Tiny Art Show features hundreds of small artworks at Art Center of the Bluegrass 

Published 6:03 pm Tuesday, February 25, 2020

By KATE SNYDER 

Art Center of the Bluegrass

The Tiny Art Show returns to Art Center of the Bluegrass this Friday evening, Feb. 28. The event is billed as a pop-up exhibit and fundraiser, featuring more than 400 tiny artworks by artists from throughout the region. 

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“This was by far our most popular event last year,” says Executive Director Niki Kinkade, who recalls that more than 400  people turned out for the debut event in 2019, despite horrific weather. “It was absolutely pouring,” she says. “But it didn’t slow anybody down! We lined the upstairs hallway with wet coats and umbrellas and everyone had a fantastic time.”

The premise of the Tiny Art Show is simple. Anyone from the community may submit a piece of artwork to the show, as long as all sides of the piece are less than six inches in length. Beyond that, artists are limited only by their own creativity. 

While the event will include hundreds of paintings — including watercolors, oil paintings and acrylic —other media will also be represented. There are tiny quilts, counted cross stitch, glass art, small ceramics, wood-cut prints and even a beautiful wrought-iron wall hanging. 

The submitted artwork will be hung anonymously, with the artist’s name appearing only on the back of the piece. Every piece in the show will be for sale for $20 and buyers will not know the identity of the artist until after they select a piece. 

“The mystery is half the fun,” says Kinkade.

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By opening up the exhibit to both professional artists and enthusiastic amateurs, the Art Center seeks to engage a wide range of art-makers for the event. Tammy Clines, of Richmond, says that participating in the event benefits her entire family. She created artwork for the show, as did her two sons, both of whom are on the autism spectrum. 

Clines says “Art not only is something we can do together, but it can be very therapeutic as well.”

After the success of the 2019 event, Kinkade says interest in the event grew this year, with artwork flowing in from throughout the region. Of the more than 170 individual artists who submitted pieces to the event, nearly half live outside of Boyle County.

 “We are thrilled to see entries from artists in Frankfort, Georgetown, Lexington, Richmond, and beyond,” says Kinkade. Many of those participating artists also plan to attend the event. “The Art Center serves as a regional arts catalyst and this is a great opportunity for Danville to really shine.”

Amanda Wheeler, the Children’s/Teen Services Library for the Lincoln County Public Library, hosted a tiny art-making day at the library earlier this month, inviting children and adults to stop by and create pieces for the show. She says she was thrilled by the response. 

“We are so happy we were able to participate and this has encouraged us to have a little summer art show for our summer reading program,” Wheeler says. 

For artist Shannon Clinton of Lawrenceburg, the event was an exciting opportunity. She says, “When I first saw the listing for the Tiny Art Show, I think I actually squealed, as I’ve always been drawn to anything in miniature. Most often I paint dot mandalas or homes, other buildings in acrylic on small rocks, so when the arts council here in Anderson County encouraged member participation in the show, I was even more excited to actually be a part of it.”

The ”tiny” nature of the exhibit also appealed to Laura Stone of Vanceburg. Stone is an elementary art teacher in Lewis County and had been teaching her students about miniature artwork when she came across information about the Tiny Art Show. The timing was perfect — Stone submitted three works to the event, which she plans to attend, so that she can tell her students about the experience. 

The Tiny Art Show begins at 6:30 p.m. Art-buying starts promptly at 7 p.m., at which point attendees are invited to remove their chosen pieces from the wall and proceed to checkout tables to pay for their pieces. 

IF YOU GO 

The Art Center of the Bluegrass’ Tiny Art Show will open 6:30 p.m. Friday. Art may be purchased beginning at 7 p.m. Cost is $10 per person, $5 for children. All artwork is exhibited anonymously, with each costing $20. Tickets to attend are for sale on the Art Center website at www.artcenterky.org/tinyart

and will also be available at the door on the night of the event.