ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The Baker Arts Center has been looking to expand its permanent collection, and an artistic donation was made to help with just that.
Recently, the Baker Arts Center accepted a donation of two pieces by artist Ken Crost, and Baker Arts Center Director Brittyn Heronemus said she was very happy with how the donation occurred.
“We'd started talking to Ken Crost, an artist from Denver, in 2024. We'd booked him for a small exhibit since he was going to send a couple of his pieces our way to have on display at Baker Arts Center, and it was in October when he sent two small pieces to have in the gift shop and to show us what his work is like,” Heronemus said. “My favorite of those pieces is called 'The Jazz Singer,' which is a deep blue geometrical piece where all the pieces come together to form the likeness of a singer, and it's very beautiful, and the other piece is called 'The Strange Mushrooms,' which is also really neat. We had those two on display, and then he sent us a third piece in May, and all three were officially on display throughout June. We're going to be traveling to Denver soon for the Cherry Creek Art Festival, so I reached out to Ken and offered to personally bring back his paintings so everyone could save on shipping, and also to guarantee the pieces' safety. He agreed to that and very profusely thanked us for everything we did for him and the pieces he sent, which was great, and it's also a great chance to actually meet the artist in person. The day after that conversation, however, he called and said he would rather go ahead and have 'The Jazz Singer' and 'The Strange Mushrooms' remain with Baker Arts Center while we return that final piece to him, so those two will remain part of our permanent collection. We are always looking to expand our permanent collection, and it's been a long time since there has been any major expansion in that area, so this is a really happy surprise. We've received a couple other donations from local artists in the past year, which we love and absolutely appreciate, but with this being a piece from an artist outside of our immediate network, it's a very exciting moment.”
“I'd never met any of the staff in person, we've only talked by email and on the phone, but Brittyn was so accommodating and encouraging of my artwork, and when it came time for them to send those pieces back, I told her to go ahead and keep them as part of the permanent collection,” Crost said. “I've really enjoyed working with them, and the Baker Arts Center is such a good organization, and them putting these pieces in the permanent collection is very complimentary. Brittyn really seemed to like the pieces, so I think it's really great to put on my résumé how I have pieces as part of a permanent collection out in Liberal.”
Heronemus said she was very grateful when Crost gave his permission for the pieces to remain in Liberal.
“We were overwhelmed with gratitude. That's always my first immediate emotion when we have things like this happen, and I'm so grateful to anyone who supports the dream of not only our founder, Irene Baker, but all of us at Baker Arts Center and what we do for the community,” Heronemus said. “I'm also very excited because again, it is one of our goals to continue expanding our permanent collection and eventually expand the gallery spaces so we can have all of those pieces on display 24/7. Right now, we are doing some renovation to our east and west galleries in the back, and one of those spaces will go back to hosting the permanent collection, so we hope to have the two pieces on display for a while along with some other donations we've received. I'm really looking forward to getting everything put back up and maximizing that space.”
Heronemus and Crost also talked about how they came in contact with each other.
“Last summer, I was preparing for 2025's gallery exhibits and everything else, and since I'm still rather new to the art world and this position, I don't yet have very many contacts out there. Through the contacts I have made, and through my own research online and other places, I came across Ken's Web site, https://www.kencrost.com/ through another gallery that had his work on display,” Heronemus said. “I looked at those, really liked what I saw, and I reached out to him about doing his exhibit. We do take good care of our artists, and I take a lot of pride in Baker Arts Center maintaining professional and friendly connections with all the artists we host, because we want to make sure we're respecting their pieces and getting as many eyeballs on them as possible. We want all of the artists we host to feel at home and feel comfortable working with us as we display their work. Ken did mention he and his wife will be taking a road trip before too long and might even make their way to Liberal during that, which would be amazing.”
“She'd found some of my work online last year and then got in touch with me about possibly setting something up since she was scheduling for 2025, and we just kept going back and forth before I officially submitted my pieces, and that was around last June when I did that,” Crost added. “I do a lot of digital art, and I do a lot of more abstract portraits, and anyone wanting to see my work can visit kencrost.com and take a look. I was really happy when Brittyn contacted me, it's always a great compliment when someone tells you they like your work.”
Heronemus added the potential for expansion at Baker Arts Center is very exciting to think about.
“When I started as the director three years ago, I felt like many of the goals we set were out of reach or downright impossible since there was a lot I had to learn at the beginning,” Heronemus said. “But this year, we've been accomplishing some of those goals, and it's really made a valuable difference not just to Baker Arts Center but to the Liberal community in terms of bringing tourists and travelers to the area, much like with our Stations of the Cross exhibit back at Easter and some of the other exhibits we've had. It's benefitting everyone, and I can't say enough how grateful I am to work with these artists and make those connections.”
With that in mind, Heronemus said plans are currently being made for 2026.
“We are currently looking for more artists to join our network, whether that's through teaching workshops, doing an artist residency or exhibit, or whatever. With the residency, we do work with each artist who comes to stay here for a piece for our permanent collection, whether it's a literary piece or ceramics piece or painting, etc.,” Heronemus said. “We work with those artists to get grants and stipends and all of that for materials so those costs aren't coming out of pocket, and that's another great way for us to expand our permanent collection. We also have show for those artists at the end of their residency, and it's great seeing what they create during that time. I'm really excited to continue expanding our artist network and bringing people to our corner of the world and seeing all the beautiful spaces we have. We are actively looking for artists, teachers, and donations, so if there are some art pieces you've made or have sitting around at home you think could work for one of our camps or something else, get in touch with us at (620) 624-2810 or send us a message through our Facebook page, and we'll be happy to help. We're booking for 2026 and will be happy to display art of any media and connect with more people in the area.”
