Katherine Martinez | Tender Treasures II, Peru, watercolor on watercolor paper

Darlene Spell | Strike a Pose, photograph

Steve Snell  | Magenta Bear, acrylic on paper

Justin Kidston | All of This Will Someday Change, oil on linen

FEATURED ARTISTS PROGRAM

Meet our new Missouri Featured Artists for March – and all the rest

Since we founded our Missouri Featured Artists Program in December 2020, we have highlighted more than 150 imaginative makers from throughout the state: painters, pencil artists, sculptors, dancers, singers, instrumental musicians, poets, novelists, filmmakers, ceramicists, jewelry artists, glass artists, and many more who create in myriad other ways. You’ll find them all in the ever-growing gallery below our current highlighted quartet.

Katherine Martinez
painter

St. Louis

Darlene Spell
nature photographer

Scott City

Steve Snell
painter / filmmaker / adventure artist

Kansas City

Justin Kidston
painter

Joplin

Steve Snell |  Adventure Art on the Mighty Mo’ is a video series about art, adventure, and life along the Missouri River told through the act of painting, storytelling, and paddling all 2,342 miles of it. Each episode takes place at a different site, in which a watercolor painting is created. The videos and paintings are here.

STEVE SNELL

painter / filmmaker / adventure artist | Kansas City

I want adventure, or least the image of one. I often pursue overlooked yet historically relevant places as a wellspring for creative inspiration and local engagement.

My work is inspired by the mythology of American history and the Western landscape. I explore, question, and celebrate this heroic and complicated narrative through paintings, videos, and genuine adventures. With experiences ranging from pushing a Conestoga-like wagon across 55 miles of backcountry farm roads (previously the Oregon Trail), to floating a cardboard replica of Lewis and Clark’s keelboat, to traveling part of the Connecticut River in a couch boat, to paddling and painting all 2,341 miles of the entire Missouri River in a canoe, I seek connection with the present moment through a reinterpretation of past stories and legends. Whether serving as a record of a journey or a somewhat absurd vision of adventure, I’m ultimately looking for meaningful life experiences with others through art.


Darlene Spell |  Beauty in Nature, photograph

DARLENE SPELL

nature photographer | Scott City

I like the calming and healing force of nature, and try to convey that through my photography.

I’ve always loved photography and have been exposed to it from an early age. Cameras have always been a big part of family get-togethers and vacations. Not having had the traditional classroom learning of photography, through the years I’ve read books and magazines. Today I use online resources and have a mentor who helps and guides me. Before I venture into nature, I do research on the area, making notes of what wildlife or landscapes I might see. When I get to my destination, I make further notes on what I come across, including time and place. My approach out in the field then is straightforward, capturing what I see, what catches my eye. Hoping that when you see it, you will feel surrounded and immersed in the photo. Post-production I try to keep simple and do edits that will bring out the best in the photo. I am very blessed, and my photographic journey continues.


Katherine Martinez |  Entre Flores y Colores, oil on panel, market near the Plaza de Armas in Cusco, Peru

KATHERINE MARTINEZ

painter | St. Louis

I’m a moody painter, by which I mean I love experimenting and switching between various art materials on a regular basis, as it keeps my creative process exciting and unpredictable.

From the delicate blends of pastels to the bold textures of oils, each medium offers a unique avenue for creative expression. I relish the challenge of exploring new techniques and embracing the inherent qualities of my materials, as I believe in the importance of matching the medium to the work’s message. I aim to creating paintings that resonate deeply with viewers, and share my own experiences and culture as a Peruvian-American. I attribute many of my accomplishments to my workshop instructors, mentors, and my employment as a gallery assistant. Since moving to Missouri from Texas, my time has been shared between commissions, creating gallery pieces, plein air painting, and successfully participating in several local, regional, and national competitions. Most recently I was featured in the 25th Annual Pastel 100 “Ones to Watch” article, and am showing artwork in galleries in Missouri, Texas, Wyoming, Kansas, and New York.


Judson Kidston | Alpenglow, oil on canvas

JUSTIN KIDStON

painter | Joplin

I’m obsessed with trying to picture what a landscape was like before any type of human influence.

Working primarily in oils, I create paintings where the narrative usually weaves in and out of scenes consisting of strange forms juxtaposed with vast open landscapes. I create these scenes to try and evoke a feeling of wonder and to attempt to get a taste, even if for a brief moment , what it would be like to witness something truly unknown. A feeling similar to what I think early humans must have felt as they spread across our planet’s surface, experiencing terrain changes, strange new plants and animals, and large-scale geological phenomena. They experienced all of this with absolutely no understanding of the forces behind them, leaving explanation mostly to their imaginations. This thought gives me full freedom to explore my own imagination while adhering to fundamental principles of observation of light, form, and color to create something purely unexplainable to the viewer.  


