December - January:

Patrick Harness

Patrick Harness was born in Mobile, Alabama. He has since resided in Western Australia, Oregon and Brooklyn, New York where he attended Pratt Institute. His images are a result of 35 years of experimenting with a variety of media, especially oils, with a focus on landscapes, figures and abstracts. He has happily resided in central Illinois since 1977 where he enjoys the company of his family, friends and the unique beauty of its rural landscape.

February - March:
Erin Robert

Originally from Iowa, Erin Robert grew up on the east coast where she attended the Delaware College of Art and Design. Robert is a mixed media collage artists with a penchant for the past and describes her work as "keepsakes" from a by-gone era. Robert's work celebrates relics of our past and explores the progression of technology and the disregard and elminiation of certain materials once required for a trade, such as rub-on transfers once used by graphic desigers or die cut letters used by typesetters.

April - May 10:
Cheryl Dean

Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Cheryl has lived in the Peoria area most her life. Cheryl has been a photographer for 30 years, specializing in fine art prints using the Polaroid image transfer and manipulation process. Cheryl owns and operates Picture This Gallery in Peoria Heights, Illinois.

May 16-June:
Nichole Gronvold-Roller

Nichole Gronvold-Roller: Recent Works
Nichole is drawn to the interiors and exteriors of buildings, and the patterns created by the interplay between light and color on their surfaces. She is also fascinated by the artifacts left behind by past residents of abandoned buildings and houses. Nichole’s pieces are large-scale acrylic and mixed media pieces; she is currently an art teacher at Tremont High School.

June 27 - August 2:
Jane Ryder

Orginally from the Chicago area, Jane Ryder is an Undergraduate of Bradley University and is currently a Graduate Student at Northern Illinois University. Jane's work is Gouache and titled "Until They Create Many Planets"

"The water cut through rock and the land began to swell.
Prairie grass grew from flesh and the dirt sprouts fur.
Many mouths were opened they ate the corn
Growing off their backs. Rodents scrambled to hoard.
Bones will decay in the ground.
Termites will bore through rotten wood.
Many animals will lay together fight each other
And protect each other.
With their legs planted firmly in the ground
Their roots will run deep until they create many planets."

August-September:
Susan Weinberg

Susan Weinberg grew up in Peoria, but has lived much of her adult life in Minnesota. Her work is largely figurative in nature and her two recent series of work focus on family history and her travels in the Yunnan province of China. Susan is drawn to the intent study of what creates a person’s energy and presence. She paints for that magical moment when her subject steps out of the canvas.

October-November:
Lori Brooks

December-January 2009:
Jennifer Hammontree-Jones