DATE: Wednesday, August 27, 1997            TAG: 9708270110

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E9   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LIZ SZABO, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   71 lines

CHESAPEAKE TO SPOTLIGHT ITS ARTISTS

THE NEW Chesapeake Conference Center could be home to more than just business conventions.

Conference center organizers also hope to create a permanent art space for revolving exhibits - highlighted by the work of Chesapeake artists, said conference center general manager Bill Lindley . Lindley is working with d'Art Center executive director Susan Bernard on the art collection for the conference center, which is scheduled to open Sept. 5.

Conference center officials recently awarded commissions to four artists - the first painters whose work will be permanently displayed. All four are from Chesapeake: Bob Holland , Karen Kinser , Pat Kirby and Ken Wright , Bernard said. Their work will hang in the center's foyer. Rotating exhibits will hang on walls throughout the center.

The conference center's $8,000 art budget will be divided about equally among artists, Lindley said.

A new exhibition space is a cultural coup in a city with only one other public place to exhibit - the public library, Kinser said. Chesapeake has no art museum. Wright, Kinser and Holland now work at the d'Art Center. Kirby's family runs an art gallery in Greenbrier.

Conference center officials deliberately sought out Chesapeake artists, said L. Randy Harrison, the city's fine arts coordinator, who recommended the artists selected.

``The facility's in Chesapeake, and it will let people know that there's great art here in Chesapeake,'' Harrison said. ``People think there is no art in Chesapeake, but some of the finest artists in the area are right here.''

Chesapeake artists appreciate the boost, Wright said.

``It's going to be a fabulous place,'' said Wright, a member of the Virginia Commission for the Arts and a graphic designer for The Virginian-Pilot. ``It's always nice to be selected by your home town. . . . This is going to open up possibilities for artists not just in Chesapeake but around the area.''

Several artists said they've often longed for more exhibition space in the city.

``God knows it's time,'' said Holland, a former commissioner with the Chesapeake Fine Arts Commission. Holland is one of many local arts supporters who've worked to build a fine arts center in the city.

The Chesapeake Public Works Department is reviewing proposals from five architectural companies for an arts education center. City Council has yet to budgeted any money for the center.

Much of the artwork commissioned for the conference center will focus on Chesapeake. Wright plans an abstract painting that evokes a sense of landscape and water. Kinser, known for her impressionistic figural paintings, plans a diptych depicting lifestyles in Chesapeake. Holland has not yet designed his painting but says he may create a ``visionary'' painting using the colors of the conference center - red, blue and gray.

Kirby, who could not be reached for this story, is known for her tapestries, as well as her more recent work with land-scapes.

Future exhibitions will not be limited to Chesapeake artists but will seek out artists from around the country.

The first four artists selected have earned widespread acclaim for their work. Wright, in addition to being a state commissioner for the arts, designed the logo for the Waterfront International Arts Festival. One of Holland's paintings hangs in the White House. Kinser received an Award of Merit in June at the 42nd annual Boardwalk Art Show. And Kirby hails from a family of artists, including her late husband, Jim Kirby, and her son, Ken Kirby, who runs the Ann Nicole Gallery. ILLUSTRATION: STAFF FILE PHOTOS

Artists whose works will be displayed at the center include, from

left, Ken Wright, Pat Kirby and Bob Holland.

An artist's rendering of the Chesapeake Conference Center, which is

scheduled to open Sept. 2 and will include an art exhibition area.

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