Celebrate the vibrancy and creative spirit of contemporary watercolor at the Illinois Watercolor Society 42nd National Exhibition, on view April 29 through May 30, 2026, at The Next Picture Show in Dixon. This annual juried showcase brings outstanding work from artists across the nation to Northwest Illinois, highlighting a dazzling range of techniques, perspectives, and expressive use of water-based media—watercolor, acrylic, and gouache.

The gallery is open Wednesday-Saturday or by appointment.

The Prairie Arts Council features the work of mixed-media artist Jennifer Eustis weekends in May at its gallery in Princeton. The gallery is supported in part by grants from the Illinois Arts Council and The Princeton Closet.

An opening reception will be held on Friday, May 1, from 6:00–7:30 PM, where guests are invited to enjoy drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and meet the artist. The gallery is also open to the public on weekends in May from 1:00–3:00 PM.

Eustis, based in Peru, Illinois, is a mixed-media artist working across 2D and 3D sculpture, silversmithing, and textile arts. Often described as “Modern Folk,” her work brings new life to found objects and unconventional materials, blending them into pieces that feel both timeless and unexpected.

Her work draws heavily from archaic and historical influences, particularly Santos Cage Dolls. Rather than replicating traditional forms, Eustis reimagines them through a contemporary, intuitive lens. Her current explorations in copper etching continue this dialogue between old-world technique and modern expression.

Eustis’s artistic path began in childhood under the guidance of her mother, also an artist, and expanded during her time studying painting as a high school exchange student in Denmark. In the early 1990s, she transitioned into metal arts, developing her distinctive approach to form and material. She continues to explore felting and textile processes as an extension of her tactile, hands-on practice.

Her work has been exhibited throughout the Midwest and East Coast, including notable showings in the Metro East region of Illinois, Ottawa, Illinois, and Woodstock, New York. Her pieces are held in private collections across the United States and internationally, and are available through independent sales and select small retailers, often released in limited availability.

At its core, Eustis’s work celebrates curiosity, history, and transformation—turning the overlooked into something quietly extraordinary.

Nurture is a mixed media art exhibit that focuses on artists' perspective of the concept of Nurture. Join us to experience the inspiration and expressive interpretation of Nurture though art.

The Divine Sister is an outrageous comic homage to nearly every Hollywood film involving nuns!

St. Veronica’s indomitable Mother Superior is determined to build a new school for her Pittsburgh convent.

Along the way, there is a young postulant experiencing “visions,” sexual hysteria among the sisters, a sensitive schoolboy in need of mentoring, a mysterious nun from the Mother House in Berlin, and a former suitor intent on luring Mother Superior away from her vows!

Celebrate the vibrancy and creative spirit of contemporary watercolor at the Illinois Watercolor Society 42nd National Exhibition, on view April 29 through May 30, 2026, at The Next Picture Show in Dixon. This annual juried showcase brings outstanding work from artists across the nation to Northwest Illinois, highlighting a dazzling range of techniques, perspectives, and expressive use of water-based media—watercolor, acrylic, and gouache.

The gallery is open Wednesday-Saturday or by appointment.

Nurture is a mixed media art exhibit that focuses on artists' perspective of the concept of Nurture. Join us to experience the inspiration and expressive interpretation of Nurture though art.