o matter what style of art appeals to you, chances are there is something to please the eye during the South Arkansas Arts Center’s highly anticipated annual exhibition, 2018 Membership Showcase, currently on display in the Merkle and Lobby Galleries through Nov. 30.
An artist’s reception will be hosted from 6-7:30 p.m. Saturday. Gallery hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday. The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public.
The members of SAAC have filled the galleries with works created in assemblage, acrylic, charcoal, glasswork, graphite, oil, pastel, photography, sculpture and watercolor. Every year the exhibition brings the talent of SAAC’s members to the forefront and allows them to display and sell their work in a non-competitive environment.
The showcase is a great time to acquire a work of art from one of the 42 local artists in the exhibit. Hosted annually, the exhibition allows members a chance to express their “inner-self” through the act of creation. Members have either created new work or selected favorite pieces from their body of work created over the years.
“I’m always excited to see local artists branching out to make new connections in order to learn, grow and share experiences, methods and encouragement,” said Christy Stone, a member of the Visual Arts Committee. “The artists in our community are a close knit bunch that support fellow artists rather than treating them as competition. I am completely inspired by the encouragement and sense of community I get by being a part of SAAC’s artist group.”
Artists entered in this year’s Membership Showcase are: Susan Barnes, Gay Bechtelheimer, Sandy Bennett, Becky Berzas-Reed, Cherie Bright, Daisy Bright, Sonja Butler, Kelly Campbell, Michelle Clark, Ben Clary, Joan Coffey, Dicky Crayon, Ann Downs, Brenda Fisk and Tommy Griffin. Also entered are Gary Hall, Sylvia Henley, Rhonda Hicks, Nancy Rae Kinard, Helene Lambert, Pat Lowery, Rochelle McMahen, Sarah E. Merkle, Heidi Morgan, Joseph Nixon, Ann Palculict, Charlotte Stephan Parker, Mandy Primm, Donald Putman, Lee Scroggins, Bobbi Shepherd, Spencer G. Singleton, Julia Slaughter, Cindy Snelson, Doug Stanton, Lisa Burton Tarver, Marla Tomlinson, Ann Trimble, Dinah Van Hook, Paul Waschka, Ann Wilson, Betty Wilson and Ramona Wood.
For more information, call the SAAC office or visit saac-arts.org. SAAC is located at 110 E. Fifth St., El Dorado.