Kingfield Community Celebrates Foolishness and Art

The sixth annual Kingfield Community Art Show and Silent Auction was held Friday evening, April Fools Day, from 7:30 to 10 p.m. at the . The theme this year was “April Foolishness.” 

This marked the first time the event was held at the Center for Performing Arts, a space that posed some interesting challenges, with set up for the show having to be scheduled around dance classes. and have hosted the art show and silent auction in the past. 

Tammy Ortegon of hung the show this year, as she does every year with the help of volunteers. Ortegon said she sees this event as evidence of the community coming together to support art. Neighborhood businesses provided the food, volunteers from the community got together to make the show walls, and each artist donated half or all of their proceeds from the silent auction.

“It’s the whole community coming together to have a fun time,” Ortegon said.

 During the event, guests enjoyed tasty offerings provided by Anodyne,, , Sun Street Breads,  and . Jenny Breen of Good Life Catering coordinated the food. 

The show was open to artists of all mediums and not restricted to Kingfield residents, though the show is a benefit for public art in Kingfield. Over 50 pieces were submitted. All submitted pieces were accepted and all were part of the silent auction.

The Kingfield Neighborhood Association, in partnership with Anodyne, the Center for Performing Arts, ColorWheel Gallery, Johnson Design + etc, Leonardo’s Basement, Odds N Ends and Rau + Barber, hosted the show and auction. Tickets were $10 in advance or $20 at the door, with all proceeds benefitting Kingfield community art projects. Proceeds from the silent auction and cash bar went to the same purpose. 

Sarah Linnes-Robinson, executive director of the Kingfield Neighborhood Association, said it’s still being decided where the funds from this show will go and that the KFNA has several art projects in the works. Funds from last year’s community art show and silent auction went to the SPEAK Project with the Chicago Avenue Fire Arts Center. 

Two areas of interest are Nicollet Avenue and .

“We’re working on a number of public art projects. Along Nicollet Avenue with the repaving, we know we’re going to want to find ways to further enhance that. We’re also looking at a number of public art possibilities in Martin Luther King Park as a way to better honor Dr. King there,” Linnes-Robinson said.

Artists were asked to stick to the theme of April Foolishness, but beyond that, freedom of expression reigned. Some artists used real life as inspiration. For her painting “Reclining Nude,” Brenda Moses wrote in her statement, “Reclining Nude depicts my cat Oscar in a typical human pose. This painting evolved after Oscar repeatedly placed himself in this frame on my dining room table. It’s as though he begs to be subject matter!” 

Others were simply playful. For his piece, “Yeti with a Yo-yo,” John Sauer wrote, “It’s April 1st and winter’s maw will not stop the spring yo-yo!” 

One artist, Stephen Hoffer, chose to go with a traditional nod to the holiday. His work, titled “SMELL IT!,” begged viewers to get nice and close. When they did, they were met with a small but surprising spray of water. The artist/prankster stood watch nearby with a remote control hidden in his pocket and a cell phone video camera to record the reactions. 

“It had to be done,” Hoffer said.