Work by Oak Street Art printmaker Luca Cruzat is featured in two new exhibits beginning in August 2020.

First is a group show at the Sager Braudis Gallery, 1025 E. Walnut St. in Columbia , MO. Cruzat is joined by Erica Iman, Casey Klein, Benjamin Parks, and Joel Sager for this exhibit sponsored by an anonymous donor. Artist statements and images are available at https://sagerbraudisgallery.com/2020-august-exhibit. The online reception is August 7, and the gallery is open by appointment (email [email protected] or phone 573.442.4831). See the exhibit through August 29. See below for a few of the pieces Cruzat has on display.

Second, Luca is part of the Fiber Arts Exhibit at the Ella Elizabeth Hise Museum of Regional Art at Southeastern Illinois College, running from August 18 through November 21, 2020. As noted in this Harrisburg Daily Register story, "Artists from across the region brought in quilts, vessels, tapestries and other fine art created with natural or synthetic fibers and other components to be put on display in the museum." Museum hours are Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the first Sunday of the month from 1 to 4 p.m., or by appointment. For more information contact 618-252-5400 ext. 2599, email [email protected] or visit www.sic.edu/hisemuseum. Masks are required in the museum.

Congratulations, Luca! For more about Cruzat and her work, see her Oak Street Art page here or her website here.

Beginning March 7, Oak Street Art printmaker Luca Cruzat has all-new work on display at the General John A. Logan Museum at 1613 Edith Street in Murphysboro, Illinois.

Cruzat's site-specific Birthplace installation will run through April 30, 2020. A number of visitors joined Cruzat for the reception at the museum on Saturday, March 14, from 3 to 6 p.m. See photos below, courtesy of George Mendez.

Cruzat offered the following statement about this unique exhibit: "The environment shapes my artistic practice. Since 2017, my current studio is located in the land of John A. Logan’s birthplace. The museum and the archaeological site are dedicated to research and to preserving the history of the Logan family, owners of the land. John A. Logan made history at a national level by his involvement in the civil war and politics. At this moment, efforts are being made by the museum to excavate the foundation of his home. All of this motivated me to work on the Birthplace installation at the General John A. Logan Museum."

For more about Cruzat and her work, see her Oak Street Art page here or her website here.

Work by Oak Street Art printmaker Luca Cruzat has been selected for inclusion in the Four Rivers Print Biennial exhibition, running February 5 through March 27, 2020. Luca's piece Antipodal: I Am South and North (pictured below) was selected by juror Mark Pascale from among 229 pieces submitted by 87 artists. This was truly a national competition with entries coming from across the United States.

All are welcome at the First Friday reception for the exhibit on Friday, February 7, 2020, at 5 p.m. at Carbondale Community Arts' Artspace 304  at 304 W. Walnut St. in Carbondale, Illinois. A closing reception will be held Saturday, March 21, 2020, from 3 to 6 p.m. From 3:30 to 4:30, Pascale will give a lecture, with juror awards announced afterward. RSVP for the closing reception here.  The gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday from 12 to 5 p.m.

From the opening reception invitation: "The juror for the 2020 Four Rivers Print Biennial is Mark Pascale. Pascale is a lithographer who has been active in the Chicago art world for nearly forty years, as a curator, researcher, and professor. Pascale is the Janet and Craig Duchossois Curator of Prints and Drawings at The Art Institute of Chicago, and concurrently Senior Lecturer in Printmaking, at School of the Art Institute."

For more about Cruzat and her work, see her Oak Street Art profile and lucacruzat.com.

​Happy holidays from Oak Street Art! 2019 has been a big year for us. In addition to holding our annual Oak Street Art Fair (with 30+ artists, 7 live musical acts, and children's art projects) in April, we also held two First Friday Art Walk open houses in September and October. Then in November was our Holiday Art Sale with our own members and a few friends. 

We also continued our work in the community by creating art lessons and working with second-grade children at the Gen. John A. Logan Attendance Center. Beyond that, we coordinated children's art projects for Father's Day gift making at the Murphysboro Youth and Recreation Center and a winter holiday ornament-making project as part of the Murphysboro Hometown Christmas celebration.

