Class of 2024

This piece is a collage of ceramic sculpture made from earthenware and underglaze.

Peoria artist Richard Wehrs is a Minnesota native, where he attended Concordia University and the University of Minnesota before receiving his MFA in studio art from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, IL.

Wehrs is best known for his hand-build, one-of-a-kind earthenware clay faces and figures, rich in textures and patterns, and bright, layered colors. The pieces are fired twice to 1944 degrees F.

Each piece has a unique, often humorous and unexpected title. Together, they are colorful, playful characters that engage and amuse viewers with their wild expressions and unexpected narratives.

Inspired by B-movie villains, aliens, monsters and superheroes, they’re a quirky mix of creepy and cute.

This billboard is sponsored by Miller, Hall & Triggs, LLC. and Joshua D. Herman.

This 8-color silk screen print is a portrait of fall day on Grand View Drive in Peoria Heights.

Jeremy Berkley is a silkscreen printmaker based in East Peoria, IL. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design from Bradley University, he began his career by creating pop culture inspired silkscreen prints. Including officially licensed prints for national and international gallery shows for “Bob’s Burgers”, “Rick and Morty”, and Major League Baseball just to name a few.

More locally you can find his murals throughout downtown Peoria: The Madison Theatre, The Phoenix Foundation Building and The Peoria Public Library. Those who are interested can learn more about Jeremy on his website, http://www.berkleycc.com/and on his social media.

This billboard is sponsored by Peoria International Airport.

This piece is blown glass layered with bold colors and then engraved with a diamond embedded wheel. It is lighted from behind and hangs on the wall.

Born in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, Brandie moved to Central Illinois once graduating high school in 2010. In 2012, she graduated with her associate in art from Lincoln College in Lincoln, IL, and transferred to Illinois State University where she would begin pursuing a bachelor’s in art education. However, in 2013 after taking her first glass blowing class, she decided to switch her major.During this time, she worked for Africano Studios as a Studio Assistant. In 2014, Brandie graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelors in Science in Studio Art with a concentration in Glass Blowing. Currently, she works as the lead Instructor and Studio Coordinator at J. Draper Glass.

This billboard is sponsored by Peoria International Airport.

This ballpoint pen piece explores the aging and deterioration of the physical body.

Fletcher Koehrsen is a visual artist from East Peoria, Illinois. Since graduating from Illinois State University in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in studio arts, he has been exploring a variety of mediums and different processes of creating.

The series of ball point pen portraits that includes the work Fading Light was created in his senior year of studies at ISU. In this series, the focus of the work was to show the impermanence of life and the deterioration that is associated with the aging process. He used complex mark making and overlapping lines of ink to create the depth shown in the wrinkles of the face. Fletcher relates each line or wrinkle to the rings of a tree, with each mark representing a period of time that has passed. The ballpoint pen portraits also challenge the notion that art has to be expensive to produce or must include a surplus of supplies.

By creating an entire series using nothing but the same blue pen, Fletcher demonstrates that creativity has no price tag and can be achieved by anyone with any tool they have access to. Now, Fletcher is exploring abstraction through acrylic painting. His work has been recently focused on mindfulness, intricate mark making and connecting to the present moment through painting. He creates paintings that take inspiration from certain complex textures and colors found in the natural world. Fletcher hopes that his work will encourage the viewer to slow down and appreciate the small details in everyday moments that often go overlooked.

This billboard is sponsored by Miller, Hall & Triggs, LLC. and Joshua D. Herman.

This piece is a Still life photo of very recent work. The artist added a variety of different sgraffito effects. Black, white, red, thin lines, large empty spaces, and detailed images.

After traveling the country with her US Navy husband, Cyndi Merrill is a Peoria based artist who owns her own clay art studio business called Glazed and Confused. After graduating from Illinois Central College and Illinois State University, Cyndi has expanded her nautical ideas to include functional pottery and sculptural work. With 20 years of living near every salt water body that the continental United States has to offer, Peoria was a strange land. Bringing her humor and love for the sea, Cyndi has delighted land bound collectors for nearly two decades.

This billboard is sponsored by Sam & Hiral Hudson.

The background of the painting is done with acrylic fluid painting, then white flowers are done on top of it. Finishing touches are done with the digital art, and the final product is Digital Art.

A 4th grader at Hickory Grove Elementary School, he loves arts and crafts. Arhan has been doing art since age 5. Arhan loves to do modern abstract art and fluid painting and recently he started experimenting with Digital Art. Arhan is a passionate creator known for his captivating abstract acrylic paintings. With a unique approach to color and form, Arhan brings a vibrant and expressive energy to each piece, exploring emotions and concepts through bold strokes and dynamic compositions. His paintings reflect a deep love for the fluidity and texture of acrylics, making every painting a distinct, fun and immersive experience. Using his art, Arhan loves to raise funds for OSF. Apart from art, Arhan is passionate about soccer, math, robotics and loves to play with his sister Tanishqa and his friends.

This billboard is sponsored by the Fine Arts Society of Peoria.

This is a digital drawing depicting a closeup of brightly colored mushrooms. Mushrooms are usually overlooked as unwanted weeds so nobody sees the beauty behind these complex and fascinating fungi.

Namratha Dinesh is an incoming freshman of Dunlap High School. She has been keenly interested in visual and performing arts since the age of 5, and is a self-taught visual artist. Namratha experiments with many different mediums such as watercolor, pastels, acrylics but she mainly prefers to express her thoughts through pencils, colored pencils and digital drawings. Her drawings mostly center around a single subject bringing out the intricate details from within.Apart from visual arts, Namratha is a trained classical Bharatanatyam dancer, and performs at various dance shows in and around Peoria. She also sings in her school choir as a soprano and has participated since 6thgrade. Additionally, Namratha plays on her school volleyball team and has participated on the speech team where she won an IESA Judges’ Choice Award for her performance.

This billboard is sponsored by the Fine Arts Society of Peoria.