SMALL WORKS ON PAPER 2025 EXHIBITION MOVES TO MENA

The Arkansas Arts Council’s annual Small Works on Paper exhibition opens May 5 at the University of Arkansas Rich Mountain, 1100 College Drive in Mena. Artwork will be on view in the Carver Grand Hall of the Ouachita Center through May 28. Gallery hours are Monday–Thursday, 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m., with a reception at 10 a.m. on Thursday, May 8.

Now in its 38th year, Small Works on Paper features juried pieces by Arkansas artists, each no larger than 18 by 24 inches. This year’s exhibition includes 40 works by 35 artists, most available for purchase, and will tour nine venues statewide.

I'm excited to have my piece, Provenance (7x7), included. It explores the shifting meaning, ownership, and authenticity of historical objects over time.

May 5-28 • reception 10 AM Thursday, May 8 • 1100 College Drive • Mena, AR

AUTHOR TALK HOLIDAY ISLAND ROTARY CLUB

Join artist and author Sean Fitzgibbon at the Rotary Club of Holiday Island for a discussion about his book, What Follows Is True: Crescent Hotel. This fully painted graphic nonfiction explores the eerie history of the Crescent Hotel’s time as the fraudulent Baker Hospital.

Blending oral histories, newspaper articles, and Norman Baker’s own writings, the book reveals a chilling true story and the complexity of real-life villains. It earned a starred review from Kirkus Reviews, calling it "a gripping, moody, illustrated chronicle."

Books will be available for purchase. Special thanks to Peggy Lodewyky.

May 8:30 • 9:30 AM • Grace Lutheran Church, (lower level) 179 Holiday Island Drive, Holiday Island, AR. • 116 E. 3rd Street • Russellville, Arkansas

FIGURE DRAWING AT COMMUNITY CREATIVE CENTER

Join us for Figure Drawing, a six-week studio course at the Community Creative Center!

Led by master draughtsman Sean Fitzgibbon, this course will help you sharpen your eye and hand through essential figure drawing techniques, including expressive line, form, and anatomy. Each session features a live, undraped male or female model.
Come learn to loosen up and see the human figure in an entirely new way!

Mondays, 6:30–8:30 PM • MAY 12, 19, 26 | JUNE 2, 9, 16 • Community Creative Center, Fayetteville, AR

“FOR REAL” DUO EXHIBITION AT HISTORIC ARKANSAS MUSEUM

On view through May 25, 2025, in the Trinity Gallery for Arkansas Artists at the Historic Arkansas Museum.

Graphic nonfiction blends the visual storytelling of comics with the depth of literature.

Fayetteville artist and author Sean Fitzgibbon explores eerie histories through hand-painted panels. His latest book, What Follows Is True: Crescent Hotel, uncovers the chilling story of the Baker Hospital, a Depression-era cancer clinic run by conman Norman Baker.

Little Rock artist and educator Kasten Searles uses digital and traditional media to tell personal nonfiction stories. Her latest project captures the devastation and resilience following the March 31, 2023, tornado in Little Rock.

Copies of What Follows Is True are available in the HAM Museum Store. Fitzgibbon’s next book will explore the Plum Bayou Mounds.

Special thanks to Curator of Exhibits Carey Voss.

Historic Arkansas Museum • 200 E. Third St, Little Rock