Art on the Hill

This year opening on September 28, previous Art on the Hill award winners and scholarship winners will show their art work in RSU’s Foundations Gallery in Baird Hall.

Gary Moeller, department of fine arts, RSU, with this year’s winning contest poster by Jordan Wong.

It is a work of art all by itself. Rogers State University presides over the western end of Will Rogers Boulevard in Claremore, Preparatory Hall creating a crown on College Hill with its white brick and gold dome gleaming in the sun against the backdrop of blue sky on a clear day. This place goes beyond being aesthetically pleasing, ­however. Within the walls of this university, artistic minds have been, and continue to be, enriched and inspired to higher levels of learning and creativity. That makes Rogers State University the perfect spot for RSU’s Art on the Hill Invitational Art Festival on September 28 from noon to 6 p.m. and September 29 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

    Gary Moeller, department head and professor at the ­department of fine arts at Rogers State University, has been involved with Art on the Hill since its beginning in 2010, when the First Lady of RSU, Peggy Rice, conceived the idea. “Peggy thought it would be a great idea to involve the ­community with an open festival for visual arts and other types of artistic endeavors,” he recalls. “I’ve been more than happy to help as this festival has grown and evolved.” This year, Rebecca Bacchetti, painter, teacher and on-site coordinator for RSU’s Italian Studies at Large, along with her husband Matteo, jazz musician and chef, will also help coordinate the activities.

    The word “festival” aptly describes this event, which will host all types of art, pleasing to both the eye and ear, created by student, amateur, and ­professional artists, with prizes awarded to winning entries. Large tents will be set up for booths displaying different forms of visual art – drawings, ­photography, paintings – as well as for traditional arts and crafts such as woodturning and jewelry making. This year opening on September 28, previous Art on the Hill award winners and scholarship winners will show their art work in RSU’s Foundations Gallery in Baird Hall. This ­festival is designed to be enjoyed as a mostly outdoor event, with musicians, theatre actors and student groups ­performing in amphitheaters across the campus grounds. “We formerly held the festival in spring, but moved it to fall because our weather is so much more predictable this time of year, as spring brings a lot of rain and wind problems,” Gary notes. “We also no longer have to ­compete with Capstone and graduation activities – we think this will work much better for everyone.” Food vendors will also be available across campus, and the Student Art Association will once again host a children’s tent, where kids can express their own creativity and learn about art.

    For more information on competition and prizes or to reserve booth space, visit the Art on the Hill website at www.rsu.edu/artonthehill. 

For more information, contact

Rogers State University

(918) 343-7744

www.rsu.edu/artonthehill