SOLOMONS, MD - The August 21stPublic Relations in Southern Maryland (PRISM) luncheon meeting will be held in the new arts building at Annmarie Garden Sculpture Park and Arts Center at noon. A panel of experts in the community arts and public relations fields will address the benefits of using the arts as a public relations vehicle. An added highlight will be the opportunity to view major works from the Olga Hirshhorn Collection, including paintings by giants of 20th-century modern art, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro. The exhibit is on loan from the Corcoran Gallery of Art. The arts center is located in Solomons, Maryland, at 13480 Dowell Road. Lunch will be provided by Four Winds Café. To RSVP, call Gretchen Heinze, 301-885-0108, or email gretchen.heinze@charlescommunityfoundation.org. You may also register on line at www.prismonline.info. Cost is $13 for members and $18 for non-members. Registration is required by noon, Aug. 19.
Panel members include Peggy Palmer, executive director of the Charles County Chesapeake Bay Floating Theatre, Inc.; Laurell Aiton, director of corporate communications at Smartronix, Inc. in California, Maryland; and Stacey Hann-Ruff, director of Annmarie Garden. Topics of discussion will include how to act strategically when gauging how companies benefit from supporting the arts, what companies gain in community image and recruiting efforts from involvement in community arts projects, and how Annmarie Garden is working in cooperation with other tourist attractions in Solomons to encourage the trend toward local “staycations.” Staycations are short road trips to destinations within four hours of home—a trend that has grown in reaction to high fuel prices and the hassles of air travel.
Arts venues such as Annmarie Garden, the River Concert Series and the Chesapeake Bay Floating Theatre are being marketed as staycation destinations—day or weekend trips no more than four hours drive from home. With gas prices at an all-time high, this marketing technique is meeting with great success.
The PRISM luncheon meeting will be held in the garden’s new 15,000-square-foot arts center. It opened in May and is designed in the shape of a boat. Its glass “bow” overlooks “A Tribute to the Oyster Tonger, a Chesapeake Waterman,” by Antonio Tobias Mendez. The “stern” overlooks modern sculptures in the wooded park. Among the center’s sculptures on display is an Alexander Calder mobile on loan from the Smithsonian, which is valued at $4 million. For more information on the arts center, call 410-326-4640 or visit www.annmariegarden.org.
PRISM is the organization of public relations and marketing professionals in Southern Maryland. It holds bi-monthly luncheon meetings and occasional workshops to foster professional development and networking opportunities for its members. The meetings rotate between Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties. For more information, or to join log on to www.prismonline.info, or contact Mike Zabko,MikeZ@somdredcross.org; call 888-276-2767.
The Calvert Independent
