2020 - Page 4

Classics series returns with expert vibraphone concert

The Classics Concert Series returns in March with a performance by Greg Jukes.

Jukes creates musical experiences that expand the boundaries of traditional performance. Jukes will bring his talents to First Presbyterian Church in Downtown Evansville on March 13 with a solo vibraphone performance.

The Classics Concert Series, is presented by the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana with help from First Presbyterian Church. Classics is a series of concerts by classical music groups performing in area churches.

All concerts in the series are free and open to the public. Seating may be limited.

Greg Jukes Photo by Andy Batt

More about Greg Jukes:

As a member of The Fourth Wall, he explores a new hybrid of the performing arts in which classically-trained instrumentalists are also dancers and actors. The Fourth Wall performs across North America to high praise at Fringe theatre festivals, encourages college students to think outside the box, and teaches grade school students about the science of sound. With Kadence Arts, Greg developed the Beat Bus, an electronic bucket drumming workshop that gets kids around New England excited about music through a mix of technology, movement, and grooves. In the Marimba Cabaret, Greg accompanies and directs singing marimbist, Brian Calhoon in evenings of songs and stories. As a narrator, Greg has introduced thousands of children and families to the wonders of orchestral music with established pieces like “Peter and the Wolf” and shows he has written around works such as Wagner’s “Ring Cycle,” Holst’s “The Planets,” and Copland’s music inspired by the American west. Greg holds a BM in Percussion Performance from the Peabody Conservatory.

Annual arts awards nominations now open

Do you know a deserving individual, group, business, project, or institution that makes significant contributions to art and culture in the region and deserves recognition for their work?

Nominations are now open for the Arts Council’s Annual Arts Awards celebration. The Arts Council honors recipients in six categories at the annual event, which is scheduled for Aug. 13.

The nomination form is available at this link. The Arts Council will accept nominations until 4 p.m. Friday, April 10. All recipients for the awards are announced at the Aug. 13 ceremony, except for the Mayor’s Art Award and the Arts Council Award, which will be announced over the summer.

The Arts Council added a new Arts Project category to give specific project initiatives recognition for advancing arts in the region.

Here are the eligible categories:

Mayor’s Art Award – This highly prestigious honor is given to a Vanderburgh County resident(s) whose contributions to the arts have had exceptional impact on the community. Consideration is given to evidence of long-standing support of and life-long interest in the arts.

Visual Arts Award – This award recognizes an exceptional candidate from the visual-arts discipline.

Performing Arts AwardThis award recognizes an exceptional candidate from the performing-arts discipline.

Young Artist Award – A candidate for this award should be a high school junior or senior in the 2020/2021 school year with exceptional talent in the literary, visual, or performing arts.

Arts Educator Award – This award recognizes an educator who directly influences and engages students of any age through the visual, literary, or performing arts.

Arts Project Award – This award recognizes an arts project that directly influences and engages students of any age through the visual, literary, or performing arts.

List of previous winners

Posted Feb. 10, 2020.

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Haynie’s Corner apartment complex wants art in its renovated building

The former Donaldson Arms apartments, 1407 Howard St. in Haynie’s Corner

Jan. 22, 2020

The former Donaldson Arms apartments in the Haynie’s Corner Arts District is looking for art to fill its hallways as part of its new renovation.

The soon-to-be renamed apartment complex located at 1407 Howard St. wants to focus on the “arts” in the arts district. The new name will have “arts” it, according to the new property managers.

A committee will commission art from one to ten artists. The committee wants visual artworks, including paintings, photography, mixed media, digital art, and glass/wood.

The entry deadline is March 1. For guidelines, information and submission details, please see the attached PDF.

The new owners will host an open house from 4-7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 30.

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Brown Bag Series returns Jan. 22 with Larry Miller

Larry Miller

The Brown Bag Performance Series is a free program offered to the community by the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana, occurring at noon on Wednesdays at the Arts Council’s Bower-Suhrheinrich Foundation Gallery at 212 Main St. in Downtown Evansville.

Larry Miller will perform various Euro Pop and American Swing songs on accordion on Jan. 22.

Brown Bag is a lunchtime series that encourages patrons to bring their food and enjoy free performances in the Arts Council’s Bower Suhrheinrich Foundation Gallery. Brown Bag performances are scheduled for every Wednesday at noon from Jan. 22 to April 29. Entry is free, but seating is limited.

