What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1393526
6 WHAT'S UP! JULY 18-24, 2021 EUREKA SPRINGS Gone Continued From Page 5 towards Swedes when he was young." Rankine, who moved to Eureka Springs from Key West, Fla., in 1996, feels fortunate to have known many of these artists, whom he considers legendary, himself. "I remember meeting Louis and Elsie Freund for the first time. They were like Eureka Springs royalty," he says. "They were both so charming and interesting and obviously so talented. I was especially drawn to Elsie's work. Her exquisite jewelry and watercolors were so feminine, especially compared to her husband's very heavy and masculine [Works Progress Administration] style murals and paintings. "I was lucky to be invited to visit Mary Sims in her studio, something I found out later was a very rare thing to be asked," Rankine goes on. "Mary was as quirky, charming and delightful as one of her paintings. I'm very excited that a 6-foot-by-4-foot show- stopping acrylic painting is included in the exhibition. "I had the privilege of photographing Max Elbo for various projects. Max was the very best graphic artist. It's hard to believe that the work was all done in pen and ink years before the invention of Photoshop. We have on loan several originals that are absolutely stunning. "And Gary Eagan was a dear friend and an amazing ceramic artist. He and his partner Steve Beacham were some of the first people I met in Eureka. "It's important to not forget our rich cultural history," Rankine says. "These 13 artists are just the tip of the iceberg. I am already working on 'Gone But Not Forgotten: Part 2' for the new year to include people like Reed and Stella Larson, Shuggie Tucker, Lynn Williams, James Corner and Janet Alexander, to name a few." While Rankine says he thinks Eureka Springs "will always be a place that artists and people who love art will congregate," he adds that he wishes "our city would make some long-term investments in its arts infrastructure." And he'd especially like to see the rest of Northwest Arkansas take note. "I would love the people at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art to come, have a beer or coffee and see this show," he says. "These artists were the pioneers of the art scene in Northwest Arkansas. So Alice, if you are reading this, give me a call! I would love to help curate a similar exhibition in your exquisite museum."