Area artists featured in Bloomington show
BLOOMINGTON — Bloomington’s Local Clay Potters’ Guild and the Vault Gallery have partnered to present the 25th Anniversary Show: Local Clay Gets Better with Age.
The exhibit highlights the history of the guild, featuring works by both current and former members, and boasts colorful functional wares, creative wall pieces, and free-standing sculptures.
The exhibition will run through May 26 at the Vault Gallery, 121 E 6th St. in Bloomington.
Brown County Potters Adam Egenolf, Larry Spears, Susy O’Donnell and Jim Halvorson will be a part of this event.
The Local Clay Potter’s Guild began in 1997 when potters Barb Bihler, Susan Snyder, Tena Wenta and Karen Green Stone met to discuss the first ever pottery exhibition at the John Waldron Art Center, and were met with the question, “where are all the local potters?” The organizing team split up, visiting, and photographing 28 potters working in their studios across Monroe, Brown, Owen and Greene counties to form their first exhibit, “Local Clay: Pottery by Bloomington Area Artists.”
The show was a success and dubbed a people’s favorite of 1997. This ignited the organizers’ drive to support and connect local potters with the community, officially forming the Guild and announcing their first annual show and sale at Harmony School in November of 1998.
In the years since, popularity and attendance continue to grow, moving the annual show and sale from Harmony School to St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, and now the Monroe Convention Center, where it continues each fall on the first weekend of November. All are welcome to join the 25th anniversary exhibition as it highlights the creative diversity in working with clay and within the community and get a sneak peek of what’s in store for the 26th annual show and sale this November.
Exhibits ongoing at art guild
The Brown County Art Guild, 45 S. Van Buren St., has ongoing exhibits and sales.
Floral Inspirations: Historic Collection Exhibit will be on display until June 25. Spring has arrived early at the guild, with historic artwork by celebrated revered artists lining the gallery walls.
The Guild Artist Exhibition and Fine Art Sale is ongoing until July 7, featuring a collection of fine art for display and sale. Stop in to tour the galleries and immerse yourself in the striking talent of our award-winning member artists
The Guild Artist Collective I – Special Exhibition &Sale is the first in a series featuring a select group of Guild artist members. Take time to see paintings by Lynn Dunbar Bayus, Rena Brouwer, Mark Burkett, Judy Burst, Kathryn Clark, Dixie Ferrer, Charlene George, Judith Lewis, Maureen O’Hara Pesta, Mary Riley, Tom Robinson, Jerry Smith, Arlyne Springer and Curt Stanfield.
Upcoming events at the music center
The Brown County Music Center, 200 Maple Leaf Boulevard, will welcome a variety of acts to the stage.
Country Music Hall of Famer, five-time Grammy-winner, and AMA Lifetime Achievement honoree Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives will be live in concert at the Brown County Music Center in Nashville, Ind., on Saturday, June 3.
Marty Stuart picks up where he left off on Altitude, his first new album in five years, exploring a cosmic country landscape populated by dreamers and drifters, misfits and angels, honky-tonk heroes and lonesome lovers. There’s a desert flare to the music here, a sweeping, spacious feel that conjures up wide-open horizons and endless stretches of two-lane highway, and the production is raw and cinematic to match, tipping its cap both to Bakersfield and Laurel Canyon as it balances jangle and twang in equal measure. While it would be easy for an artist as accomplished as Stuart to rest on his laurels, Altitude instead showcases the work of a searcher with an insatiable appetite for growth and reflection, one whose ambition, much like his keen wit and rich imagination, only seems to grow with each and every release.
Born and raised in Philadelphia, Miss., Stuart got his start in bluegrass legend Lester Flatts’ band at the tender age of 13, and by 21, he was working in the studio and on the road with Johnny Cash. Though Stuart built his early reputation backing up royalty, it wasn’t long before Nashville recognized him as a star in his own right, and over the course of more than 40 years as a solo artist, he would go on to release more than 20 major label albums, scoring platinum sales, hit singles, and just about every honor the industry could bestow along the way.
Twenty five years into his recording career, Kenny Wayne Shepherd continues to create genre-defining blues-infused rock n’ roll. Shepherd has built an enviable resume as an accomplished recording artist, a riveting live performer and one of the most talented and distinctive guitarists of his generation. Shepherd has sold millions of albums worldwide, received five GRAMMY® nominations, two Billboard Music Awards, as well as a pair of Orville H. Gibson awards, the Blues Foundation’s Keeping The Blues Alive award and two Blues Music awards. He’s had seven No. 1 blues albums and a string of No. 1 mainstream rock singles.
