In a world filled with technology, the Springville Museum of Art is opening a new exhibit celebrating yesteryear, featuring art and installations that examine pre-smartphone nostalgia and childlike play. The exhibit titled, It’s All Fun and Games, opens August 28 and will run until July 2025.
According to a recent press release, the museum aims to “transport visitors back to a simpler time when tangible objects and activities brought us joy and wonder.”
Co-curated with artist and gallerist Bianca Velasquez, It’s All Fun and Games will feature “whimsical and playful artworks that celebrate childlike play.” The exhibition will feature works by known artists including Trent Call, John Connors, Alethia Lunares, Abigale Palmer, Andrew Smith, Bianca Velasquez, and Amy Willmuth.
The artists used a range of media to create works that explore different areas of childhood nostalgia. The pieces are meant to open a dialogue between the past and present. Unlike other exhibits, It’s All Fun and Games heavily features tactile, hands-on experiences. This emphasis on physical interaction is meant to reconnect visitors with the carefree joy of their early years, encourage playful exploration, and ignite curiosity.
Some of these installations will include giant sticky hands, an oversized blanket fort, I-spy murals, and intricate dollhouses, along with illustrations.
Admission to the exhibit is free and the opening reception is scheduled to be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, August 28.
Throughout the month of Aug., the museum will also be hosting two other exhibitions for a limited time. The 50th Annual Utah Quilt Show, which opened July 20, will be closing September 21, and the 30 Years of Friendship and Art exhibit will close September 21.
The 50th Annual Utah Quilt Show is a juried exhibition that features quilts of all styles and sizes created by some of the state’s top quilters. The annual competition is a joint effort between the Springville Museum of Art and the Utah Valley Quilt Guild with additional support from the Corn Wagon Quilt Company.
Award winners were posted on July 22 and the list can be seen on www.smofa.org. Many can also still be seen in the exhibit itself, however, some quilts may not be on display as some contestants have already begun to pick up their quilts.
The Joe Adams and Brian Kershisnik 30 Years of Friendship and Art exhibit opened the same day as the quilt show and offers a glimpse of the collaboration between two longtime friends.
The show is centered on work produced by painter Brian Kershisnik and his frequent collaborator Joe Adams, who is Kershisnik’s long-time friend and neighbor. Adams, who is only a few years younger than Kershisnik, has Down Syndrome. Together, they create mixed-media paintings.
Their collaboration began three decades ago, with their first show being held at the Springville Museum of Art. In honor of that anniversary, the museum will again be exhibiting some of the works they have created during the time since.
Their process is collaborative, with Adams using bold, black lines to establish the initial figures or shapes. Once the initial line work is complete, Kershisnik and Adams have conversations about the piece, with Kershisnik asking Adams about the subject. According to Kershisnik, “sometimes that becomes the title, sometimes I make a note on the back and craft a title later.” Together, they then take turns applying colors and washes in various media to complete the piece.
The Springville Museum of Art was founded as Utah’s first museum for the visual arts and is currently hosting a celebration of its prestigious Spring Salon, which celebrated 100 years. The museum is open Monday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., except for Wednesdays, when they close at 8 p.m. and Mondays, when the museum is only open from 6 to 8 p.m.
