“If you want this job, there’s something deeply wrong with you.” – Ronald Reagan in Five Presidents When former president Richard M. Nixon died in 1994, his funeral brought together the four living ex-presidents, along with current commander-in-chief Bill Clinton to attend the funeral. When writer Rick Cleveland, who has contributed scripts to politically themed […]
Arts Features
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Pathways to Watercolor
Pathways to Watercolor opens at the Springfield Art Association on April 5 and continues through April 27. Curated by Rod Buffington, the exhibit features highly diverse work by Sandy Meyer, Robert Mejer and Buffington – three artists applying very different techniques to create their art, but all using watercolor as their media. All are highly […]
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Reflections on a lost highway
Timed to coincide with the 17th annual International Route 66 Mother Road Festival, the Pharmacy Gallery and Art Space’s most recent group exhibit is entitled “Mother Road.” It will feature many of the group’s member artists, along with guest sculptor Darren Miller, tackling themes both automotive and nostalgic. “We thought it would be a good […]
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Mature Mob celebrates the 50s
It’s well established that the 1950s was a decade of enormous change on many fronts. It’s especially true within the narrower context of popular music, from the growth of rock ’n’ roll, rhythm and blues and country music, as well as how those musical genres influenced each other, and society in general. All these years […]
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Striking ceramics at SAA
The latest iteration of Springfield Art Association’s biennial “Shapes of Influence” exhibit stands as both an exceptional showcase for original ceramics work from across the country and an introduction to the show’s jurist – world-renowned ceramic artist Simon Levin, who settled in Springfield last November. Currently on display at the M. G. Nelson Gallery on […]
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Theatrical exorcism
Nearly a century ago, Italian playwright Luigi Pirandello prefigured postmodernism with his then-controversial 1921 play, Six Characters in Search of an Author, which continues its two-week run at the UIS Theatre this weekend. As the title suggests, the play’s content is self-referential, concerning itself as much with philosophical notions about literary creation and performance as […]
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New director plans changes for Sangamon Auditorium
Bryan Rives took over as director of Sangamon Auditorium in October 2017 and has been busy for the past six months reimagining the 40-year-old, 2,005-seat venue both physically and conceptually. His plans include a revamped approach to booking and some long-overdue renovations as well as an upcoming overall rebranding. “It’s been going fantastic,” said Rives […]
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Southtown expands its reach with an art show
This Saturday marked the fifth annual Black Sheep Art Show held at the longstanding independent music venue Black Sheep Café, usually associated more with raucous punk rock concerts than visual art. This is the third year Black Sheep Café co-owner Clare Frachey has acted as primary coordinator for the show. “This year is the most […]
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Passport to fine art
On Friday, March 9, the Springfield Art Association, along with the SAA Collective in the Hoogland Center for the Arts, combined forces with independent artist group The Pharmacy Gallery & Art Space to participate in a “Passport Gallery Tour.” Each location had an opening scheduled for that evening, and visitors were encouraged to obtain a “passport” […]
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Appetite for destruction
The concrete stairs leading to the DEMO Project house’s front entrance have been reduced to rubble. Considering that the current (and final) exhibit – entitled “demo DEMO” – is a celebration leading up to the alternative art space’s impending demolition, it might be assumed that the destroyed stairs are intended as an artistic statement. Not […]
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Hybrid vigor
This past weekend, two of Springfield’s most vibrant creative organizations joined forces for a unique two-day show. The Pharmacy Gallery and Art Space – which for seven years has hosted seasonal exhibits featuring new work by its member artists in a variety of media – and the Southtown neighborhood’s Black Sheep Café – which for […]
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Arts weekend in Springfield
This past weekend saw four separate, unique art events happening in Springfield at four different venues, each with its own flavor and focus, featuring artists working in multiple media, from this region and from elsewhere, some professional, others therapeutic. On Friday, the SAA Visual Art Center’s M.G. Nelson Family Gallery hosted “Morphology,” a collection of […]
