Visual Arts Exhibits
Phillips Gallery
Monday – Friday, 1 to 3 PM (May to September)
Monday – Friday, 1 to 4 PM, and Saturdays 1 to 4 PM (October to April)
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
Founders Gallery
Monday – Friday, 9 AM to 3 PM (April to December)
Monday – Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM, and Saturdays 9 AM to 1 PM (January to March)
Deborah and John La Gorce
Student Art Reception & Performances
Sunday, May 6, 3 to 5 PM
at BIG ARTS Center
All ages are invited to join BIG ARTS for a free, fun afternoon of student art exhibits, student vocalists, an instrument "Petting Zoo" and light refreshments.
The Southwest Florida Symphony's instrument "petting zoo" will provide a hands-on experience for young students or adults. A variety of musical instruments will be available to play, with expert instruction on hand.
Exhibits in Phillips Gallery: artwork created by students from Cypress Lake High School, Lexington Middle School, and Sanibel School, and from the Art by Kids with Cancer project.
The Young Artists Awards works with the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology staff at The Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida to exhibit and sell this artwork. Donated art supplies are used in a therapeutic setting for children being treated at the Hospital. Proceeds from the sales will provide assistance to families facing the financial challenges of childhood cancer.
Three students who have been awarded Young Artists Awards for performing arts, will sing in Boler Garden.
"Open Doors: Great Expectations Exhibit" in Founders Gallery: The Open Doors program, funded through donations to Alliance for the Arts, provides classes for children with artistic talent and/or financial need.
Youth Visual Arts Exhibits Open May 4 through 24
Monday – Friday 1 to 3 PM
Student Art
Exhibit Open May 4 through 24
Monday – Friday 1 to 3 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
Past Events
ARTSalon: Artists, Their Work & Background Stories
Clyde Butcher
Topic: Adventures Photographing the Swamp
Saturday, December 17, 4 PM
The recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award in Nature Photography by the North American Nature Photography Association, Clyde Butcher is most famous locally for his black-and-white images of Florida's great wilderness, including the Everglades.
$5
Clyde Butcher Exhibit: Big Cypress Swamp
The Western Everglades
Exhibit Open December 3 through January 14, 2012
Monday – Saturday 1 to 4 PM
Artists Reception
Saturday, December 17, 5:30 to 7 PM
The recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award in Nature Photography by the North American Nature Photography Association, Clyde Butcher is most famous locally for his black-and-white images of Florida's great wilderness, including the Everglades. In an age where the popularity of digital photography remains on the rise, Butcher's notable use of large format film cameras make his images instantly recognizable.
ARTSalon with Clyde Butcher
Saturday, December 17, 4 PM, $5
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
A Merry, Artsy Holiday
Ornament Sale - Cash & Carry
Ornaments for sale
December 3 through January 14
Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM
Ornaments, wreaths and art made by local artists available for purchase.
Artists Reception
Saturday, December 17, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
Deborah and John La Gorce
ARTSalon: Artists, Their Work & Background Stories
Dr. Wendy Chase
Topic: Beautiful Suffering
Monday, January 9, 3 PM
Dr. Wendy Chase served as Discipline Chair for the Humanities and Fine Arts for three years at Edison State College. Chase is a member of the Public Art Committee for the City of Fort Myers, the Holocaust Memorial Committee, and has helped organize the Edison Era Film Festival. She has served as one of three judges for the Lee County High School Musical Awards. Chase's ARTSalon lecture is called "Beautiful Suffering: The Politics of Representing Pain in a Culture of Violence."
$5
ARTSalon: Artists, Their Work & Background Stories
Derek Fell
Topic: Gardens of Frank Lloyd Wright
Tuesday, February 7, 2 PM
Derek Fell is a writer and photographer with art, travel, and garden books totaling more than 2.5 million in print. His talk is about the gardens of Frank Lloyd Wright.
$5
ArtPoems
The Collaborative Transmedia Poet and Artist Project of Southwest Florida
Friday, February 24
Reception begins at 7 PM, Presentation starts at 7:30 PM
at BIG ARTS Center
ArtPoems showcases artworks inspired by poems and poems inspired by artworks; paintings, sculptures, photography and, mixed media artwork paired with villanelles, sonnets, ballads, and free verse.
Collaborating visual artists are Peg Cullen, Pascale Doxy, Cheryl Fausel, Stephen Hayford, Philip Heubeck, Shelia Hoen, Hollis Jeffcoat, Dennis Joyce, David King, Doug MacGregor, Andi McCarter and J.R. Roberts. Jim Brock, Dorothy Brooks, Carol Drummond, Katelyn Gravel, Sandy Greco, Bob Maxeiner, Jesse Millner, Joseph Pacheco, Marsha Perlman, Sid Simon, Larry Stiles and Lorraine Vail are the poets.
Dancers, African drummers, guitarists, and other musicians will accompany this ArtPoems performance.
$10
"Multiples"
Exhibit Open January 19 through February 27
Monday – Saturday, 1 to 4 PM
BIG ARTS invited artists to submit entries for selection in this juried theme show in Phillips Gallery. All entries contain "multiples" of objects, subjects or images. Juror is Lynn Loscutoff, author, artist and teacher, from Naples, Florida and Gloucester, Massachusetts.
Artists Reception and Awards Presentation
Saturday, January 21, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
"The Color of Color"
featuring Pam Brodersen
and Dorothy Wallace
Exhibit Open January 19 through February 27
Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM
Digital Art by Pam Brodersen and Mosaic Tile art by Dorothy Wallace.
Artists Reception
Saturday, January 21, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
Deborah and John La Gorce
"Guests Will Be Hung"
Invitational Exhibit
Exhibit Open March 2 through March 29
Monday – Saturday 1 to 4 PM
Invitational exhibit to showcase artists whose work is not typically shown in Southwest Florida. More than 30 artists will display a variety of mediums in Phillips Gallery.
Artists Reception
Friday, March 9, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
"The Beat Goes On"
featuring Renee Ray and Peter Zell
Exhibit Open March 2 through March 29
Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM
Artwork by Renee Ray and Peter Zell.
Artists Reception
Friday, March 9, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
Deborah and John La Gorce
ARTSalon: Artists, Their Work & Background Stories
Dr. Paul Brooke
Topic: Wildlife and Birdlife on Sanibel
Thursday, March 22, 3:30 PM
Initially trained as a biologist and naturalist, Dr. Paul Brooke earned his Ph.D. in English at the University of Nebraska. He is a Professor of English at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, where he teaches advanced creative writing, among other courses. His 2008 book of poetry and photography, Light and Matter, was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.
$5
"A Touch of Red" Sanibel Captiva Art League hosts Southwest Florida Council
Exhibit Open April 5 through 30
Monday – Saturday 1 to 4 PM
Each year, members from the Art Councils of Southwest Florida are invited by the Sanibel Captiva Art League to exhibit at this show, which will features original works in watercolor, oil, acrylic, mixed media, collage, sculpture, and original prints with "A Touch of Red."
Artists Reception
Friday, April 6, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
June Rosner and Russ Bilgore
"Fabrication"
featuring Tania Begg, Vicki Kessler and Donna Kjonaas
Exhibit Open April 5 through 30
Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM
Artwork by Tania Begg, Vicki Kessler and Donna Kjonaas.
Artists Reception
Friday, April 6, 5:30 to 7 PM
Visual Arts Patron Season Sponsor
Deborah and John La Gorce
Attention Visual Artists:
BIG ARTS needs a completed IRS Form W-9 (Request for Taxpayer ID Number) for all artists who have artwork in our galleries.
Click here for link to download IRS Forms