OUR FEATURED ARTISTS FROM THE BEGINNING THROUGH FEBRUARY 2024

Mark Hurd
digital graphic artist
St. Louis

Sylvia Augustus
photographer
Kansas City

Asia Long
visual artist
Columbia

Victoria Johnson
visionary artist
Springfield

James Hall
sculptor / fabricator
Fair Grove

Benedetta Orsi
opera singer
St. Louis

Anthony Scheffler
artist-maker
St. Louis

Katarra Parson
musician, vocalist, producer
St. Louis

I. Lynn Garriott Porter
artist / proprietor of Garriott Porter Art Studio, LLC / art instructor
Fulton

Joseph Pintz
ceramic artist
Columbia

Sharon Spillar
contemporary abstract painter
Kansas City

Andy Klein
metal fabricator and sculptor
Kansas City

Mary Silwance
imaginer, writer, educator
Kansas City

Evan Church
painter
St. Charles

Bobby Storts
painter, maker, visual storyteller
Augusta

Andrew Jones
painter
Marionville

Mee Jey
multidisciplinary artist
St. Louis

Ted Hinrichs
abstract painter
Kansas City

Jo Narron
painter
Warrensburg

Gary Staab
PaleoArtist, animalier, sculptor
Kearney

Richard Prosch
writer
Jefferson City

Linda Wilmes
artist
Wentzville

Askia Bilal
artist
Columbia

Jennifer Walker
sculptor
Kansas City

Lillian Gardner
visual artist, poet, musician, dancer, mentor
St. Louis

Laurie Van Mondfrans
artist/designer/metalsmith
Dardenne Prairie

David Borrok
professor and photographer
Rolla

Luke “Skippy” Harbur
creative producer and entertainer
Kansas City

Nicole Hanna
glass fusing artist
Billings

Ray Harvey
muralist
New Haven

Ruben Castillo
artist and educator
Kansas City

Amy S. Miller
painter, illustrator, designer
St. Louis

Dan Woodward
artist
Rolla

John Fennell
painter
Columbia

Steenz
cartoonist, editor, professor
St. Louis

Jana Dunn
paper artist, creative entrepreneus
Kansas City

Marilynne Bradley
watercolorist
Webster Groves

Aimee Fresia
visual artist, teacher, chicken-wrangler
Lee’s Summit

Lew Aytes
sculptor, curator, teacher
Aurora

Essex Garner
painter
Jefferson City

Travis Bond
artist: graphite, charcoal, colored pencil, pastel
Columbia

Rick Wright
painter
Kansas City

Jane Ballard
photographer
Shell Knob

Hayveyah McGowan
multidisciplinary artist and designer
St. Louis

Garrett SixOne Jackson
painter/muralist
Osage Beach

Jenny Molberg
poet, professor, editor
Kansas City

Gonz Jove
muralist/fine artist/sculptor
St. Louis

Michelle D. Harvey
scenic designer and visual storyteller
Springfield

Nela Navarrine
visual artist and media mixer
Joplin

Angel Brame
ceramic artist
Joplin

William Fields
nature photographer, writer, teacher, philosopher
Hermann

Cesar Lopez
artist and arts organizer
Kansas City

Lynnette Horn
painter
Branson

Douglas Dale
sculptor and fiber artist
St. Louis

Lanjiabao Ge
pianist, pedagogue
Kirksville

Steve Paul
writer etc.
Kansas City

Eddie Moore
keyboardist/producer
Kansas City

Michael Munster

nature and wildlife photographer
Joplin

Christine Riutzel

painter, muralist, interior designer
Hollister

Elinor Harrison

dancer/movement scientist
St. Louis

Wanda Taylor

color pencil artist
Cameron

Michael McClure

painter
Willow Springs

Randy Bacon

portrait photographer
Springfield

Simiya Sudduth

visual artist and art educator
St. Louis

Gregory Stout

novelist/railroad historian
Cape Girardeau

Cristina Núñez

painter
Columbia

Molly Simms

(not your typical) singer/songwriter
St. Louis

Nick Gadbois

surrealist, cement artist, innovator, career starter for other artists
Kansas City

Joshua Newth
painter
Cape Girardeau

Teri Moore
artist who draws
Augusta/Washington

Clarissa Knighten
jewelry artist/sculptor
Kansas City

Daniel Biegelson
writer, teacher, transparent eyeball
Liberty

Laurel DeFreece
painter, collage artist, photographer, encaustic artist, papermaker, printmaker, designer
Plattsburg

