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thePeorian.com
“A lot of people think of art as
a form of entertainment they’ll
do once a year. It’s not really an
integral part of their lives. Don’t
get me wrong; I’m glad they do it
at least once a year but they can
get a more holistic view of what
happens in the arts community if
they come more frequently. For
many it becomes a lifestyle,” he
said.
Preston Jackson, a partner in
the Contemporary Arts Center
and arguably Peoria’s best known
artist, said he believes the local
art scene has been undergoing
change in recent times but that it
has been for the good. “Old tra-
ditional art has dropped off and
we’re seeing new talent coming
in. That’s a good thing because
Peoria needs to stay current,” he
said.
He and Butler said he also be-
lieves Peoria is unique for its size
in terms of what its arts commu-
nity offers. However, they agreed
presenting a more compact way
of displaying it, particularly the
visual arts, would make it easier
to promote.
One of the reasons Jackson
helped open the Contemporary
Arts Center in what had become
a dilapidated downtown building
was to give the arts community
more of a central place. Keeping
it along the riverfront was natu-
ral, he said. “Now this building is
alive. It has value,” he said.
The Murray Building just
up the street a bit has several
studios, as well, devoted to help-
ing artists work their magic on
canvas, ceramics, metals, wood
or with paints, charcoal or other
tools.
But from there the many
studios in Peoria are spread out.
When the Central Illinois Artists
Organization has its First Fridays
studios tours the first Friday of
every month, a person cannot hit
all the venues without driving.
CIAO is growing and so is the
number of people visiting the stu-
dios each first Friday. But would
The Present
One of the reasons Congressman Aaron Schock, above, brought NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman to Peoria in
August 2011 was so he could see the site of the new Peoria Riverfront Museum. Schock, a Peoria Republican, hopes
to get Landesman back for the museum’s opening in October. In the photo below, Landesman and Schock meet with
members of the museum’s board of directors before touring the site.