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| This original P. Buckley Moss painting is part of a quilted wall hanging that will be auctioned off at the Madison County Hospital Foundation’s breast cancer initiative fundraiser on Oct. 23. |
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| London residents Janet Amlin (left) and Phyllis Alder incorporated Moss’ hand-painted quilt square into a quilted wall hanging. |
Art collectors the world over have been inspired by the way P. Buckley Moss captures the quiet beauty of rural scenery and the plain yet deeply religious ways of the Amish and Mennonite people.
On Oct. 23, Moss will inspire others not only through her art but also her story as a breast cancer survivor. The Virginia-based artist will be the guest speaker at a fundraiser for Madison County Hospital’s breast cancer initiative.
“An Evening with P. Buckley Moss” will start at 6:15 p.m. at the Madison County Senior Center, 280 W. High St., London. Dinner will be served at 7, and a live auction featuring Moss’ artwork and other items will follow.
Tickets are $40 per person and include dinner and a Moss print titled “God’s Grace.” Seating is limited to 150 people. For tickets, call the hospital foundation office at 740-845-7050.
Moss’ visit to London came about through the artist’s connection to Mona Flax, the hospital foundation’s executive director. Flax is a longtime friend of the owners of Canada Goose Gallery, a gallery in Waynesville, Ohio, that deals exclusively in Moss’ work.
By helping her friends with shows, Flax became acquainted with Moss. Flax and Moss also endured breast cancer at about the same time, in the early 1990s.
“At the time, I was setting up a breast cancer support group and was helping to establish a breast care center at the Dayton hospital where I worked. Part of that also included starting a fund for women who couldn’t afford care,” Flax said.
Canada Goose Gallery and Moss jumped in to help by donating artwork for fundraisers and making special appearances.
“When she heard I was doing another breast care initiative in London, she said, ‘Let’s go help again,’ ” Flax said.
Moss’ help is coming in many forms, all of which give people in the community an opportunity to purchase or win some of the world renowned artist’s work.
• Special Edition Print
Moss has released 1,000 signed and numbered prints of a painting she created in 1978 of three girls carrying a ladder. Until now, the image has never been reproduced. Renamed “One Step Closer” in honor of Madison County Hospital’s breast cancer initiative, the image now includes a small pink ribbon, the symbol of breast cancer, on a pail carried by one of the girls.
From now through Oct. 25, Canada Goose Gallery will donate 20 percent of the proceeds from the sale of the print to the hospital’s breast cancer initiative. The cost is $55. Orders can be placed through the gallery by calling 1-877-LUV-MOSS or the hospital at 740-845-7050.
• Raffle
One lucky winner will walk away with a framed, signed and numbered print by Moss worth $700. Titled “Baylor’s Mill,” the large print depicts a country scene.
Raffle tickets are $5 each or $25 for a book of six. Tickets can be purchased at the fundraising dinner or by calling the hospital foundation office. The drawing will be held at the dinner, though entrants do not need to be present to win.
Other raffle prizes include a $300 gas card, an overnight getaway to a bed and breakfast in Waynesville, a P. Buckley Moss museum book and framed print, and a set of Moss-illustrated children’s books.
• Pink Prize Packages
Everyone who buys a ticket to the din-ner will have the chance to buy a gift bag for $25 at the door. All bags will hold prizes worth $25, but one will hold something more—a certificate to be redeemed for an original framed watercolor by Moss worth $1,100. The painting depicts a fledgling bird, one of Moss’ trademark subjects.
• Live Auction
Another opportunity to acquire a Moss original will come during the live auction at the dinner.
Moss has painted a large quilt square, at the center of which are two Amish girls surrounded by a border sprinkled with pink ribbons. Londonite Phyllis Alder in-corporated the square into a large wall hanging, which Janet Amlin, also of Lon-don, custom machine quilted.
The wall hanging will be up for bid, as will a Holmes County getaway, a hand-made Amish quilt, a framed version of the Moss print “One Step Closer,” and unique Moss decorated items including a painted birdhouse and a painted metal star.
“An Evening with P. Buckley Moss” coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness Month and is the Hospital Foundation’s major 2008 fundraiser for the breast cancer initiative. To date, the initiative has raised over $1 million toward its $2 million goal.
