20 Minutes With Clark Rians

NOW is thankful to sit down with local artistic dynamo Clark Rians, hot on the heels of his lauded run of Red at the Corn Stock Theater. An unforgettable excavation of Rothko’s inward character, the stage play Red depicts his struggle completing a series of paintings...

20 Minutes With Preston Jackson

For our first edition of 20 Minutes With, it seemed inevitable that we begin with our foremost resident artist and local Renaissance Man Preston Jackson. In addition to founding the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, Preston has been playing guitar, sculpting, and...

Art in Plain Sight: “Exhaling Dissolution”

Just north of the corner of 18th Street and Middle Road in Bettendorf is – strangely – a large head made of bark in an open field. More than 13 feet tall, it’s hard to miss. What makes the sculpture feel truly immense, however, is how the artist has fulfilled her goal...