With the Arkansas Arts Center’s renovation starting June 30, there’s still time to see its collections. We took a trip through its galleries to find the four must-see exhibits for your final visit!
1) 61st Annual Delta Exhibition
Founded in 1958, the Annual Delta Exhibition showcases contemporary art from the American South. It presents a unique, yearly snapshot of the Delta region and the artists it produces. The exhibition features 50 works by 49 different artists from Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.
2) 58th Young Arkansas Artists
The Young Arkansas Artists exhibit began 1961 to promote learning, inspiration and creative expression across the state. Now in its 58th year, the exhibit features artwork from 79 Arkansas students ranging from kindergartners to high school seniors about to embark on college careers.
This exhibit of pop art is centered around a book of Polaroid photos taken by Andy Warhol in 1975 and includes the work of his contemporaries during the pop art explosion of the 1960’s and 1970’s. Highlights of the exhibit include works by Roy Lichtenstein, David Gilhooly and Larry Rivers. Together they stunned the art world by making fine art focusing on mass-produced or commercial images, and decades later their impact on the world of art is still being felt.
4) Then, Now, Next: Reimagining the Arkansas Arts Center
June 30 will be your last chance to see the “before” version of a Little Rock institution until the Arkansas Arts Center reopens in 2022. This is your chance to say goodbye to the old and explore all of the incredible new things to come. This exhibit presents the history of the Arkansas Arts Center, from its founding in 1914 as the Fine Arts Club of Arkansas though to scale models of the upcoming renovation.