various venues, and help establish opportunities for playwrights to present their work publicly.
“We hope this will bring joy to a lot of people,” Meehan said. “We want to give artists a chance to get their work shown, get the cafe more exposure, and enable people to interact with all the wonderful cats who are currently looking for loving homes.”
To submit artwork for consideration, email images with titles, medium, and sizes to Meagan Meehan at ArtsyCr8tiveInt@gmail.com
