Artists-in-Residence | June 2017
Jeremiah Ariaz exhibited “Staging the West” in the summer of 2016 at The Volland Store
Lily Brooks will exhibit her work at The Volland Store in 2018
Jeremiah and Lily spent several weeks in the summer of 2016 as resident artists at The Volland Store, exploring the Flint Hills and immersing themselves in the culture as well as the landscape. They were invited to the Alma branch of the Pottawatomie-Wabaunsee Public Library to visit the children in the summer program where they talked about their photography and Lily demonstrated her camera equipment. Jeremiah presented artist talks at the Store and hosted “Un-staging the West: Reality vs. Representation,” a conversation between Native American tribal members and Flint Hills cowboys. Lily expanded her six-year project, We Have to Count the Clouds, by making photographs in several communities in the Flint Hills. Jeremiah began a new project with a personal focus on Kansas.
Jeremiah and Lily became regulars at Alma enterprises and made friends everywhere they went. They developed a heartfelt connection to the Flint Hills and are delighted to return as artists-in-residence at The Volland Store in June 2017.
During their current residency, Jeremiah and Lily hosted the Volland Store gallery on a Saturday afternoon and shared portfolios of their recent work with with old friends and new. While in residence at Volland they have continued to be inspired by their connection to the Flint Hills.
Ariaz was a speaker at this year’s Symphony in the Flint Hills, and his article “Staging the West” appeared in the Symphony in the Flint Hills Field Journal 2017, Volume IX, accompanied by a selection of his photographs. Copies of the 2017 Field Journal are available at The Volland Store.
Jeremiah Ariaz is an Associate Professor of Art at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA. Ariaz earned a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and his MFA from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Lily Brooks is a full-time instructor of photography at Southeastern Louisiana University. She earned a BFA from the Massachusetts College of Art + Design in 2006 and an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014.
The Volland Store is located at 24098 Volland Road, eight miles southwest of Alma, Kansas, on Old K-10 Highway, then ¼ mile south on Volland Road. thevollandstore.com
Internet directions are unreliable for this location. Click here for a map