Curated Gallery Shows

Works of local artists in February and March 2022.

Local artists featured in the first show, January 2020.

Local photographers featured in fall 2020.

Local photographers featured in fall 2020.

Doane University student works in spring 2021.

Doane University student works in spring 2021.

Works of the artist Quintanilla, from a local collection, in late summer 2021.

Works of the artist Quintanilla, from a local collection, in late summer 2021.

Works of the artist Quintanilla, from a local collection, in late summer 2021.

Fabric art of local quilters in late fall 2021.

Fabric art of local quilters in late fall 2021.

Works of Crete High School students shown in winter 2021-2022.

Works of Crete High School students shown in winter 2021-2022.

Works of Crete High School students shown in winter 2021-2022.

Works of local artists in February and March 2022.

Works from Crete Middle School students in April 2022.

Works from Crete Middle School students in April 2022.

Works from Crete Middle School students in April 2022.

 Launch the media gallery 1 player

Works of local artists in February and March 2022.

The Blue River Arts Council (BRAC) was formed in 2018 with a mission to provide Southeast Nebraska access to quality arts and entertainment opportunities. This goal will be met by preserving and operating the Isis Theatre in downtown Crete; providing public education and recreation relating to the fine arts and cinema; spreading artistic and cultural awareness; and growing opportunities for public involvement in theater, art, dance, photography, cinema and other fine and performing arts.

When the new library was set to open in January 2020, BRAC volunteered to curate artwork on a rotating basis for the gallery space at the east end of the main collection area. Find more information on the BRAC website or on Facebook.

Previous shows in the library gallery have included:

2025

• July-August: award-winning pieces in pastel, acrylic, photography, and digital media by Julie Fahrlander, a founding member of the Blue River Arts Council
• May-June: works of paper folded in the ancient tradition of origami to create elaborate scenes by artist Linda Stephens
• March-April: photography and pastel paintings of landscape and nature scenes by artist Gretchen Olberding
• January-February : alcohol ink renderings on canvas and recycled tile, Batiks on cloth, all by Nebraska artist Anna Alcalde

2024

• September-October : encaustic art (melding beeswax, dammar resin, and pigment, applied hot on a wood panel and fused with a torch) by Lincoln artist, Margaret Berry
• March-April: works by artist Mindy Dahlgren Burton
• January-February: Beaver River Project artwork of Nano Nore, a native of Albion, now of Kansas City; she has family in Crete

2023

• November-December: work by artist, Liefsbeth, a native of Ghent, Belgium who moved to the U.S. in 2016
• September-October: Oil paintings by Ann Martin, rural Doniphan
• May-June: pieces by nature engineer, Susan Anderson
• March-April: pen and ink drawings by Crete High School alumnus Jacob Schmidt, now of Kansas City
• January-February: artwork by Myrna Meister, a member of the Fremont Area Art Association

2022

• November-December: watercolor and oil paintings by retired music educator Denise Lueke; book cover illustrations for the Luna Queen series were created for her daughter and Doane alum, author Kelsey N. Lancaster
• September-October: landscape paintings by Crete native Kay Juricek, now of Denver
• July-August: custom prints from Lincoln artist Suzanne Holzworth with a few items from her husband, Bennett
• May-June: works of Lincoln artist Pam Bourland Reid
• April: pieces from student artists at Crete Middle School
• February-March: works in acrylic, pencil, and photography by Heidi Williams and Rose Mapel

2021

• December 21-January 2022: pieces from student artists at Crete High School
• October - November: works of local fabric artists Patty King, Anne Hardenburger, Shaylene Suhr Smith, and Carol Sims
• August-September: pieces by artist Quintanilla, from The Easton Collection
• June-July,: Amanda Nohavec Photography
• March-April: artwork by Doane University students, juried show

2020

• September-October: photography from Elayne Woods Jones, Jennifer Lampila, Julie Fahrlander, and Sheryl Cooley
• February-March,: works of local artists Echo Easton, Julie Fahrlander, Rose Mulbery, and Kathy Stastny,