TP_091318

tinleyjunction.com life & Arts
The tinley junction | September 13, 2018 | 21
A call for ‘an open mind’ as VVAC combines music, art
Rochelle McAuliffe,
Freelance Reporter
Jazz and art have long
been connected as musicians
and artists alike drew
inspiration from the similar
forms of expression.
The Tinley Park-Park
District’s Vogt Visual Arts
Center hosted its fourth and
final artists reception for the
Gazebo Jazz Concert Series
on Friday, Sept. 7, featuring
art from the 18 Artists
Group and music from Joni
and the Jazzuits. Guests to
the historic home-turnedgallery
enjoyed light refreshments
as they listened
to the smooth jazz and
viewed the exquisite art
exhibition from both local
and regional artists. The 18
Artists Group is a cooperative
online gallery, focused
on furthering the careers of
emerging and established
artists in the Northwest
Indiana and Chicagoland
area. Since founding in
1994, their goal has been to
encourage artistic growth,
both individually and as a
group, through feedback
and critique to build a supportive
community.
While past receptions had
hosted the musical guests
on the gazebo the series
was named after, inclement
weather moved the music
inside. As gallery director
Julie Dekker made announcements
to begin the
event, she asked guests to
have “the open mind of
an artist for this experiment”
as the jazz six-piece
played inside the gallery
amongst the art, a first for
an artist’s reception at the
VVAC.
“We had to move the
jazz band inside [because
of the weather,]” Dekker
explained. “This is the first
time we’ve actually ever
had both inside the building.
We’re trying something
new.”
The combination of a live
jazz band amongst a display
of fine art on the first floor of
the Henry Vogt House made
for an interactive gallery experience,
and one you could
only find in Tinley Park.
Since it opened in 1996,
the VVAC has been a staple
for the art community, with
each exhibit as unique as
the space it occupies. Each
month, the gallery features a
new exhibit that showcases
both local and well-known
artists in various mediums.
“Everyone who displays
here just loves the space and
the lighting and the feel of
the house,” Dekker said.
“It’s very homey and comfortable,
as opposed to a
square cold room.”
“Art can be a hard thing
for people to understand,
or think they have to understand
it to enjoy it,”
explained Kirk Dekker, a
volunteer at the VVAC and
the husband of Julie. “This
event gets people in and lets
them mingle, and they can
just enjoy the art and without
having to know anything.”
“You could say you were
just for the music,” Kirk
joked.
As Joni and the Jazzuits
played the music of jazz legends
like John Coltrane and
Miles Davis, guests roamed
the gallery space, and at
times even entered the
group’s performance area to
look at some of the pieces.
Above the head of drummer
Jimmy Steykal hung
an oil painting, created by
Pat Hansen of Dalton.
Her painting - a great blue
heron reflected in the water
as it rested - was a sight that
was close to home, as Hansen
had originally captured
the moment with a photograph
in Orland Park.
Bonnie Straton of Tinley Park gazes upon the interesting pieces of art at the 18 Artists Group opening reception on Friday,
Sept. 7. PHOTOS BY ROCHELLE MCAULIFFE/22ND CENTURY MEDIA
“I think you paint what
you want to paint,” Hansen
said. “When you’re an artist,
you don’t have to travel the
entire world in order to create.
You can find inspiration
in your own backyard.”
The 18 Artists Group exhibit
will run at the VVAC
through Sept. 29, and admission
is free. Upcoming
gallery exhibits include
“The Art of Bachelors
Grove” (Oct. 2-31) and the
Annual High School Show
(Nov. 6-24). A call for artists
in all mediums was issued
for “The Art of Bachelors
Grove,” based on the haunted
Bachelors Grove Cemetery
in Bremen Township.
Artists can submit up to
three pieces during Sept. 25-
28. Questions? Contact gallery
director Julie Dekker at
(708) 309-4371.
Pat Medo of Oak Park admires the unique and intricate jewelry designs and pottery within
the case on display until the end of the month at the Vogt Visual Arts Center in Tinley Park.