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Lorri Lee Miller to open Main Street Art Center in Mount Pleasant

Robert G. Mull 2 months ago

When most other people are whining and crying about the pandemic, economy and lack of help and goods, Lorri Lee Miller is taking a bold step and opening a new business in Mount Pleasant — Main Street Art Center. An artist herself, she wondered why Mount Pleasant didn’t have an art center like all the other surrounding communities—Burlington, Fort Madison, Fairfield and Washington.

Aware of the substantial artist community within Mount Pleasant, and wanting a place to display her own art without having to travel to another town, she looked for an available space. Voila, 106 S. Main St., beside Brown’s Shoe Fit was available.

A 2,000 square feet building with a window on Main Street, it is ideal for what she wants to establish: a non-profit art center that will feature an art store, gallery, classroom and studio for artists who need a place to work. The Main Street

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Mattoon Street Arts Festival returns with 90 exhibitors, vendors and musicians

Robert G. Mull 3 months ago

The longest-running arts festival in the Pioneer Valley is back.

Cancelled last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 48th annual Mattoon Street Arts Festival will return on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“We may not be as big as we normally have been, but currently we are at 90% capacity with over 90 exhibitors, food vendors and strolling musicians. And we have attracted the attention of about 20 new exhibitors this year,” said Robert McCarroll, a member of the Mattoon Street Historic Preservation Society, sponsors of the event.

Held on Mattoon Street in Springfield with its Victorian rowhouses, artists and crafters will be selling their creations in a variety of categories including painting and printmaking, photography, jewelry, wood, metal, ceramics, glass, fibers, and mixed media.

“For the first time in a long while we will have someone who lives on Mattoon Street exhibiting at

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Twin Cleveland Museum of Art shows celebrate New York through Ashcan School prints, street photography

Robert G. Mull 3 months ago

CLEVELAND, Ohio — When it chooses topics for exhibitions, the Cleveland Museum of Art spreads its attention around the globe, from Europe and the Middle East to Asia, Africa, and Latin America. At the moment, however, it’s in a New York state of mind.

Earlier this year, it displayed a selection from Bruce Davidson’s poignant “Brooklyn Gang’’ photos that documented the lives of rebellious white ethnic teens in the New York City borough during the 1950s.

Last month, the museum followed up with two new, Big Apple-centric shows.

Beautifully organized, the exhibitions focus on 71 prints by the early 20th century Ashcan School realists, and on 44 examples of mid-century street photography — pictures snapped without the subject’s knowledge.

Emily Peters, the curator of prints and drawings, formulated “Ashcan School Prints and the American City, 1900-1940,’’ which focuses heavily on New York subjects. Photography Curator Barbara

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Boulder Fine Art Street Festival revival brings splash of color to 29th Street Saturday

Robert G. Mull 4 months ago

Aug. 1—It’s been about 10 years since artists from across the country have rounded up their handmade wares to display at the Boulder Fine Art Street Festival. After its lengthy absence, the two-day festival was revived this year.

The Boulder Fine Art Festival kicked off Saturday and will continue from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday at 1710 29th St. The festival is free and open to the public to attend, featuring a wide selection of juried art, meaning artist’s work has to be approved by a festival jury to be accepted. The show is put on by Howard Alan Events and American Craft Endeavors, which hosts about 90 shows a year.

Elaine Laurent, one of the festival’s show directors, said show organizers saw an opportunity this year to help artists and businesses at the 29th Street Mall and were eager to bring the event back to life. Saturday’s event

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