Bourbon County Arts Council 28th Annual Fine Arts Exhibit
The Bourbon County Arts Council will present their 28th Annual Fine Arts Exhibit, March 5th through 7th, at the Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center, on the Campus of Fort Scott Community College.
“The mission of the Bourbon County Arts Council is to foster, promote and increase the knowledge, appreciation and practice of the arts in our community,” said Deb Halsey, who is a board member and also co-chairing the Fine Arts Exhibit along with President Deb Anderson.
The Exhibit will be open to the public on Thursday and Friday, March 5th and 6th, from 12:00 pm to 7:00pm, and on Saturday, March 7th, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. A Reception will be held on Thursday evening from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm, to honor this year’s Juror and artists; the public is invited to attend and enjoy the opportunity to meet and visit with them about the art. (Note: In previous years, the reception was held on Wednesday evenings. The change to Thursday was made in hopes of allowing a greater number of community members to attend.) The Bourbon County Arts Council will host the Chamber Coffee at 8:00am on Thursday, March 5th.
Artists will have their work on display and for sale in this multi-media exhibit, with categories including Ceramics, Drawing & Graphics, Fiber Arts, Glass, Jewelry, Mixed Media, Painting (oil and acrylic), Pastels, Photography,Printmaking, Sculpture, and Watercolor. A “themed” category was added to the Exhibit, with this year’s theme being “My Hometown”. An artist may create a piece in any of the above catogories, in relation to the theme. In recent years, artists from Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Vancouver, British Columbia have participated in this show. This year, 55 artists have contributed 148 pieces of art. Local artists presenting at this year’s Exhibit include Elaine Buerge, Cheyanne Carpenter, Steve Floyd, Chance Fuhrman, Jane Gaines, Barbara Gibson, Deb Halsey, Bobbi Kemna, Cindy Lipe, Paul Milks, Connie Neil, Jezeriah Simpson, Bri Stokes,and Jean Strader.
James Oliver will serve as Juror for this year’s Exhibit. He holds his BFA from Denison University in Granville, OH, his MA from Easten Illinois University in Charleston, IL, and his MFA from Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. Mr. Oliver has acted as Pittsburg State University Assistant Professor of Painting and Drawing since 2001, and was Assistant Professor of Painting and Drawing at Denison University from 1997 t0 2001. James has taught courses at Pittsburg State University in Designed World, Intro to Art Studio, Drawing, Perspective Drawing, Color Theory and Application, Painting, Structural Anatomy and Figure Drawing, Special Topics of Plein Aire Painting, Portrait Painting and iPad for the Artist, and Graduate Drawing. He has participated in numerous Group Exhibitions, and his works have been featured in Solo Exhibitions in Deleware, Illinois, Missouri, New York, and Oklahoma. Mr. Oliver has affiliation to the College Arts Association, the Popular Culture/American Culture Association, and FATE(Foundation in Art:Theory and Education. Publications include American Art Collector and New American Paintings.
The Danny and Willa Ellis Family Fine Arts Center is located at 1208 Horton St., in Fort Scott, Kansas. There is no admission charge for this event, and all are encouraged to come and enjoy a wonderful collection of original artwork.
Members pictured are Brian Crites Kyle Crites, Randy Maple, Billy Beckman , Roger Bland, Dr Larry Buck, Terri Louk, Mike Church. Not pictured is our soundman, Jeff Deal.
A band of friends from the Iola area will perform in Fort Scott at the Fort Scott Community College Round Room, Bailey Hall, on Friday, January 31 at 7 pm.
The public is welcome to come to listen to some old and newer country, rock, along with bluegrass and gospel music.
Special guests are the Matt Kloepfer family.
The Matt Kloepfer family. Submitted photo.
The band “Takin’ Notes” has played downtown several times and is looking forward to sharing their talents with you.
These bands have something enjoyable for everyone.
Admission is free so come on over and have a great evening with us!
Grab a “cuppa coffee” and a cookie at Common Grounds Coffee Shop and prepare to celebrate Elvis Presley’s birthday on Wednesday, Jan. 8.
A group of area musicians are playing in honor of Presley at Common Ground Coffee Shop, 116 S. Main, at 7:00 p.m.
The “Sounds of Graceland” concert will feature a variety of songs recorded by the young man born in Tupelo, Mississippi, on January 8, 1935.
Vernon and Gladys Presley and their 13-year-old son Elvis moved to
Memphis, Tennessee in 1948, and the rest is history.
Featured on vocals are Danny Brown, Bruce Jameson and his son Colton, and more. Rob Hunt and Carolyn Tucker on keyboards, Paul Studyvin and Robert Uhler on drums, guitarist Jerry Bahr, and Randy Brasuell on bass. Sound will be provided by Dave Oas.
The evening will conclude with celebrating the gospel side of Elvis as
vocalists and musicians perform some of his most-popular sacred
recordings.
The free concert is sponsored by the Fort Scott Chamber of Commerce.
The Liberty Theater is the venue of the HPA Christmas Dinner Theatre and fundraiser. Pictured is a group of diners at a previous Liberty Theater function.
The First Annual Bourbon County Historial Preservation Association Christmas Dinner Theatre and Fundraiser Auction will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. at the Liberty Theater in downtown Fort Scott.
The Fort Scott Community College Drama Department is the entertainment for the dinner theater.
Tickets are available at the Chamber of Commerce office for $25.
“Christmas Unplugged” is the name of the play the FSCC Drama Department is performing, under the direction of Allen Twitchell.
Several local actors are featured.
Annabelle Moore of Lyndon, Isabella Loyd of Fort Scott, Abby Jazmin Havens of Pittsburg, Colton Hofer of Fort Scott, Abby Sweat of Pleasanton, Anthony Oneri of Gardner, and Allen Twitchell of Fort Scott.
