EXHIBITS FEATURING WORKS OF LOCAL ARTISTS OPEN JANUARY 17 AT ILLINOIS CENTRAL COLLEGE

            Local artists John Boylan, Jennifer Costa and Stephanie Van Doren will have works displayed in art shows opening January 17 in art galleries on the ICC East Peoria Campus.

            Mixed media works by Boylan will be on display in the Illinois Central College Performing Arts Center Gallery, located in the lobby of the facility. A free, public reception will take place January 17 from noon to 2 pm in the gallery, with an artist talk scheduled for 12:30 pm.

            Flora & Function, a mixed media exhibit featuring the works of Costa and Van Doren, will be on display in Gallery 336B, located in the Academic Building. A free, public reception is scheduled for January 18 from noon to 2 pm in the gallery, with an artist talk at 12:30 pm.

            Boylan studied art at Columbia College in Chicago and currently lives and works in Peoria. He creates mixed media works that are often wildly bright and colorful paintings filled with multiple layers of joyous texture and design. His work is often inspired from local architecture, abandoned buildings or mundane things, such as concrete cracks, dirty walls, stray marks and everything else that most people have eliminated from their vision over time. In some of his art, Boylan combines several different techniques together; this can consist of mixing oil, acrylic, enamel paint, epoxy resin and/or adding photographs, transfers, random scraps of miscellaneous texture and glitter.

            Costa is a professor of art and teaching chair for the Illinois Central College Art Program. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina and received her master’s degree from East Carolina University. During her childhood, her father taught her how to sand and strip wood, replace windows, cut glass and use various power tools. Her grandfather is also an influence in her work today with his handmade swing sets and wooden toys. Her main focus is sculpture created from wood and metal. Using the natural color and surface of various media by placing them in such a way that they contrast and complement one another, Costa wishes for the viewer to not only interact with each piece in a physical manner, but also interact with it in such a way that they look for the meaning.

            Van Doren served as the gallery coordinator for Illinois Central College for over three years, where she was responsible for scheduling and coordinating all of ICC’s art galleries as well as organizing an annual high school art portfolio day event and Arts Week, ICC’s weeklong celebration of the arts. Van Doren received her bachelor of fine arts degree from Drake University in 1999. She then attended Bradley University, where she received her master of fine arts degree. Upon completing her master’s degree, she opened a studio in the Warehouse District of downtown Peoria, where she continues to create art.  She has been involved with CIAO and other Peoria-based artist groups.  Her current series focuses on pseudo-realistic landscapes of the Midwest.

The exhibit by Boylan runs through February 16. The show by Costa and Van Doren will be on display through February 9.

            Hours of operation for the Performing Arts Center Gallery are Monday through Thursday from 9:30 am to 7:30 pm, and Friday from 9:30 am to noon. The Performing Arts Center Gallery also is accessible when the Performing Arts Center is open for public events.

            Hours of operation for the ICC Gallery 336B are Monday through Thursday from 9 am to 5 pm, and Friday from 9 am to noon.

            Operation of the ICC art galleries varies with ICC’s holidays and breaks.

            Both exhibits are presented by the ICC Art Program and the Arts at ICC. The Arts at ICC has a rich history of enhancing the arts community and expanding education beyond the classroom. Arts at ICC presents more than 500 exhibits, performances, lectures, rehearsals, meetings, master classes, clinics, seminars, receptions, orientations, forums, auditions and tournaments annually.

            For more information or to confirm a gallery is open at a particular time, visit ArtsAtICC.com or call the ICC Arts and Behavioral Sciences Department at (309) 694-5113.