In a happy surprise, Oak Street Art was given a WSIU “Good Neighbor” award for June 2019! According to WSIU, this award “recognizes those who make a positive impact in the community.” We are grateful for second-grade teacher Tabitha Harris for nominating us.

Another big deal was officially moving our headquarters to the old Jones House (401 S. 16th St., Murphysboro, Illinois) in the Logan Historic Arts Neighborhood, thanks to generous space-sharing by the Gen. John A. Logan Museum and director Michael Jones. People-wise, we said goodbye to a few old member/friends moving on to other projects (thank you, Shirley Krienert and Rachel Malcolm Ensor) and welcomed a new one (welcome, Stephanie Dillard). 

Below is a photo of our December holiday get-together with the six current members. FRONT row, left to right: Darby Ortolano (ceramics), Sue Gindlesparger (metals, jewelry), Luca Cruzat (printmaking), Cathy Schmidt (leather), Stephanie Dillard (stained glass). BACK row, all alone: Ann R. Fischer (photography).

Oak Street Art members worked with over 100 children to help them create their own holiday ornaments as part of the Murphysboro Hometown Christmas 2019 celebration! Artists participating included Sue Gindlesparger (metalsmith), Luca Cruzat (printmaker), Cathy Schmidt (leather artist), Stephanie Dillard (stained glass artist), Rachel Malcolm Ensor (painter), and Ann R. Fischer (photographer).

Shown in the photos below by George Mendez, children delighted in exercising their creativity by choosing shapes, choosing colors, writing their names, and painting their ornaments to bring home.

Their work began inside the Murphysboro Youth and Recreation Center just after the tree lighting ceremony on Friday, December 6, in Town Center Park in Murphysboro. 

Two pieces by Oak Street Art member Luca Cruzat (printmaking) are included in the "Art of Our Region: 1930s to 2019" invitational exhibit at the Hise Art Museum in Harrisburg, Illinois. This Grand Opening exhibition runs from August 23 through December 4.  

Pictured below is the artist with her framed pieces: On the far left is "Crickets, Grasshoppers, and Salamanders" (collagraph, screenprint, Ed 1/1 or Unique), and second from left is "Portrayal of a Woman" (collagraph, colored pencil).

The new Ella Elizabeth Hise Art Museum of Regional Art is located at 3575 College Road in Southeastern Illinois College in Harrisburg. Please stop by to visit the museum Tuesday through Friday and the first Sunday of each month between 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

Thanks to everyone who came out for Murphysboro’s (first of 2019) First Friday Art Walk / Open Studios & Museum night! In the new Oak Street Art headquarters (photo below), we had a steady stream of visitors all evening. We love our great southern Illinois community and are proud to be a part of the Logan Historic Arts Neighborhood.

Visitors came just to look, talk, make new friends, enjoy munchies, and even to buy some local art by our members (jewelry from Sue Gindlesparger, ceramics from Darby Ortolano, weaving/textiles from Shirley Krienert, leather from Cathy Schmidt, and photography from Ann R. Fischer).

See map below for additional sites of September's First Friday, including the individual studios of Oak Street Art members Luca Cruzat and Rachel Malcolm Ensor, as well as the General John A. Logan Museum, Pat's Prairie Garden, and GeekBetty Vintage and More. 

Onward to next month! Hope to see you for the second First Friday on Friday, October 4, from 5 to 8 p.m.

Five Oak Street Art members have pieces included in the LOCALITY Biennial at Carbondale Community Arts in Carbondale, Illinois.

Oak Street artists Luca Cruzat (printmaking), Rachel Malcolm Ensor (painting), Ann R. Fischer (photography), Sue Gindlesparger (metalsmithing/jewelry), and Darby Ortolano (ceramics) all have one or more pieces on display.
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​The exhibit will be open for viewing through September 13. About half of the exhibit is in the CCA main gallery (Artspace 304 at 304 W. Walnut St.), and the other half is in the Civic Center Corridor Gallery across the street at 200 S. Illinois Ave. 

The free public reception will be Friday, September 6, from 5 to 7 p.m. See the event page at www.facebook.com/events/643913182798007.