Baldwin City may seem small, sometimes even carry a hint of isolation, but culture and professional art can still be found right around the corner at Seventh and High streets.
Professor of Art Inge Balch said Art Affair is a student-run gallery in downtown Baldwin City, which offers approximately eight shows each year.
Lesley Gillaspie, director of the Art Affair, said assemblages by Karen Jacks are currently on display in the gallery. Though the gallery has been inaccessible due to downtown construction, she hopes the gallery will be open sometime next week.
“Theoretically, it’s open right now, we just haven’t been able to get in,” she said.
Artist Karen Jacks said she contacted the Art Affair last fall to schedule a show which would coincide with the unveiling of her five larger pieces on display in the basement of Collins Library. The unveiling will be at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, September 13.
Jacks said her work is specialized in the form of sculptures called assemblages.
“Assemblages are three-dimensional arrangements of items such as wood, metal, paper, ceramics, castings, fabric, etc., and by nature have a recycling aspect that I am drawn to,” she said.
Jacks said the pieces that are Baker themed are all simulations of Baker history. She hopes her show will draw in people who have real Baker memorabilia that they would allow her to use to compose assemblages.
“I am hoping to create more commissioned works for interested alumni or graduating class of 2008 students, and Art Affair gives great visibility to my work,” she said.
Gillaspie said the gallery will display works by a group of Kansas State University graduate students in October for the Maple Leaf Festival.
“Once every month and a half we’ll have an opening,” Gillaspie said.
Gillaspie said she and her colleagues are responsible for setting up shows, shipment of the art, cleaning the gallery between shows, arranging and hanging art, preparing the lighting and making up invitations for openings.
Balch said most of the art work will be between $10 and $300, yet some art may go for over $1,500. Baker students get a 10 percent discount and the Art Affair makes 30 percent of what the artist makes.
When picking art, Balch said one of the main focuses is the ability to sell it.
“Selling art in Baldwin is like pulling teeth from an elephant,” she said.
Balch said students should go to the gallery, not only to support their peers, but also because art is pleasing to the eye and to the soul.
“Who does not need art? Art goes into everything we do every day,” she said.