The Buchanan Center for the Arts will launch its Artist in Residence Program on May 1, an initiative that will bring artists to the community to create public art and educational opportunities.
The public is invited to a celebration of the arts from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, May 15, at Tin Cup, 226 S. Main Street. At the May 15 event, sponsored by Tin Cup, the public can meet the artists, Rebecca Quick and Kendall Thompson, and learn more about the Tin Cup mural and other summer events the Buchanan Center for the Arts has planned for the community. Music will be provided by the fabulous No Reason.
Quick, who grew up in Moline, Illinois, is a working artist who will graduate from Monmouth College in 2021 with degrees in art and mathematics. She has a background in public art working with Metro Arts Summer Mural Projects in the Quad Cities and was the 2020 recipient of the college’s Lobie Stone Visual Arts Scholarship.
“This opportunity gives me a chance to create something bigger than me, both relating to its physical size and its legacy,” Quick said. “Art is something that livens up a community and creates a space to flourish. This mural will hopefully provide the community with something that gives them a sense of pride and connects everyone to the town in a meaningful way.”
Thompson is a 2020 Western Illinois University graduate with a master of arts in museum studies and a 2017 Monmouth College graduate with a bachelor of arts in art. He has worked at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa, Galesburg Civic Art Center in Galesburg, Illinois, and has a background in arts education.
Thompson, who grew up in Galesburg, said the residency “is a great opportunity for me to give back to a community that I have grown to love.”
“I hope to play my part in creating a space that will connect the variety of smaller communities which exist in and around the area,” Thompson said. “Through my own experiences, I have learned a lot about the history of the city and the people who make it what it is today.
“Monmouth includes migrant and immigrant communities, the college community and Warren County schools, as well as local farmers, laborers, musicians, artists, and small business owners. These people and their stories make Monmouth, Monmouth. By collaborating with residents from a variety of backgrounds, I hope that we can create a work of art that is representative of all of these people as well as our ability to come together as one community.”
Quick and Thompson were selected from a strong pool of applicants, according to BCA Executive Director Kristyne Gilbert.
“The Artist in Residence Program is a unique opportunity for collaboration with area businesses and nonprofits, and adds to the aesthetics of our downtown,” Gilbert said. “Public art creates a destination spot to capture a photo at the new mural on the north side of the Tin Cup building. We look forward to bringing new artists and collaborative projects to the Monmouth community each year.”
The Buchanan Center for the Arts Artist in Residence Program was made possible through gifts and grants from Blick Art Materials, the Galesburg Community Foundation, Midwest Bank, Smithfield Foods, Warren County United Way and individual donations.
Founded in 1989, the Buchanan Center for the Arts was established through the estate of Grace Buchanan and is the region’s largest gallery space and special event venue offering fine arts and performance opportunities.
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