“Cows in the Gallery”

Nancy Bass, Paul Eshelman, & Sandra McKenzie-Schmitt

Main Gallery

Exhibition Statement:

The Peoria Art Guild proudly presents Cows in the Gallery, a summer exhibition that playfully celebrates craftsmanship, character, and creative expression through clay, canvas, and form.

Nancy Bass, our cover artist, is known for her intuitive and emotionally resonant paintings of animals. A Signature Member of the American Women’s Artists, Bass captures the spirit and presence of her subjects through vibrant, expressive strokes.

Paul Eshelman contributes a refined collection of functional pottery. Eshelman elevates the daily act of eating and drinking, bringing human dignity and thoughtful design to everyday rituals.

Sandra McKenzie-Schmit, a nationally acclaimed artist, presents a delightful body of work that fuses sculpture and pottery. Her imaginative pieces balance form and function, inviting joy through playful shapes and textures.

American Glory

William Harroff

Project Space

Exhibition Statement:

In August 2024, I completed my second month-long art residency at the Gullkistan Center for Creativity in Laugarvatn, Iceland, where I created the images for this exhibition. The following month, I was awarded a major Illinois Arts Council Creative Catalyst Grant to produce a 4-book series of prints featuring the morning glories. Each book's drawings represent a moment in the day-long life span of a morning glory. The 4 book series (American Glory, i am a morning glory, Daybreak Glory and Twilight Glory) includes over 100 drawings and photographs.

I have precious childhood memories of Mom’s rows of heart-shaped vines growing up the side of our garage, creating a bouquet of Heavenly Blues against the clear northern Indiana sky. The life cycle of the morning glory symbolizes our lives on this good earth; each of us, vine-tied together, emerge as uniquely created beings who flower for a brief moment and are then gone. There is an inner glow to a glory which acts as a beacon to pollinators, but is also reminiscent of stars glowing across the night sky.

My American Glory print series symbolizes the red vs. blue societal chasm. The vector drawings are emblematic of the constant stress underlying nearly every interaction in American society today. A visual tension is created for the viewer when one places complementary colors together of the same value.

My floral artwork is part of major museum collections and has been featured on St. Louis television several times. This project is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council.

Enjoy live music by Logan Nickerson, delicious bites from the Grill’em All food truck, and free refreshments.

The opening reception for this exhibition will be July 11th, 5-8:00 p.m.

The work will be on view July 11, 2025 – July 25, 2025

Gallery events are always free and open to the public.