Art for all: Ogden community art shows provide opportunities for creativity and connection
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Art is shown at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Artists pose for a photo at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Artists pose for a photo at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Union Station in Ogden.
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- An undated scene from a previous Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Art is shown at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Art is shown at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Art is shown at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Artists pose for a photo at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- Visitors admire the art at a Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
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- An undated scene from a previous Community Art Show at Union Station in Ogden.
What do you get when you bring together artists and other creators, supportive and appreciative residents and a beautiful downtown location?
In Ogden City, those elements come together to create the quarterly Community Art Show, which takes place at Union Station.
Lorie Buckley, Arts Administrator for Ogden City, said it’s an event designed to provide opportunities for a wide range of community members.
“It’s open to local artists of any age and any skill level,” Buckley in a phone interview with the Standard-Examiner on Friday. “I have art from four-year-olds to artists in their 90s and all different skill levels. There is no entry fee for a creative to participate and we take all types of art. We take even poetry, so someone could do a written piece and we would hang it up on the wall. It’s poetry, three-dimensional or two-dimensional, tapestry, fabric, all types of art forms.”
The show has been going on for six years now after starting during a time of disruption in 2020.
“We started planning it during 2020 as a way to activate the Union Station lobby,” Buckley said. “It was like kind of programmed to where you could come at your own pace and socially distance, that sort of thing. That was the birth of this, although actually I’d always been wanting to activate the Union Station lobby. This show lined up and worked out. It was a good time to start the program.”
Putting on four different art shows per year with between 25 and 75 pieces requires quite a bit of effort and coordination to ensure everything comes together.
“It’s a constant thing that you’re have to be on top of,” Buckley said. “The call for entries for the next show will go out while we’re still running the current show, so you have to stay up on your dates.
“Then we go through all the submissions, make sure they are acceptable and see how many we can showcase in the space. Then we have to reach out to the artists and tell them they’ve been invited, arrange an artwork drop-off day and then hang up the art for the show.”
After all of that takes place, Buckley talked about the voting that goes on as the best pieces are recognized for each show.
“We have community voting,” she said. “There’s an artist choice award and an audience choice award. Those are two awards that are given by voting, but there are others as well. There is the Union Station award and the jurors choice Best of Show award. Also, the mayor or his chief of staff will come down and they select pieces that will transfer from here when the show goes down up onto the ninth floor where they will be displayed longer. The Mayor’s Choice Awards, anywhere from five to 10 pieces, will go and be hung up in the Mayor’s Gallery.”
And once all of those things take place for one show, the whole cycle begins again.
“It can kind of be like the movie Groundhogs Day,” Buckley said. “It just keeps going.”
But it’s all worth it when artists and the public get to share in enjoying the creative works, according to Buckley.
“When artists find out they have been selected, they are so thrilled,” she said. “Oftentimes, they’re like, ‘this is the first time I’ve ever shown my art.’ They have so much fun because it’s safe and comfortable. It makes it very, very easy for them to participate, and then I watch them blossom.
“It actually gives them something to work on. We have artists who work in their basements or garage studios where they have pieces that they’ve never shown anyone. It’s confidence-building and they get super excited when they get to see their work on the wall. It’s predominantly positive on every level.”
She said she has also seen the benefits for the visitors who come see the displays, with many finding pieces that speak to them.
“All the people who visit the station are constantly looking at the show,” Buckley said. “We’ve actually had several artists sell pieces. It doesn’t say anything is for sale but they actually love a piece so much that they’ll ask how they can get a hold of an artist to make a purchase. We’ve had several artists actually sell pieces out of the shows to just the community that sees them.”
Each show has a theme so there is cohesion to the displays. The theme for the current show is food, while the city just put out the call for entries for the second show which will be focused on America’s 250th birthday.
“I’ve had a lot of artists reach out and ask questions about it,” Buckley said. “They’ve asked a lot of questions about how they’re interpreting the theme. I’ve actually got a lot of more questions on this one than average, so I think people are super excited to be a part of the program. I feel like it’ll be a really good show. We’ll get some very interesting pieces that people have been working on really hard, because I told them at the end of last summer that this was coming. They’ve had a lot of time to start working on really interesting pieces for this show.”
Buckley invites artists of all types to submit their work so it can be a part of the show.
“I just would love for them to feel free to share any form of creativity,” she said. “We’ve had pottery, jewelry, quilting, woodworking. We have an ability to display all types of artwork and any skill level. I don’t want them to feel intimidated at all. Whatever level you’re at, we’re happy to display their creative practice. People love seeing all the different levels of artwork.”
And she also invites residents in the area to come to Union Station and see all of the great work creators have come up with.
“It’s always free to enter the lobby, so the show is on display when the station is open
(Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.),” Buckley said. “It’s really fun to see what they’ve done.”
For more information on the Community Art Show or other art opportunities, go to http://ogdencity.gov/arts.
