New Year Update!

New Program Director arrives end of January - Ron Ray joins the staff at Prairie Center Of The Arts in 2012 as the new Program Director.  Ron comes to Peoria from Paris, France, where he has been living and working on staff at an artist residency in the French countryside.  He has been a working artist for over 20 years and will continue his art while at Prairie Centers.  His studio will be open for visits by residents as well as the public.  Ron has an extensive background as a curator and has worked in the gallery side of art as well.  He has lived and worked in The United States, Italy, France, Spain and China and attended artist residencies in several countries, bringing a world view of art with him. We welcome him and look forward to a great new year at Prairie Center Of The Arts filled with a celebration of art, exploration and wonder.

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Looking forward our plans for 2012 will enhance the program and allow us to better serve the artists that we bring to our community and to our studios.

·      At the end of January we will welcome our new program director.

·      With gas prices continuing to rise we have purchased a new Dodge Grand Caravan to transport our visiting artists between the house and studios in Peoria and to assist with grocery shopping.

·      We will once more to begin recruiting international artists.

·      We have been informed by the Alliance of Artists’ Communities that we will participate in the Midwest Voices and Visions, a  residency for underserved artists, for a third time.

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Looking back 2011 was a great year for us.  We were honored to house 27 talented artists from ten states with 1,035 overnights which equates to a 74% occupancy rate and our Community Artists in Residence Program grew in 2011 from one artist to three.  

Happy New Year, everyone!

Michele & Joe Richey