The Fort Smith Regional Art Museum has received the family’s collection of John Bell, Jr. artwork

Visit our new Sandi and Sandy Sanders Gallery for the Permanent Collection,
and see the inaugural exhibition

John Bell, Jr. – Coming Home

When I started driving around this country in the late sixties the interstate was the exception rather than the rule. Even where the interstate was complete, the interchanges were barren. In order to get gas, food, or lodging, one had to leave the four-lane and drive a mile or so into town. Twenty years brought about a complete reversal in many places. All services became available along the limited access highway while many of the small businesses that once served motorists were abandoned.

One could still get a tank of gas, burgers, and fries, and a room for the night at almost every exit, but, in all probability, it would be a Shell Super stop, Burger King, Holiday Inn, or some other chain outlet. The interstate system provided a breeding ground and conduit for the chains that came to dominate almost every aspect of our lives.

The nation rapidly became homogenized. The services were still there, but the independent operator was gone. Gone also, to a great degree, was individual thought, originality, and regional diversity.

Driving the old road, the remains of commercial buildings could still be seen and my work sprang from these. I tried to create a portrait of the people who made their living by the side of the road and tell the story of the end of an era. – David Malcolm Rose

This exhibit will contain miniature scale models of Lost Highway businesses, paintings of businesses long forgotten along the Lost Highway, and a retrospective of the artist, David Malcolm Rose.

The UAFS Student Art Exhibition combines the artwork of students at different levels of their studio degrees. Whether they were painting figures or focusing on a culminating body of work, each student faced the difficulties of creating in a hybrid or distance learning environment. Despite this, the resulting artwork captures formal qualities and conceptual depth, some touching on themes of identity and meditation. Join us as we highlight the work by these emerging artists!

Works by John Hass

On View December 23, 2021, through January 23, 2022

Closing Reception Thursday,

January 20, 2022 – 5 – 7 pm

FREE for Members

$10 for Non-Members