Logan County Arts accentuates the positive with “Sunny Side Up”

[June 16, 2021]    The June exhibit at the Lincoln Arts Institute features works from Logan County Arts members that take on a brighter lighter attitude to go along with the exhibit theme “Sunny Side Up.” The goal of the LCA is to accentuate the positive as we move forward after a very dismal year.

Around the gallery, there are many works that feature happy colors such as bright yellow. The subjects of the works also focus on living subjects such as florals and people.

Some very notable pieces catch the eye and give the viewer that sense of positivity and happiness.



Jan Villarreal’s 'Sunny Afternoon' depicts a young girl in a bright yellow dress and wide brimmed hat gazing on a garden of yellow flowers.

Next to Villarreal’s piece is a work by Sharon Shehorn Fak entitled 'Let the Sun Shine.' The work is done utilizing a golden sunflower set at the horizon of the work to symbolize the rising sun.



Bev Noble presented a blown, poured acrylic piece entitled Cuties. The work features white and yellow flowers growing in lush green grass with a swirling orange and yellow background.



Feel the Heat by Nicole Lee is one of the more unusual pieces in the room this month. Two seemingly identical pieces of art hang side by side and one first thinks maybe the goal is to observe the paintings closely to see the differences. Also attempts to split the focus of the eye are tempting. But grab a set of the three-dimensional glasses on the podium below the works and bring it all into focus and see the vision of the artist.

Artists Jason Hoffman and Bob Dunovsky took the theme quite literally with their works for June.



Hoffman constructed a sunny side up egg using polychromed wood. The piece is quite realistic with bubbles in the egg white and a slight tinge of browning from the skillet along the edge.

Dunovsky did a fascinating piece called 'Transparent Yolk.' Made of turned resin, it defies the mind how he was able to get a dark golden yolk planted in the center of a translucent egg white.

Alice Ferguson did a beautiful vase called 'Floating Sunflower.' The Raku fired Ikebana vase featured a live floral arrangement complete with a living bug for the show.

Art on display by Jeff Williams takes a slightly different direction, focusing on one person who, in her time made a huge difference in the lives of many African Americans in the Springfield Area.

William’s brightly colored portrait of Eva Carroll Monroe spoke to the positive influence of the woman in local black history. Monroe single-handedly made a home for dozens if not hundreds of black children and elderly women who were homeless in Springfield in the early 1900’s.

The children were orphans, but could not be taken to the white orphanage in town, so they lived on the streets. Monroe created and ran the Lincoln Colored Home from 1904 to 1933, providing hope and opportunity to many young black people.

The Logan County Arts and Lincoln Arts Institute hosted an artist’s reception for the June show on Thursday, June 10th. As always, the reception was well attended with guests coming in throughout the evening to enjoy the art, visit with the artists and each other, and enjoy a cool beverage.

The Lincoln Arts Institute will be open each Friday evening through the end of June for guests to come in and peruse the Sunny Side Up exhibit.
 

This Friday evening, during the Third Friday Downtown Lincoln event, the gallery will not only be open, but will offer special art activities for youth outside the building and music by Lincoln College's Denise LaGrass. Local artisans will also be set up outside the institute on McLean Street offering a variety of items for sale.

[Nila Smith]