2023 Riverssance Festival of Fine Art at Lindsay Park -- September 16 and 17.
Saturday, September 16, and Sunday, September 17
Lindsay Park, 2200 East 11th Street, Davenport IA
Original works from more than 80 juried regional and national artists will be on hand at the September 16 and 17 Riverssance Festival of Fine Art, with the 35th Lindsay Park event, hosted by Quad City Arts, boasting a children’s art-activity tent, a wine tasting, artist-painted wine glasses, food vendors, live music, and the presentation of the prestigious Harley Award to Dee Schricker, the honor given to an individual whose affected the arts and artists in the Quad Cities during their lifetime.
Among those displaying and selling their arts and crafts at Riverssance 2023 are: Russ Duerksen, acrylic; Penny Smith, acrylic; James Cronk, stoneware/porcelain; Robyn Terwilliger, jewelry; Radim Schreiber, photography; Ken Nickels, mixed media; Tom Hempel, watercolor; Carole Kasowski, acrylic; Tom Gross, acrylic; Christina King Ziegler, jewelry; Danielle Kelso, acrylic; Doug Adams, mixed media; Valerie and Clarence Butcher, glass; Brian Lord, wood; Vahan & Vicki Bedeian, jewelry; Stuart Roddy, oil; Amy Taylor, jewelry; Laura Vincent-Arnold, acrylic; Todd Hughes, wood; Kent Broadbent, oil; Janet Ahrens, mixed media; John VandeWalle, sculpture; Sally Gierke, ceramic; Clark McFerren, watercolor; Cindy Kuhn, jewelry; Carrie Clark, acrylic; Mark True, photography; Sergiy Nagorny, mixed media; Breanna Engelhardt, ceramic; Susan Cunningham, fiber; Mike Mittermeier, acrylic; Tina Ferrel, sculpture; Mary Beth Willems, jewelry; Michelle Newton, acrylic; Vincent Lewis, wood; Levi Folker, watercolor; Barbara Logan, glass; Laura Ross, jewelry; and Elissa Wenthe, ceramic.
Also enjoying vendor tables at this year's Riverssance: Glen Lowry, printmaking; Jeremy Marquis, acrylic; Ellie Cupp, acrylic; Karen Austin, photography; Maggie Joynt, jewelry; Cliff Logan, wood; Pamela Ohnemus, oil/acrylic/watercolor; Abigail West, jewelry; Rachel McKinney, ceramic; Ted Simmering, acrylic; Petra Hallwas, photography; Rhonda Mellor, jewelry; Dee Schricker, acrylic; Naidine D’Angelo, photography/drawing; Chris Kuntz, fiber; Shana Rainey, jewelry; Linda Lindner, ceramic; Lori Field, wood; Zanetta Hoehle, jewelry; Maharah Jones, acrylic; Lauren Pesta, mixed media; Jay Nielsen, jewelry; Sydney Franklin, wood; Liz Robertson, ceramic; Rich Robertson, ceramic; Rachel Newell, mixed media; Jamie Smisek, mixed media; Betty Christian, jewelry; Carol Brandt, garden mosaics; Joshua Steele, photography; Jose Coy, knives; Will Beard, drawing; Erica Gooding, jewelry; Carolyn Garay, mixed media; Mike Gustafson, photography; Laura Lacasa Yost, jewelry; Lisa Nelson, fiber; Steve Nowatzki, printmaking; Ann Hartley, jewelry; Jay Stratton, wood; Rachel Haynes, mixed media; and Jack Brainerd, wood.
A public reception to honor this year’s Harley Award Recipient Award for outstanding support of the visual arts will be held on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. This year’s recipient is Dee Schricker, a native Iowa artist living in Blue Grass who creates in paint, clay, fabric, metal, and mixed media, and most of whose work is contemporary and abstract.
An artist since high school, Schricker quit her day job in 1998 and began to focus on art full-time starting with Raku pottery and fiber art, eventually opening her own gallery in 2006 at Bucktown Center for the Arts. "Bucktown was an amazing community of local artists supporting each other," says Schricker. "I would share space in my gallery to promote other artists who needed a place to sell, show, and create. We thrived in each other's creativity and offered the public an entertaining place to gather." More than 100 Final Fridays and hundreds of painted wine glasses later, she closed the gallery in 2018, but continued to be involved with the art community, teaching Raku techniques and glaze-making at the Bereskin Art Academy and other venues. Schricker says, "I never wanted to quit creating but the Raku work was physically demanding so I opted to concentrate on my favorite medium, acrylic painting and mixed media. I would tell young artists to be fearless. Try new mediums and techniques, and always create for yourself."
The live-music lineup for Saturday's Riverssance 2023 features Frankie Jo & Kinfolk from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., musicians from the Bucktown Revue from 1 to 3 p.m., and Totes McGotes performing from 3 to 5 p.m. David G. Smith will perform on Sunday from 10 a.m. to noon, his appearance followed by fellow singer/songwriters Lojo Russo from noon to 2 p.m. and Lewis Knudsen from 2 to 4 p.m. On-site food vendors for the weekend include Bayside Bistro, Chick N'Dips (Saturday only), Justin's Tacos, and Lagomarcino's, with beverages supplied by Nerdspeak Brewery and Olathea Creek Vineyard & Winery. And along with the presentation of the 2023 Harley Award to Strickler, one $600 Best of Show Award will be presented along with one $150 People's Choice Award, with 10 $225 Merit Awards also bestowed.
Riverssance admission for ages 18 and older is $5 per day or $8 for a two-day pass, with ages 18 and under free. Festival hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on September 16 and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on September 17, and more information on this year's Riverssance Festival of Fine Art is available by contacting Quad City Arts at (309)793-1213 and visiting QuadCityArts.com.
