SVAFC
LINDSBORG – Smoky Valley Arts & Folklife Center (SVAFC) will open the first show of 2023 featuring paintings not previously exhibited by Lindsborg artist Mike Hartung.
The exhibition, “Third Time’s a Charm…for a repeat offender,” continues through Jan. 29.
There will be a reception for Hartung’s exhibition and an artist’s talk on Jan. 14, from 6 to 8 p.m., with the artist’s talk at 6:30 p.m. SVAFC is located at 114½ S. Main in Lindsborg, and is open SVAFC is open from 1 to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
“Third Times a Charm…for a repeat offender” will not disappoint viewers familiar with Hartung’s visual commentary. This exhibition includes four older works and 11 new paintings, all finished in 2022, one completed as the show was installed.
Hartung’s exhibition takes on current events and other subject matter that the local artist often focuses on in his paintings. While some of the artwork is controversial and may be disagreeable to some viewers, it is the work of a prolific artist who uses his medium to journal and document events, politics, and stories — both real and imaginary — of our times. The artist received a bachelor’s degree in art education from Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia and was soon drafted to serve in Vietnam. When he returned to Kansas, he continued taking art classes. He met other local artists, Don Osborn and Steve Scott, who eventually relocated to Lindsborg, and encouraged Hartung to do the same. Hartung moved to Lindsborg in the mid-1970s and has been producing art in his loft studio ever since.
This is the artist’s third exhibition at SVAFC. The center provides a formal space for artists, craftsmen, and performers to share their work and provides space for lectures, workshops, and demonstrations. SVAFC is funded, in part, by the Kansas Creative Arts Industry Commission, The National Endowment for the Arts, and the Raymer Society for the Arts.
To learn more about SVAFC or to become a volunteer, go to smokyvalleyartsandfolklifecenter.org.