Poets, Painters, & Performers - A Magical Evening

The evening of Wednesday, August 29th, was one of magical feeling.  Poets read, singers sang, and artists explained.  If one came early enough to get a seat in the front row, they would be shocked to turn around and see the gallery packed to the brim.  Patrons were at standing room only, rows deep, some congregated around the wine, some backed up against the storefront windows.  We laughed, we cried, we clapped for one another, congratulated one another, and were filled with love.  Each artist, through their own particular art forms, were not only given the chance to display their personal talents and strengths, but in the spirit of the Year of Compassion (www.prairiecompassion.org) communicated with one another through the arts.  A painting was created from poetry, a poem created from an original musical composition, and so on and so on.  The inspired caused inspiration and the cycle seemed to build on itself throughout the evening, leaving everyone who walked out the door a the end of the event in cyclical state of inspiration and hope.  The next morning, the gallery space was still ripe with energy from the evening before, left in an afterglow of discarded wine glasses and haphazardly placed chairs.

President of Springfield Poets & Writers Anita Stienstra reads her piece "Into the Cathedral" inspired by Mary Ellen Strack's oil painting "Into the Allerton."  A connection of understanding was built between the two, surely from similarly expressed experiences.  Wet eyes and hugs silenced the room.

Musician Josie Lowder impresses the crowd with her original composition "Here to Love."  Her rich voice filled the space and enveloped us all in her talents.  Joanna Beth Tweedy created the poem "Here to Love" based on Josie's composition.

Hugh Moore shared his original musical composition "White Squirrels" which inspired the three part poem "White Squirrel Variations in Music, Myth, and Haiku" by Lola Lucas.  With the performances came a lot of "Hugh-Moore (humor)"!

UIS Creative Writing Professor Meagan Cass shared her short fiction piece "Horse Head with Comb" inspired by Teri Zucksworth's plaster sculpture "Domino".  The story had the audience bursting into belly laughter, and then, by the end of the story, humbled by the harshness of life this horse head would have prefered to witness.  The artist spent four months making the mold for this very realistic sculpture.

Shawna Mayer shared her poem "What We Cannot Ask" which inspired the identically titled mixed media piece by artist Lynn Hotes.  Lynn researched the poems references thoroughly to create a work rich with meaning.  By the end of the evening, the artist had gifted her piece to the talented writer.

Thank you to the members of the Springfield Poets & Writers, members of the Prairie Art Alliance, and all contributing musicians for creating such a special evening inside the walls of Prairie Art Alliance Gallery II.  To view past poems and paintings, please visit the Poets & Painters blog, administered by the Springfield Poets & Writers: http://springfieldpoetsandpainters.blogspot.com/.  To view more photos of the evening please visit the Prairie Art Alliance Gallery II Facebook Fanpage: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Prairie-Art-Alliance-Gallery-II/174125409323457