Music will be provided by the Apostolic Christian Church Choir under the direction of Alita Banwart with Jerry Bahr on guitar.
Twitchell explains the storyline: “A grandfather walks into the living room and encounters all his grandkids riveted to their cell phones, oblivious to the world around them.”
“He demands their participation in an old-fashioned Christmas tradition by reading ‘The Night Before Christmas.’ After the story is read, a knock on the door reveals a group of carolers from the past. They sing for the family, who decides to start a new Christmas Eve eve tradition.”
The dinner theatre takes the annual HPA fundraiser in a different direction.
“We didn’t have Homes for the Holidays last year, and decided to change directions with our Christmas program,” Bourbon County Historical Association President Brian Allen said. ” We will be selling a few items from our extensive collection at the event. The items to be auctioned are still being determined. ”
“Enjoy some food, drink and entertainment from the FSCC Drama Department. Doors open at 6:00 pm program starts at 7:00 and concludes with a special auction you won’t want to miss,” Allen said.
Backwoods Holiday Shopping event is Saturday Dec. 7.
Admission is a free-will donation of non-perishable food for Uniontown First Missionary Baptist Church, whose Pastor is Marty Dewitt.
The event host is Perry’s Pork Rinds LLC.
Rosie’s Cabin is the venue, located at 563 Maple Road Uniontown, just 20 minutes from downtown Fort Scott.
Vendors will be selling from 9 am-4 pm on Dec. 7.
Free photos will be taken by Erika George Photography from 10 a.m. to noon.
Wine sales/samples will be from noon-4 p.m.
Online Give Away/Door Prizes- prize pick up during the event from 9-1.
The paid sponsors are:Kelly Hall – Tupperware, Misty Miles- Smart Coffee, (Sales Partners) Danny Becker and Angela Foust – Country Roads Wood Specialties and Angela’s Hometown Boutique.
Happy Birthday, Kansas! Student Photo Contest Now Accepting Entries
Contest deadline is December 20, 2019
TOPEKA, KS—Third-grader Katherine Bartel of Wichita photographed James in the Pasture last year. Her photo showed a boy peering over a fence while cattle operations were in progress, the vivid blue sky with puffy clouds overhead. She received first place in her category in the Happy Birthday, Kansas! Student Photo Contest and won an iPad for her work. Katherine’s was one of 402 contest entries and she was among 24 students to receive awards.
Students are once again invited to enter their photographs in the Happy Birthday, Kansas! photo contest, and will be eligible for special prizes. This year’s theme is Going to School in Kansas. First place winners in each grade from first to 12th will receive iPads; second place awards in each grade are Kindles. These photographs from students across the state contribute to the pictorial history of Kansas. They will be preserved by the Kansas Historical Society.
W. Halbe was an early 20th century student photographer who made a similar impact in his community. With a small box camera, the 15-year-old captured photos of Dorrance in Russell County and left a remarkable history, that continues to be preserved at the Kansas Historical Society. Today’s young photographers can make similar contributions by photographing people and places in their lives.
The contest deadline, for first through 12th grade students, is 5 p.m. Friday, December 20, 2019. Winners will be announced as part of the state’s 159th birthday commemoration at the Kansas State Capitol at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, January 29, 2020. Find more information and a complete list of contest rules at happybirthdayks.org.
The contest is sponsored by the Kansas legislative spouses in conjunction with the Kansas Historical Society.
Find photographs from the Halbe collection online in Kansas Memory:
Georgia Brown of Sunshine Boutique visits with customers during Fall Extravaganza in a prior year.
FREE childcare and an evening of shopping are offered Nov. 25.
The 10th Annual Fall Extravaganza is next Monday from 5-8 p.m. in the Fort Scott Middle School gym and commons areas. The school is located at 1105 E. 12th Street. The childcare is provided by Fort Scott High School PRIDE.
Don’t miss this opportunity to check out local crafters and businesses.
Homemade articles of cloth and wood, jewelry, locally made food items and other local small business offerings can be found at the event.
With over 60 vendors, there should be something for everyone on the holiday gift list.
There will be a full meal for sale from the 8th-grade Washington Workshop students, and chances to win raffle prizes.
There will also be six $25 cash prize giveaways:
1) Every adult who comes to our event will be allowed to add a middle school child’s name into a drawing. At the end of the night, two student names will be drawn and those students will win $25 cash!
2) Every USD 234 employee who attends will have a chance to be entered into a drawing. At the end of the night, four names will be drawn and those employees will win $25 cash!
The event is sponsored by the FSMS VIPs, which is the parent group at the middle school.
“This is one of about five fundraisers we do every year to raise money for our school,” Stephanie George, coordinator for the event and a middle school teacher. “Teachers and students benefit. Every year we look at the needs of them both and decide what to do with the money.”
” In past years, we have purchased laptops and iPads for student and teacher use, we have given money to the science teachers for lab supplies and to the music teachers for sheet music and instruments, and we give money each year to the teachers to purchase school supplies at the start of the year. We also pay for software that the district wasn’t able to afford when budgets were cut years ago: we have paid for Accelerated Reader (a reading supplement) for over five years now and we pay for video subscriptions that teachers want like Flocabulary and BrainPop.”
“The first year of our event was 2009,” George said. “We had 29 vendors and we held it all in our commons. By year 3, we had so many vendors we had to expand into our gym. This year we have 69 spots sold, plus a few booths manned by middle school student groups (Washington Workshop and the 8th Grade Technology Class), which is bigger than last year by one vendor.”
Approximately 400 people from the community come to shop during the event each year, she said.
