Outside Gallery

A new project is going up to kickoff the summer Gallery Crawl. West Monroe native and Louisiana Tech studio art major Callan Thornton is painting a summer inspired mural. Come to the Crawl this Thursday to see the finished piece.

Come out to celebrate our latest project at the Outside Gallery on Art Allery for this Gallery Crawl. See ya Tomorrow.

“First Sight” & “Understanding”
By Inique Harris

To quote Garnet from Steven Universe, ““Love at first sight doesn't exist. Love takes time, and love takes work. At the very least you have to know the other person.”

Growing up, we all learned about love at first sight. Some of you may have brushed it off or were mature enough to not believe in it. Unfortunately this wasn't the case for me. Seeing the romance that came from this idea shaped my idea of love into an unhealthy and sometimes painful emotion.

In middle school when emotions were high and confidence was low, I would quickly form crushes. I let them consume my entire self just to feel something other than the anxiety of growing up. The simple thought of my crush would cause my heart to burn and fill me with a childlike giddy that would keep my spirits high throughout the day.

The problem with this way of life is that I was only focused on the object of my affection. I wondered what they were doing, how they would smile at a hypothetical joke I’d say, how’d they care for our kids, or even what we would do in a zombie apocalypse. I began idealizing them into this caricature that no one could ever live up to. This led to so much disappointment and even heartache.

I've now taken a step back and looked at what love realistically is. It's messy and difficult at times, but it’s worth the heartache if it leads to a strong and meaningful bond.

During the holiday break, stop thru to see Katelyn’s mural. Tag us.

Our December artist is local Painter Katelyn Vaughan.

Artist statement:
Recently schools announced the lift of the mask mandate in schools and with the fight for vaccines for children ongoing, many are left vulnerable. I remember driving my family to get vaccines and my 9 year old niece nearly in tears wishing it was her turn. My niece has been an inspiration for me in the last few months being a 9 year old biracial absolute badass. With the mural I wanted to show the thoughts and fights she has to go through every day not only being a child during covid but a female biracial child as well.

The importance of her very outspoken generation is seen by my generation as we fight for their future. A lot of people think it's all in the past because the mask and BLM shirts have been put away but I still see the impact this has had on her everyday in her interactions with my family and others. I can never understand her struggle fully and try to support her in all her decisions and fights. I also want this mural to show the importance of allyship and support we can give to those around us.

10% of children in the united states are reportedly vaccinated, adding to the list of dangers kids face today. Covid times bring a lot for a young mind to be faced with and their guardians doing everything they can to support them.

Work has begin on the new project by Keldrick Dunn.

Keldrick Dunn was raised in Homer, Louisiana, later moving to Ruston to pursue a BFA at Louisiana Tech University. Dunn’s acrylic paintings use pop culture figures to explore the depths of racial and cultural identity, basing these explorations on his college experience. His work has been displayed in Louisiana Tech’s 2021 Senior BFA exhibition titled Relapse, and he was also presented the 2020 Director’s Award for Achievement by the Visual Arts Center faculty.

Keldrick Dunn currently posts his artwork, works in progress, and other updates on his website artdaddykels.com and on his Instagram .