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Oak Street Art Printmaker Luca Cruzat's "Birthplace" Installation at Gen. John A. Logan Museum

2/27/2020

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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.
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Second-Graders Make Quilt Square Maps with Oak Street Art Metalsmith Sue Gindlesparger

2/27/2020

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Second-graders at the General John A. Logan Attendance Center in Murphysboro created their own quilt square maps with Oak Street Art metalsmith Sue Gindlesparger on February 26.  

Gindlesparger designed the project to complement students' other lessons for Black History Month. After reading the book Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson (illustrated by James Ransome), students created their own maps in the style of quilt squares.

Using paper of various patterns, textures, and colors, students used scissors to cut out shapes representing key aspects of a place special to them. They learned how to layer and overlap the different pieces to create a unique collage resembling the kind of quilt square Sweet Clara made out of fabric scraps. Clara stitched the squares together as a guide for her and other enslaved people to escape slavery along the Underground Railroad. 


Gindlesparger was assisted in the classrooms by Oak Street Art members Ann Fischer (photography) and Luca Cruzat (printmaking).

Please see photos below of Gindlesparger introducing the lesson, of creative students at work, and of a completed all-classroom "quilt." The final image is made up of the squares made by each of the students in teacher Tabitha Harris' second-grade class. Thank you, Mrs. Harris!
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Second-Graders Make Colorful Window-Pane Collages with Oak Street Artist Stephanie Dillard

1/30/2020

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​Oak Street Art members brightened up a winter day with second-graders at the General John A. Logan Attendance Center in Murphysboro on January 22. Led by Oak Street Art stained glass artist Stephanie Dillard, students in six different classrooms learned about stained glass and used colorful tissue paper to make their own colorful window images.

Along with lesson assistant, Oak Street Art metalsmith 
Sue Gindlesparger, Dillard showed the children illustrations in the book Draw Me a Star by famed paper artist Eric Carle (author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar). Based on the story in the book, the artists asked the children, "Where does art come from? Where does it begin?". Students enthusiastically shared their thoughts about how making art begins with their own ideas and feelings.

Beginning with cardboard-framed waxed paper "windows," students used bits of torn tissue paper to create their own paper collages by using glue-water to attach the paper and also to glaze over the top of the paper bits. Using this technique, the collages, when held up to the light, look like stained glass. Some children chose to make representations of animals, landscapes, planets, people, and other objects, while others created abstract designs.


Dillard and Gindlesparger were also assisted in the classrooms by Oak Street Art members Cathy Schmidt (leather) and Ann Fischer (photography).

Please see photos of creative students below.
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Short Holiday Newsletter from Oak Street Art 2019!

12/19/2019

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​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).
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Oak Street Art in the Community: 2019 Hometown Christmas Ornament-Making Project

12/15/2019

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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. 
Photo credit: George Mendez
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Thank you, Southern Illinois! 2019 Holiday Art Sale Recap

11/20/2019

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Thanks so much to everyone who came out for the 2019 Holiday Art Sale by Oak Street Art and Friends. 

We had a fantastic time in the Logan Historic Arts Neighborhood of Murphysboro, Illinois, and loved meeting so many nice people last weekend (November 16-17, 2019). What a great turnout! Please see artist list, photos, and Murphysboro Times story below.

Special thanks to Michael Jones and the General John A. Logan Museum for use of the building and for so much great support throughout the year!
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First Friday in Murphysboro's Logan Historic Arts Neighborhood

9/10/2019

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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.
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Second Grade Smiles: Dreamcatchers with OSA Leather Artist Cathy Schmidt

10/23/2018

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​In a multidisciplinary activity combining literature and art, two second grade classrooms at the General John A Logan Attendance Center created dream catchers under the instruction of leatherwork artist and Oak Street Art member Cathy Schmidt (pictured below in white Oak Street Art apron).
The students worked very hard on their individual projects.  The smiles  below show their enjoyment, pride, and success in creating art!    
The participating teachers have agreed to head up the Children’s Art Tent at the annual Oak Street Art Fair in April 2019.  Keep checking back for more details on art activities in these classrooms.     
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More dreamcatcher fun: Cathy and Shirley have been busy! 
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STEAM Night: Local Children Make Dreamcatchers with OSA Artists Cathy Schmidt and Shirley Krienert

10/23/2018

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As part of Oak Street Art's mission to nurture connections between art and our community, two artists from the group participated in the recent STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) event at the Murphysboro Youth and Recreation Center.  
Cathy Schmidt (leatherwork) and Shirley Krienert (fiber and mixed media) led participants in the creation of their own dream catchers. The event was well attended. Check out some sample work below!
More dreamcatcher fun: Cathy and Shirley have been busy! ​
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Oak Street Art Takes Selfie Station on the Road for Murphysboro Family Vacation Night, May 14, 2018

5/22/2018

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Have you heard about Oak Street Art's Selfie Station?
During the 2018 Fine Arts Fair, we had a blast setting up space (outside Oak Street Art member Rachel Malcolm Ensor's studio) where people could come pose for selfies with lots of costumes and props. 
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Oak Street Art member Darby Ortolano recently took the Selfie Station on the road for the Murphysboro Family Vacation Night. 
Lots of people stopped by to pose and laugh, including Mayor Will Stephens, shown below. Ride on, Mayor Stephens! 
See more photos from the Selfie Station below and on Instagram (#oakstreetartgroup). 
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  • Home
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  • About Us / Artists
    • Luca Cruzat (printmaking)
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    • Sue Gindlesparger (metals, jewelry)
    • Darby Ortolano (ceramics)
    • Cathy Schmidt (leather)
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