For the past two years, artists have found a welcome retreat here in Northwest Arkansas and Northeast Oklahoma as word spreads about the prestigious Illinois River Salon art exhibition, an event resulting from a partnership between Illinois River Watershed Partnership and Heart of America Artists’ Association. These participating artists come from all over Arkansas and neighboring states like Missouri, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Illinois, all in an effort to record their artistic impression of the Illinois River Watershed. For those of us that call this region home, we are grateful because their efforts help us be proud and remind us of the beauty we have here. The exhibition is made possible thanks to a grant from the Windgate Foundation.
The night of October 2nd was the opening reception at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art for the 2014 Illinois River Salon, featuring 28 selections from the larger show of over 75 artworks (viewable digitally here). Judge and Curator of Crystal Bridges, Manuela Well-Off-Man, spent considerable time evaluating the artworks for a total of 11 awards. We are pleased to announce this year’s winners:
Best of Show and $2,500 went to Jason Sacran of Magazine, Arkansas, for his painting “Fog, Mist & Rain”.
Jason Sacran, “Fog, Mist and Rain”, 20×24, Oil, $3,600
Merit Awards (or Second Place Awards) of $1,000 each, went to five individuals: David Andrus of Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Becky Christenson of Bentonville, Arkansas; Charles Peer of Siloam Springs, Arkansas; Becky Porter of Bella Vista, Arkansas; and Michele Wells of St. Louis, Missouri.
David Andrus, “River Valley Farm Pond”, 11×14, Oil, $500
Becky Christenson, “Freshly Cut”, 16×20, Oil, $1,600
Charles Peer, “Silent Drama”, 30×24, Soft Pastel, $1,600
Becky Porter, “Summer Morning Light”, 18×24, Oil, SOLD
Michele Wells, “Morning Glory”, 12×16, Soft Pastel, $600
Honorable Mentions went to five individuals: Gil Adams of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Ken Chapin of Kansas City, Missouri; Nancy Harkins of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Julie Gowing Hayes of Bella Vista, Arkansas; and Diane Stinebaugh of Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Gil Adams, “Siloam Springs Morning”, 12×12, Oil, $875
Ken Chapin, “From His Upper Chambers”, 22×28, Oil, $1,400
Nancy Harkins, “Lotus and Lily Pads”, 12×14, Watercolor, $550
Julie Gowing Hayes, “Party Barge”, 20×30, Oil, SOLD
Diane Stinebaugh, “Favorite Walk”, 18×23, Charcoal and Conte, $395
The whole show of over 75 artworks will be on display at the Illinois River Watershed Partnership Learning Center in Cave Springs, Arkansas till November 14th and are viewable on weekdays from 9am till 4pm. There will be a public reception for the paintings that are still unsold at the same location on November 8th from 10am-4pm.
To inquire about purchasing any of these, contact Todd at (479) 685-0294.
We are thankful for all of the tremendous effort that went into making the artworks, and we hope you’ll get a chance to view the show in Cave Springs or online HERE.