A Dixon art gallery has filled an important role. Yvonne Boose talked with the new leader to find out what’s next for the center.
Dixon native Chance Munroe is the new director of The Next Picture Show. He said his first priority is to make the transition smooth when leadership changes.
“We've had multiple transitions at the gallery here within the past few years," he said, "and it seems like every time a new director takes over, it's kind of a learning curve for them.”
Munroe explained that there’s not a lot of things documented, like policies and procedures, and things need to be streamlined.
Munroe succeeds Donna Smith, who resigned in December after a little over 8 months on the job.
Munroe wants to make sure the community understands how important the gallery is to Dixon. He said a lot of the art around the area is there through partnerships with the center.
“If this were to disappear overnight," he said, "it would be, it would be a hit for the for Dixon and for Sauk Valley. Like I said, we've been here for 20 years. The arts are very important in Dixon and across Lee County.”
He also said TNPS will work closely with schools because, he said, art starts in the classroom.
“I've already had several art instructors from local districts reach out to me," he said, "to see if we can work with doing a student show or assisting with something that they've got going on in the summer.”
Munroe said he’s planning on staying in the role for two years. He’s working on his master’s degree and once that’s done, he wants to go into teaching.