Paige Alyssa
singer, songwriter, producer

St. Louis

Butch Murphy
metal sculptor
Bellair & Kansas City

Steve Wiegenstein
author, speaker, teacher
Columbia

Alicia Farris
painter of life, workshop instructor
Springfield

Kirk Decker
photographer
Lawson

Kendall Hart
sculptor, illustrator
Farmington

Kim Bouldin-Jones
mixed media artist and photographer
St. Charles

JT Daniels
artist/muralist
Kansas City

Lisa Franko
print and collage artist
Columbia

Jodie Sutton
encaustic artist
Ozark

W. Mark Akin
classical guitarist
St. Louis

Benjamin Parks
artist, painter
Kansas City

Mick Byrd
original songwriter, musician
Vienna

Yolanda (YORO) Newson
jewelry designer, fashion artist, wardrobe stylist, set creator
St. Louis

Jo Stealey
fiber and mixed media artist
Columbia

BT in America
musician, instrumental solo guitarist, music arranger
Stockton Lake Area

Michael Bauermeister
sculptor
Augusta

Kelley Carman
painter
St. Louis & Paris

Sheri Purpose Hall
author, spoken word artist
Kansas City

Karen E. Griffin, Art by .E Lewis
textile and performing artist, educator, tour manager, storyteller, speaker, co-author, radio co-host
Kansas City

Kaitlyn McConnell
Ozarks story sharer
Springfield

Ken Konchel
photographer
St. Louis

Ken Nichols
painter
Columbia

Joseph Puleo
filmmaker
St. Louis

Joha Bisone
painter
Kansas City

Linda Hoover
muralist, watercolorist, portrait artist, caricaturist
Houstonia

Limmie Pulliam
opera singer, arts activist
Kennett

Lee Copen
artist, teacher
Mountain View

Melissa Donoho
mix media artist
Kansas City

Vince Martin
musician
St. Louis

Dave Walker
fiber artist
Columbia

Joachim Knill
installation artist
Hannibal

Cheryl Eve Acosta
metalsmith, sculptor, jeweler
Kansas City

Andrew Batcheller
installation artist
Kansas City

Sukanya Mani
interdisciplinary artist
Ballwin

Dana Forrester
watercolor painter
Independence

Marco Rosichelli
conceptual artist
Kansas City

Candice Ivory
musician, vocalist, composer, visual artist
St. Louis

Janey Seamans Hale
painter
West Plains

Poet t.l. sanders
language artist, author, actor, educator, consultant, filmmaker
Kansas City

Priscilla Block
visual artist
St. Louis

Andy Thomas
painter
Carthage

Brie Duey
painter, magical realist
Bucklin

Denise Thimes
songstress, motivational speaker
St. Louis

Malcolm “Airbrush Assassin” McCrae
artist, author, speaker, entrepreneur
Southeast Missouri

Genevieve Flynn
silversmith, artist, educator
Kansas City

David Spear
muralist, illustrator, graphic/exhibit designer
Columbia

Mollie Chounard
painter
St. Ann

Eric Ordway
ceramic artist, potter, teacher
Columbia

Russell Nelson
designer, illustrator, watercolor artist, educator
Kirksville

Glyneisha Johnson
poly disciplinary artist, educator, community care taker
Kansas City

Allison L. Norfleet Bruenger
mixed media jewelry and assemblage artist
St. Louis

Kyle Selley
firework artist, visual artist, art educator
Kansas City

Lisa Bartlett
mixed media artist, painter
Columbia

Ray Cardwell
singer songwriter from the Ozarks
Jefferson City

Azaria Rianne Hogans
choreographer, dancer, educator
Springfield

Greg Holden
artist, photographer, inquisitive observer, thankful human being
Eureka

Patrick Rafferty
guitarist, teacher
Affton

Barb Byrne
fused glass artist
Pleasant Hill

Gary Cadwallader
painter of acrylics and watercolor
Warrensburg

Byron von Rosenberg
poet, illustrator, storyteller
Byrnes Mill

Regina Willard
contemporary impressionist
West Plains

Hyejin Cho
concert pianist, educator
Kirksville

Grant Kniffen
painter
Dardenne Prairie

Laura Bigger
artist, printmaker
Kirksville

Ralph Hepola
musician
Springfield

Jen Everett
interdisciplinary artist
St. Louis

James Douglas Cox
metal artist
Republic

Natalie Wiseman
visual artist
Joplin

Kevin Umaña
painter, ceramics sculptor
Kansas City

Nartana Premachandra
dancer, writer, storyteller
St. Louis

Wanda K. Tyner
glass artist
Lee’s Summit

F.C. Shultz
author, poet, reader
Webb City

Lindsey Dunnagan
visual artist
Kirksville

Brian Owens
soul musician/vocalist
St. Louis

Anand Prahlad
literary author, musician/songwriter, filmmaker, teaching artist
Columbia