Brown Bag is made possible by the support of Schultheis Insurance Agency, Inc.

The first four performances are:

Jan. 22: Larry Miller – Euro pop and American Swing on accordion
Jan. 29: The Shade Tree Players – mountain, gospel, and folk music
Feb. 5: Art the Dude – 78 records, live covers, and original material
Feb. 12: Monte Skelton, Gina Moore, and Bob Green celebrate Valentines

The Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana is located in Downtown Evansville at 212 Main St.

For more information:
Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana
212 Main St. Evansville, IN
812-303-3178
[email protected]

Evansville Poet Matthew Graham honored as Indiana’s Poet Laureate

Evansville’s own Matthew Graham is Indiana’s new Poet Laureate, the Indiana Arts Commission announced this week.

A selection committee of representatives from Indiana’s major institutions of higher education selected Graham for the honor.

During his 35 years in southern Indiana, Graham has been a respected and recognized writer, teacher, and advocate for poetry and the arts. Graham recently retired from the University of Southern Indiana, where he taught all levels of creative writing, contemporary literature, and worked with multicultural and international students in freshman composition. 

While at USI, Graham co-founded and co-directed (with Thomas Wilhelmus) The Ropewalk Writers’ Retreat, a summer program that brought national and international writers to New Harmony, Indiana for 22 years, and the Ropewalk Visiting Writers Series, which brought prominent fiction and non-fiction writers and poets to the USI campus for free public readings. 

He is the author of four poetry books, most recently “The Geography of Home.” His work has earned numerous national, regional and local honors and awards, including a Pushcart Prize, an Academy of American Poets Award, two grants from the Indiana Arts Commission, and the Artist of the Year Award from the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana. 

Graham will begin his two-year term as Indiana Poet Laureate, January 1, 2020 and will continue serving through December 31, 2021. He succeeds current Poet Laureate Adrian Matejka. For more information about the Poet Laureate, visit https://www.in.gov/arts/.

Posted: Jan. 8, 2020


Zach Evans is the Community Director for the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana. If you have news and information about arts and culture in the region, contact Zach.

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Hoosier women wanted for 2020 state art contest

State officials want to showcase the art of Hoosier women.

Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, Treasurer Kelly Mitchell and the Indiana Arts Commission announced the details for the 2020 Hoosier Women Artists contest earlier this week.

The theme of the 2020 Hoosier Women Artists competition is “a celebration of women and commemoration of the women’s suffrage centennial anniversary,” according to news release from the Indiana Arts Commission. Officials encourage artists to submit pieces related to the theme in the artists’ own interpretation.

The Hoosier Women Artists program has celebrated and further expanded the important role art plays in our communities by showcasing the work of talented women artists throughout the state since 2008.

The state will only accept framed wall art submissions. A panel including Crouch, Mitchell and peer artists coordinated by the Indiana Art Commission will judge the competition.

Winners of the Hoosier Women Artists contest will have their artwork displayed in the state Treasurer’s office and the Lt. Governor’s office at the Statehouse for one year to be enjoyed by the thousands of school groups, visitors and staff who explore the building annually.

Additionally, pieces of art will also be selected by First Lady Janet Holcomb, Secretary of State Connie Lawson, Auditor Tera Klutz, Chief Justice Loretta Rush and Superintendent of Public Instruction Jennifer McCormick to display in their respective offices and the Governor’s residence.

Submissions may be made on the Indiana Art Commission’s Online Application System from now through January 31, 2020. Applicants will need to create a username and password and select Hoosier Women Artists as the program name.

Requirements include:

• Framed wall art only
• Maximum dimensions (including frame): 42” x 60”
• Maximum weight: 60 lbs
• Must be installation ready, including frame and hanging wires
• Submit one entry per artist to be considered

A reception will be held on March 4, 2020, at the Indiana Statehouse to honor the selected artists.

For more information, contact Bridget Eckert, Director of Marketing and Communications for the Indiana Arts Commission, at [email protected].

Posted: Jan. 8, 2020


Zach Evans is the Community Director for the Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana. If you have news and information about arts and culture in the region, contact Zach.