The band’s current tour stops in Nashville on June 6 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Shepherd’s sophomore album, Trouble Is…, which sent three singles to the Top 10 of the Mainstream Rock chart: “Blue on Black,” “Everything Is Broken” and “Somehow, Somewhere, Someway.”
Multi-talented comedian, actor, singer and writer Rodney Carrington has played sold-out shows around the world as one of the top 10 highest-grossing touring comedians for the past two decades. On June 9, he comes to Brown County!
A platinum-recording artist, Rodney’s recorded eight major record label comedy albums, followed by three albums on his own record label, Laughter’s Good Records. Rodney is fresh off the release of his latest album, “Get Em Out,” (released 2019) which hit #1 on iTunes. His album “Here Comes the Truth” (released 2017) climbed to #3 on the comedy charts, accruing tens of millions of streams on Spotify and even spawned a Netflix special.
Rodney broke through with his major label comedy CD debut “Hangin’ With Rodney” in 1998. The next few years saw nine more Top 10 comedy albums: Live, Morning Wood, Nutsack, Greatest Hits, King of the Mountains, El Nino Loco, C’mon Laugh You Bastards, Laughter’s Good and The Hits, all of which continue to receive radio airplay and regularly place on the national comedy charts. “Hangin’ With Rodney” and “Morning Wood” earned RIAA gold record certification, and his Greatest Hits (a double CD) album reached platinum status. Rodney also released “Make it Christmas” which features his original song “Camouflage and Christmas Lights,” a tribute to our military. Rodney also added “author” to his list of accomplishments with the release of his book “Rodney Carrington, Coming Clean” published by Hatchette Books. Over the years, he’s starred in his own TV sitcom, “Rodney”, which ran for two seasons on ABC, co-wrote and co-starred with Toby Keith in the feature film, “Beer for My Horses,” which won the Tex Ritter Award from the ACM, and starred in his own Netflix special “Here Comes The Truth.”
Rodney’s also appeared on countless other TV shows, including the ACA (American Country Awards), hosting the American Country New Year’s Eve Live show on FOX, and won “Supporting Character of the Year” from the CMT Music Video Awards for his appearance on the Trace Adkins’ music video “I Got My Game On.” Rodney is fresh off the release of his latest single, “Let Me In,” (released) October 15, 2021) and is gearing up for a year of touring in 2022!
Mature audiences only!
Tickets are available at www.browncountymusiccenter.com, www.ticketmaster.com, and at the venue box office (open Wednesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. via outdoor ticketing windows and phone sales at (812) 988-5323). The box office is now cashless, and accepts debit and credit cards including Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express. Any box office related inquiries beyond purchasing tickets for an upcoming show should be directed to [email protected].
Arts program series set at the library
Through the month of May, the Brown County Public Library, 205 Locust Lane, will be the site for a series of programs by Traditional Arts Indiana (TAI) artists. TAI works to support and champion folk and traditional arts in the lives of Hoosiers through their apprenticeship program, Indiana Heritage Fellowships and Rotating Exhibit banners which can be seen in the library.
In addition, TAI engages in special initiatives such as creative aging programs, traditional arts surveys, and public programs in state parks and festivals throughout Indiana. The library was a recipient of a grant from Traditional Arts Indiana, allowing three artists to demonstrate and share their work with Brown County.
Playhouse scheduling filling up
The Brown County Playhouse, 70 S. Van Buren St., will welcome numerous acts in its upcoming season.
On May 26-27-28-29 the world of Super Mario comes to the Brown County Playhouse. With help from Princess Peach, Mario gets ready to square off against the all-powerful Bowser to stop his plans from conquering the world.
For more information visit browncountyplayhouse.org or call the box office at 812-988-6555.
Arts exhibition, sale returns
The opening reception for the Brown County Art Gallery’s, 1 Artist Drive, 45th annual Indiana Heritage Arts Exhibition and Sale is Friday, June 9. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the exhibit opens at 6 p.m. Admission is $20 to the public. Show artists and one guest are free. Reservations are appreciated and can be made by calling or emailing the gallery at 812-988-4609 or Jeanne at [email protected]
Pick up of work not juried into the show can be arranged by calling the gallery to set up an appointment. No pickups will be allowed on opening night.
All Indiana artists are invited to join the “Painting Selma’s Garden” paint-out at the T.C. Steele State Historic Site, 4220 T.C. Steele Road, on Saturday, June 17.
Artists must pre-register with the Brown County Art Gallery. Work created that day will be offered for sale starting with a grand reception opening at 5:30 p.m.
All are welcome to support this joint project between IHA, the Brown County Art Gallery and the T.C. Steele State Historic Site. Registration is free and artists and one guest are encouraged to attend the reception for $10 each. Reservations requested.
