Symphony in the Flint Hills will host a grand re-opening of its offices, retail store and gallery in Cottonwood Falls from 12:30 to 4:00 p.m. on April 18. Among the exciting changes is the opening of a new gallery and event space north of the retail and administrative offices. The gallery will present more than five solo and group exhibitions of unique art and photography each year between April and December, with hours from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. seven days a week.
The Symphony’s annual Prairie Art Exhibition, which features 90 selected works from artists and photographers from four states, including many Chase County artists, will open on April 18. The pieces pay tribute to the uniquely fascinating landscape of the tallgrass prairie and reflect this year’s theme Grasslands of the World.
Winning entries of this show will be unveiled at the April 18 event. The paintings were juried by Elizabeth G. Seaton, PhD, curator at the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art in Manhattan. National Geographic photographer Jim Richardson juried the photography. Art and photography selected for the exhibition will be available for sale at a silent auction at the Symphony in the Flint Hills Tenth Anniversary Signature Event on June 13. Prints of the winning painting will be available at the gallery beginning April 18.
A solo exhibition featuring the work of Zak Barnes will open in June. Barnes, who now lives in Lawrence, has strong ties to Chase County. The show will include new plein air works as well as a selection of prairie-inspired abstract paintings. Zak Barnes’s work will be in the Symphony’s gallery until early August.
Kevin Mullins, a Wichita painter and printmaker famous for his subtlety, color and repetition, will show hundreds of prints beginning August 8. His patterns evolve into fluency that carries viewers through time and hones a clear focus.
Kevin Mullins will be followed by all the artists that are participating in the Chase County Plein Air Festival starting on September 19 and culminating in their joint show starting September 27. This exhibition will create a portrait of the prairie and more specifically of Chase County’s prairie locations. Designated sites will include Flying W Ranch, other private ranches, and the town of Matfield Green. More than 50 Midwest plein air artists are expected to participate in the festival, which ends in an auction and sales show in the Symphony in the Flint Hills Gallery until late November.
Most opening dates at the Symphony in the Flint Hills Gallery will coincide with opening receptions in the two other contemporary art galleries in Chase County, The Gallery at Pioneer Bluffs and The Bank art space in Matfield Green. The future opening Saturdays in Cottonwood Falls and Matfield Green promise to be an exciting attraction for visitors to Chase County.
The gallery will also be available for special events, including receptions, reunions and parties.
###
For more information:
Symphony in the Flint Hills Gallery (620) 273-8955
The Gallery at Pioneer Bluffs (620) 753-3452 / (620) 753-3484
The Bank art space (620) 953-2035 / (620) 753-3451