After 5: Collection of artists comes together for new gallery

At a historic downtown building where soy-based ink splatters once covered the print shop floor, pristine artwork now hangs above polished hardwoods.

The transition stems from a collaboration between former Corner Printing building owner Nick Sibley and some 25 area artists.

A group under the Springfield Regional Arts Council banner is showing artwork in the space Sibley rescued after he purchased the former commercial print shop, 411 S. Campbell Ave., upon its closure in 2005.

The building opened April 3 as SRAC's Fresh Gallery, a gallery of fine art and crafts in various media by artists who share in the expenses and responsibilities of running an art gallery. Each artist works at the gallery one day a month and submits 25 percent of commissions to help pay rent and utilities, SRAC Executive Director Sandra CH Smith says. Fresh Gallery's $300 annual member dues also cover operational costs.

"A lot of us don't really know about the business side," says Fresh Gallery artist Carol Penprase, while working her April shift. "It's a good opportunity."

Penprase, who works in mixed-medium fibers, says many artists find it difficult to justify costly rent for personal gallery space. The idea for a collective gallery was spawned locally during the community's Vision 20/20 plan in the mid-1990s.

"I wrote the original proposal to the city 10 years ago," says artist Denene K. Taliaferro, as she dresses her display of ink-dyed accessories in the center of the gallery. "It took us a while, but we eventually got here."

The walls are covered with works from a mix of seasoned artists and newcomers, and a little floor space is open for a 3-D art medium, Penprase suggests, noting that there is a waiting list for artists.

The art is neatly organized by artist. There's Angel Nahon's fun-and-sun acrylics on canvas, Janice Brueggemann's solstice textiles, Bruce Burnaugh's hefty sculptures and Holly Elkin's acrylic and watercolor on paper in one corner. The monochromatic paintings of Jeanie Morris, wife of Bass Pro Shops' founder Johnny Morris, decorate the back wall - except for the hole where her "In The Shadows" hung before it sold earlier in the day.

Two of the artists, Alicia Farris and Dolores Bauer, recently had paintings accepted into Watercolor USA.

The artists aim to change out half of their artwork in the gallery each month, Penprase notes, and the pieces are juried by an SRAC committee every six months.

While SRAC's Smith is glad to organize such a gallery, she warns about what it takes to reach success. She had to close a collective gallery she opened in Eureka Springs, Ark., when artists' egos began to clash.

"It's crucial that the artists buy into the idea and take responsibility for the gallery," she says. "Also, that they arrive with absolutely positive thoughts about it succeeding, that they bring positive vibes into the gallery. I've told them, leave your ego behind, check it at the front door."

Smith added, "Trying to get 25 artists working together is sometimes challenging. That's what I learned in Eureka. I think this is going to be hugely successful. They need to think about the common good, not their own individual agendas. That way it adds to the quality of life in Springfield."