Brenda Beck Fisher
painter, watercolorist, interpreter of the beauty in the world
Hannibal

Anne Garney
landscape painter, fauve, expressionist
Kansas City

Jeffrey Noonan
musician: performer, teacher, scholar
St. Louis

Whitney Manney
fashion and textile designer
Kansas City

Justin Hamm
poet, photographer, citizen of the American Middle West
Mexico

Robin Van Hoozer
artist, painter, maker of unusual things
St. Joseph

Bobby Norfolk
storyteller, author, teaching artist
St. Louis

FAQS

What is the program’s goal?

The Featured Artists program promotes and supports individual artists and demonstrates the variety of creative Missouri talent.

How does the program work?

We feature four artists each month. We highlight and promote each month’s artists via the homepage of the Missouri Arts Council website, the Featured Artists page on the website, monthly email, social media, and links to the artists’ websites. Artists receive a $300 stipend/license fee to feature their work online. We appreciate the administrative support of Mid-America Arts Alliance.

Who is eligible?

Individual Missouri-resident artists of any medium with online work that they have ownership to license. (Groups are not eligible.) Mediums may include (but are not limited to) visual art, literature, music, video, dance, theater, storytelling, and traditional arts.

What kind of content on an artist’s website is required?

Our aim through all of our Featured Artists promotions, from our website to social media, is to drive people to the artist’s own website, where they can then learn more about the artist and experience more of the artist’s work. This means an artist’s website must have multiple examples of their work.

For film artists, this entails videos. For performing artists, this entails videos or audio recordings. These can be hosted on the artist’s website itself or at an exterior website. If the videos/recordings are not hosted on the artist’s own website, that website must provide a very obvious element that lets people know exactly where the art can be experienced online. The link to videos/recordings’ location must be clearly given. People must be able to listen to/watch the recordings/videos without any subscription, for free, such as on YouTube.

For literary artists, this entails text versions or performances of the artwork. Text versions of poetry should include the full poem. Text versions of fiction and non-fiction prose should feature substantial multi-paragraph excerpts, and more than one artwork must be excerpted. Both text versions and performances can be published/hosted on the artist’s website itself or at an exterior website. If text versions and performance videos/recordings are not published/hosted on the artist’s own website, that website must provide a very obvious element that lets people know exactly where the art can be experienced online. The link to the location of the text or the videos/recordings’ location must be clearly given. People must be able to listen to/watch the recordings/videos without any subscription, for free, such as on YouTube.

The website of Missouri’s 2021-2023 Poet Laureate, Maryfrances Wagner, is an excellent example of both  entire poems published on the artist’s own site and of  links to exterior sites where her poems can be read.

Artist’s biography: It is ideal, although not required, that the artist’s “about” biography on their website make their residence within Missouri explicit by specifying the town/city or region where they live.

May artists participate if they don’t have a website?

No; an effective website is an essential part of this program. Without it, there is nothing to promote, neither your work NOR a place to send people to benefit you.

While your Instagram, Facebook page, Twitter page etc. can supplement with social engagement, these sites do not effectively showcase your work, nor are they as easily accessed or managed as a website. Moreover, Instagram requires that viewers have their own Instagram account in order to view the content, so it is not a fully open platform. Therefore, having ONLY a social media page without ALSO having a website is not enough to be considered as a Featured Artist.

How do artists apply?

Propose your work for consideration  via this online form. Support your application with links to your website and other online platforms where your work is located. No work may be sent as an attachment. Work that cannot be accessed online may not be considered. Artists retain full ownership and rights to their work. Artists will allow with their consideration a limited use right to feature their work on the Missouri Art Council website and other platforms. There is no fee to apply.

Artists should apply for the program ONLY ONCE. Applications are kept on file for future consideration.

How are Featured Artists selected?

The Missouri Arts Council staff selects artists with diverse demographics and locations throughout the state who are producing quality original work in a variety of art mediums and genres.

How will artists know if they are selected?

Artists will be contacted directly if they have been selected. If you are not contacted, do not despair! All applicants will continue to be considered as the program continues monthly.

How often should artists apply?

Artists need apply for this program ONLY ONCE. Applications are kept on file for future consideration.

How long will this program last?

We will continue this program through June 30, 2022. If funding allows, this program may continue.