The Rock Island Art Guild and Figge Art Museum are proud to announce the call for entries for the 43rd Rock Island Art Guild Fine Arts Exhibition will open on Sunday, Oct. 15!
Artists living within 200 miles of the Figge Art Museum working in any medium, including, sound, video, digital art, painting, sculpture, mixed media, and works on paper, are encouraged to apply.
The Rock Island Art Guild elected officers for the 2023-2025 term at their Annual Meeting on June 21, 2023: President Robert Lelonek; Vice President Elizabeth Russell; Treasurer Holly Sparkman and Secretary Sherry Maurer. The next guild meeting is scheduled for September 18, 2023.
The Rock Island Art Guild sponsors a biennial regional fine arts exhibition in conjunction with the Figge Art Museum and provides funding for art to the Rock Island-Milan School District through the Rock Island Education Foundation. The group also sponsors art awards to high school students through Quad City Arts and funds art awards for students at the college level.
Pictured LtoR: Holly Sparkman, Elizabeth Russell, Robert Lelonek, Sherry Maurer
The Opening Reception for the Rock Island Art Guild’s 42nd Fine Arts Exhibition was held on Thursday, March 3 at the Figge Art Museum. Guild President Dan Boeye announced the awards that were selected by the exhibition juror Susan Watts.
First Place $1,000
Tim Olson, The Tryptych of the Adoration at the Terrace Heights Mobile Home
Second Place $500
Larissa Kabel, Spirit House
Third Place Founders Award in honor of Guild Member Mary Lou Romero $300
Timothy Rees, The Bribe
New Media (digital art, performance, sound, video) $300
Dana Potter and Alex McKenzie, Retrack
Sculpture Award in Memory of Zeivel Harris $500
Jocelyn Chateauvert, Slice
Sally MacMillan Watercolor Award $500
Barbara Weets, Little Blue Herons
Honorable Mention $100
Aaron Lurth, The Barber
Tianquitao Chen, Seen/Unseen: The Migrant Children
Tim Olson, Tryptich of the Adoration at the Terrace Heights Mobile Home
Larassa Kabel, Spirit House
Barbara Weets, Little Blue Herons
Celebrate the opening of the Rock Island Art Guild Fine Arts Exhibition at the Figge Art Museum on Thursday, March 3 from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Susan Watts, owner and director of Olson-Larson Galleries in Des Moines, was the juror for the exhibition and chose this year’s award winners.
Awards for first and second place, the Sally MacMillan Watercolor Award, the Founder’s Award, the Zeivel Harris Sculpture Award, and the Honorable Mention Award will be presented.
There will also be a new $300 New Media Award presented to an artist working in video, sound, or digital art.
Museum visitors are also encouraged to cast a vote for the People’s Choice Award and Children’s Choice Award winners that will be announced at the conclusion of the exhibition.
The Rock Island Art Guild and Figge Art Museum are proud to announce the call for entries for the 42nd Rock Island Art Guild Fine Arts Exhibition. Artists living within 200 miles of the Figge Art Museum working in any medium, including performance, sound, video, digital art, painting, sculpture, mixed media, and works on paper, are encouraged to apply.
Longtime Rock Island Art Guild member Sherry Case Maurer was the recipient of the 2021 Harley Award for Outstanding Community Art Support. This is an annual award is bestowed during the Riverssance Festival of Fine Art and honors those who’ve positively affected the visual arts and artists in the Quad Cities during their lifetimes.
Sherry devoted her career to the arts since coming to the Quad Cities from Cedar Rapids in 1983 where she worked as the director the Augustana College Centennial Hall Gallery and Museum program from fall 1983 to spring 2013. She then served as Midcoast Fine Arts’ executive director until 2020 and guided the organization through the tumultuous last years before the organization closed Bucktown Center for the Arts and closed the books on Midcoast. Her invaluable experience and involvement in the Quad Cities Art scene has helped innumerable artists and non-profit organizations.
The award was presented at a reception during Riverssance on Saturday, Sept. 18 in Lindsay Park, Davenport. The first Harley Award was given in 1988 to artist John Bloom.
Sherry Maurer
The Harley Award
Sherry Maurer recognized with annual Riverssance Harley Award
The Rock Island Art Guild provided financial support to a mural project in downtown Rock Island located on the 300 block of 20th street in the ally next to Leo’s Shoe Repair. The mural’s inspiration came from Rock Island High School student Riley Jones, who submitted her artwork, “Black Pride” for US Representative Cheri Bustos’ annual Congressional Art Contest. Jones’ piece was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement.
A ribbon cutting was held to unveil the mural on Thursday, August 19. Riley’s mural is the first of many future mural projects in downtown Rock Island as part of a new program launched by the Quad City Arts and the Quad Cities Chamber. Read more about the mural project on the QC Chamber’s website >>
Artist Riley Jones, Dr. Reginald Lawrence (Rock Island-Milan Schools Supt.) and Principal Jeff Whitaker (Rock Island High School).
The crowd at the mural unveiling.
Ribbon cutting for the mural.
A summer program student works on her art project at the Azibuike session.
Students with their finished portfolio
The Rock Island Art Guild’s 41st Fine Arts Exhibition People’s Choice and the Children’s Choice awards were selected! Overall there were over 700 votes cast. Both winners received $50 prize for the award.
People’s Choice Award Winner: Tom Hempel, Tranquility
Children’s Choice Award Winner: Samuel Seigel, Orchid
Congratulations to both artists!
There are changes to the 41st Rock Island Art Guild Exhibition artwork pickup schedule at the Figge due to the impact of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). The Figge Art Museum is currently closed to the public until March 31.
When the Figge reopens, the 41st Rock Island Art Guild Fine Arts Exhibition at the Figge Art Museum will be extended through May 17!
Juror’s statement and other exhibition highlights >>
The Art Guild brought the voting to a close and tallied the votes for the People’s Choice Award and Children’s Choice Award. The winner of the People’s Choice award is Tom Hempel and the winner of the Children’s Choice Award is Samuel Seigel.
ARTWORK PICKUP – NEW DATE: The new pick up date for artwork is set for Monday, May 25 from 4 – 7 p.m. at the Figge Loading Dock.
Artist instructions: When you arrive at the Figge Plaza parking lot, please proceed to the door at the end of the lot marked 225. Next to the door you will see an intercom box that will put you in contact with Figge security. Push the intercom button and inform them why you are at the museum and they will give access to the loading dock. The artwork will be arranged in the loading dock alphabetically by last name, and each work will have two copies of a return receipt attached to the front of the work’s packaging.
Remove the receipts and sign one and put it in the box marked “signed RIAG receipts.” The other receipt is for your records. Once you have completed this process you are free to remove your work from the museum. There will be no Figge staff or volunteers available to assist.
If there are any questions about this process please email Figge Assistant Registrar Joshua Johnson at jjohnson@figgeartmuseum.org.
© 2023 Rock Island Art Guild
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑
