Chesterton Art Center is pleased to announce two new exhibitions May 2-29, 2024, titled Birds of the Hudson: Block Prints by the late Stephen Rengstorf, and Prairies Big and Small: Photographs by Susan Kirt. Both artists investigate and reveal elements of our country’s ecosystems through their own artistic perspectives and techniques. An exhibition reception is planned for Friday, May 17, 4-7 PM as part of Chesterton’s Third Fridays and will include a cash bar and light refreshments.
Birds of the Hudson: Block Prints by Stephen Rengstorf, organized by the Estate of Stephen Rengstorf, features woodcut and linoleum block prints created by Rengstorf, celebrating his love of raptors and the outdoors. “I create images that offer the viewer a glimpse into the daily odyssey of birds in the environment this great river provides, “ said Rengstorf of the place he called home, New York’s Hudson River Valley.
Prairies Big and Small: Photographs by Susan Kirt immerses the viewer in the rare and endangered Tallgrass Prairie ecosystem and the fragments of this once vast landscape. Kirt’s exceptional photographs connect people with the diverse prairie plants and animals found in the patchwork of the Chicago region’s grasslands, both in remnants and planted reconstructions.
CAC is presenting a satellite exhibit of Kirt’s prairie photographs May 2 – July 31 at the Das Gallery located at Country Inn & Suites, 2020 LaPorte Avenue in Valparaiso. A reception will be held on Thursday June 20, 4:30 – 6:30PM. All are welcome.
Chesterton Art Center will also be hosting a Family Art Day on Saturday, May 11, 2024 from 10AM-2PM. Family Art Day visitors will explore Rengstorf’s Birds of the Hudson and Kirt’s Prairies Big and Small exhibitions and create a series of projects inspired by their work. CAC’s Family Art Days are free and all ages are welcome, registration information can be found at chestertonart.org.
Susan Kirt, Renewal by Fire, 2018
Stephen Rengstorf, Hudson Hunter, 2007