Two New Art Exhibitions Opening at Lawton’s Leslie Powell Gallery

The Leslie Powell Gallery is proud to announce the opening of two new art exhibitions. “Places Near, Far, and Fantastic”, and The Lawton Farmers Market Tomato Festival Art Competition will open with a reception on Friday, 8 July 2022, and run through Friday, 26 August 2022.

For artist Madeline Dillner, traveling is life, so it’s only natural for her art to be heavily influenced by the places she has visited. In her exhibition, “Places Near, Far, and Fantastic”, Dillner endeavors to convey the energy and wonder of four distinct locations through art. First is her home in Wynnewood, Oklahoma—built by her grandfather; the second is Costa Rica from her trip in 2012; the third is Iceland from a 2018 trip. The final place in Dillner’s exhibition is a world that can only be traveled to through imagination. The paintings produced for this fourth series are ideas from sketches the artist completed as far back as 2014, and they are inspired by the vivid storytelling of Susan Cooper, Garth Nix, Orson Scott Card, Ray Bradbury, and Philip K. Dick.

 Dillner started painting in 2016 and has studied with various artists through workshops and classes. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Sustainability from the University of Oklahoma. She currently resides in Wynnewood, Oklahoma with her husband and pets.

 Held in collaboration with the Lawton Farmers Market, this is the third year for the Tomato Festival Art Competition. In years past, artwork has ranged from still-life paintings of tomatoes to more eccentric interpretations of the tomato theme. The competition regularly sees a variety of styles and media as well, including traditional realism in oil paint, digitally-manipulated photography, and hand-stitched embroidery.

 The thirty-four artists accepted into this year's Tomato Festival Art Competition include Tiera Acree, Cindy Blackburn, Kayla Branliam, Joshua Brooks, Pattie Calfy, Aaliyah Climes, Shiloh Coates, Luena Y. Comas, Sandra Dunn, Diane Goldschmidt, Kaydee Hall, Kenna Hand, Matthew D. and Adalynn M. Hughes, Andrea H. Johns, Karen Kuntz, Lynndon Lambert, Cory Livingston, Morgan Mackert, Tiffany Morrow, Ryn Ortega, Alexandra Patterson, Michele Pierce, Becky Reeder, Devon Reynolds, Kourtney Rice, Fatima Rivera, Donna Robillard, Diane Robinson, Natalie Sklaney, Behnaz Sohrabian, Robyn Spires, Dorbonia Stevens, Jan Stratton, Kathy Suttles. The competition will be judged by Jack Crouch of Cameron University.

 Both exhibitions will open with a reception on Friday, 8 July 2022 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. They will then be available for viewing during regular gallery hours through Friday, 26 August 2022.

 The Leslie Powell Gallery continues to have safety requirements in place for visitors during the ongoing pandemic. While masks are not currently required for entry, they are recommended. Social distancing is also encouraged.

 At this time, light refreshments will be served during the reception. However, this is subject to change depending upon the ever-changing pandemic conditions and safety recommendations.

 The Leslie Powell Foundation Gallery is a non-profit organization whose mission is to celebrate and promote the arts in the Lawton community as well as Southwestern Oklahoma. The gallery hosts six art exhibitions per year in addition to lectures and musical performances. More information can be found at the gallery’s website, www.lpgallery.org, and its Facebook page, www.facebook.com/lpartgallery.

[release]