F.C. Shultz | “An Honest Life Is Immortal,” debut collection of poetry, 2020
Lindsey Dunnagan | “Echo,” watercolor, graphite, sterling silver leaf
Wanda K. Tyner | “Monarch Layover at the Dinnerplate Impelo Hibiscus” sculpture, kiln-formed and kiln-casted glass
Brian Owens | soul musician/vocalist
Meet our Missouri featured artists for February
Artists are the backbone of our creative state. Get to know some of the best right here!
Each month, we’re designating four individual artists from all around Missouri as Featured Artists. They create and perform in every sort of genre, from sculpture to storytelling.
Meet our February Featured Artists! Plus, here are highlights of our first groups of artists, from December 2020 and January 2021. Enjoy their art here and even more on their own websites—just check the links we’ve placed on their artwork, portraits, and bios.
visual artist | Kirksville
I visually explore interactions with the natural environment. At an intimate level, I am interested in home and identity. On a larger scale, I consider our spiritual ties to nature.
My creative pursuits are grounded in my Alaskan upbringing. Summers were spent hiking mountains, fishing the Russian River, and camping at bluegrass festivals. In the winter, my family cross-country skied under moonlight with miner’s headlamps. Each new season was enchanting and dangerous; it was not uncommon to pass a moose or see a black bear ahead on the trail. These experiences fostered a love of nature and a deep need to explore, discover, and create. To experience my work in person, swing by Weinberger Fine Art in Kansas City, Missouri, for my solo show, “Northern Catch,” which will be up through March.
soul musician/vocalist | St. Louis
I have always approached my music from a place of love and artistry, using my talents to help better my community at every turn.
I’ve been surrounded by music my entire life, and I know how powerful it can be to the soul. I have had the honor of recording a duet with fellow Ferguson native and Doobie Brother, Michael McDonald, and even had the chance to sing with my father on our rendition of Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come,” which has gone on to earn well over 100 million views on YouTube. I feel like all the experiences that I have been blessed with in my life have prepared me to continue my work as an artist and activist through LIFE Arts Inc., where we help the up-and-coming artists in the community develop their creative voice.
“The Rose Weapon” (2017) was followed by a sequel, “When Embers End” (2019).
author, poet, reader | Webb City
If someone picks up one of your books, you want them to feel the magic, the passion, and excitement. The only way for that to happen is if it was written with passion, excitement, and a bit of magic.
I love writing stories that place one element of fantasy into an otherwise realistic world. Elements like what if a dragon attacked a Viking village every 10 years? What if some kids in the ‘50s found an otherworldly wooden box on the beach? I also believe that poetry, like reading, is for everyone. You just have to find poems you like. I wrote my debut poetry collection with the goal of writing poetry that is accessible for people who don’t normally read poems, but that is also diligent and honest, for people who enjoy poems regularly.
“Fall View From the Lake,” wall art, kiln-formed glass on brushed stainless steel
glass artist | Lee’s Summit
I combine my passion for outdoor adventures with my imagination to create colorful nature-inspired glass art.
My journey began with a quest to understand how the glass art we collected was made. I quickly discovered a new passion for my creativity. I am fascinated with the scientific properties of glass and the technical programming required to achieve various results with the kiln. I enjoy the focus and precision it takes to design and explore colors, patterns, textures, shapes, and techniques to create kiln-formed and kiln-casted glass art that can be bright, bold, subtle, or textured. In addition to 3D wall hangings and sculptures, I create tableware, bowls, vases, garden art, clocks, and jewelry.
Anand Prahlad
literary author, musician/songwriter, filmmaker, teaching artist
Columbia
Brenda Beck Fisher
painter, watercolorist, interpreter of the beauty in the world
Hannibal
Anne Garney
landscape painter, fauve, expressionist
Kansas City
Jeffrey Noonan
musician: performer, teacher, scholar
St. Louis
Whitney Manney
fashion and textile designer
Kansas City
Justin Hamm
poet, photographer, citizen of the American Middle West
Mexico
Robin Van Hoozer
artist, painter, maker of unusual things
St. Joseph
Bobby Norfolk
storyteller, author, teaching artist
St. Louis
What is the program’s goal?
The Featured Artists program promotes and supports individual artists and demonstrates the variety of creative Missouri talent.
How does the program work?
We feature four artists each month. We highlight and promote each month’s artists via the homepage of the Missouri Arts Council website, the Featured Artists page on the website, monthly email, social media, and links to the artists’ websites. Artists receive a $300 stipend/license fee to feature their work online. Artists are paid directly by the Mid-America Arts Alliance.
Who is eligible?
Individual Missouri-resident artists of any medium with online work that they have ownership to license. (Groups are not eligible.) Mediums may include (but are not limited to) visual art, literature, music, video, dance, theater, storytelling, and traditional arts.
May artists participate if they don’t have a website?
No; an effective website is an essential part of this program. Without it, there is nothing to promote, neither your work NOR a place to send people to benefit you. An artist’s website is an important tool to promote your creative work. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter etc. can supplement with social engagement, but do not effectively allow an artist’s work to be as easily accessed as does a website.
How do artists apply?
Propose your work for consideration via this online form. Support your application with links to your website and other online platforms where your work is located. No work may be sent as an attachment. Work that cannot be accessed online may not be considered. Artists retain full ownership and rights to their work. Artists will allow with their consideration a limited use right to feature their work on the Missouri Art Council website and other platforms. There is no fee to apply.
How are Featured Artists selected?
The Missouri Arts Council staff selects artists with diverse demographics and locations throughout the state who are producing quality original work in a variety of art mediums and genres.
How will artists know if they are selected?
Artists will be contacted directly if they have been selected. If you are not contacted, do not despair! All applicants will continue to be considered as the program continues monthly.
How often should artists apply?
Artists need apply for this program only once. Applications will be kept on file for future consideration.
How long will this program last?
We will continue this program through June 30, 2021. If funding allows, this program may continue.
