Arts notes

Lawrence artist wins People’s Choice Award

Hays — Lawrence painter Joe Ray Kelley has won a People’s Choice Award for his entry in “Christ Glorified!” at a Christian art exhibition at The Studio Gallery in Hays.

His painting, “Christ Glorified by Mary,” portrays the Madonna in a stained glass setting.

The exhibition will be on view at the gallery, 900 Main St., Hays, through May 31.

The exhibit includes artists from across the country, as well as entries from Japan and Israel.

Kelley paints at his home studio at 4717 Harvard Road in Lawrence. He belongs to the National Oil and Acrylic Painter’s Society, the National Acrylic Painters Assn., the Kansas City Artists Coalition, and the Greater Kansas City Artists Assn. His work can be seen at the Northland Exposure Artist Gallery in Parkville, Mo., and his Web site, www.joesfineart.com.

Residents asked to recall past city celebrations

Memories of past Lawrence celebrations will be the focus of a session at Watkins Community Museum of History, 1047 Mass., at 2 p.m. Wednesday.

The memory session will include a short sharing of experiences of past celebrations. Photos, letters and journals about other celebrations — like the U.S. Army’s Birthday Parade in 1975, the Wagon Train Parade in 1976 during the country’s bicentennial festivities and the parade in 1979 for the dedication of the Douglas County Courthouse bell — would be welcome contributions.

Attendees are encouraged to bring artifacts. Certain items, with the owner’s permission, may be photographed and used by the Sesquicentennial Committee.

Guided tour planned of downtown sculptures

A brand new batch of sculptures are the latest fixtures on the downtown streets of the City of the Arts.

Parks and Recreation officials last week installed the eight pieces that are in year’s Outdoor Downtown Sculpture Exhibition. The 16th annual yearlong show features one Lawrence artist and others from across the country.

The exhibition’s juror, Jan Schall, will lead a guided tour of the exhibition at 4 p.m. June 7, beginning at the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 N.H. Schall is the Sanders Sosland Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City, Mo.

Here’s a look at the sculptures featured in this year’s exhibition:

  • “Digitial Overload” (above) by Myles Schachter, Lawrence.
  • “Mystic Tower” by Donald W. Horstman, Fenton, Mo.
  • “Ferro Sphere #5” by Donald L. Dynneson, Seward, Neb.
  • “Falling Stars” by Tom Newport, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
  • “Fulcrum of the Sun” by Carl R. Billingsley, Ayden, N.C.
  • “Quest” by Andrew L. Arvanetes, Euless, Texas.
  • “And you …” by Chris Wubbona, Waterloo, Iowa.
  • “Field Conductor” by Bounnak Thammavong, Cedar Falls, Iowa.