Artist's Vision

Bill Teeple sees Fairfield as a Midwest center for the Arts

by Jo Ann Gesner, Fairfield Correspondent

FAIRFIELD -- Artist Bill Teeple has more than an artist's eye. He has vision.

He sees Fairfield as the next big art center for Southeast Iowa and beyond.

"I think there's a real identity to Fairfield in the Arts. We have such a large enclave of artists in the middle of nowhere. I'm trying to create a front for the visual artists but there's a lot of theater, dance and music, too," Teeple said. "Many come from the east and west coasts, a lot of very sophisticiated, creative people settled here in the middle of nowhere. It won't be the middle of nowhere for long."

Once the Avenue of the Saints Corridor from St. Paul and St. Lousi and the Des Moines to Burlington Corridor bypass are finished, Fairfield will always be on the road to somewhere, Teeple notes.

"With Fairfield's quite sophisticated tastes, plus the traditional Midwest tastes in art, we've got an unusual group of people here that inadvertently raise the level of tastes for the region. Just by being here, they can't help but expose people to different ways of seeing and expanding their vision. I want people to start thinking of Fairfield as an art colony, an art enclave because it is," said Teeple.

"Teaching is such a thrill and I feel a responsibility to mold the art awareness of the people of the entire region. In preparing new artists for the community, I want to raise the bar for their skills, go a little farther in their technique to create work that's worth coming to see."

--Bill Teeple, onwer of Gallery 51 East

Cindy Travers works on her oil painting during an afternoon art class in Bill Teeple's studio in Fairfield.

Fairfield has a full spectrum and variety in the visual arts: painting, drawing, sculpture, mixed media, photography, and computer art. Craft workers, including potters, weavers, jewelry designers, wood and stained glass makers abound. Most artists here find there is not much market for art in a small Midwestern town of 10,000.

Fairfield artists say a venue is needed for each strata of art from fine student work and hobbyists, and those just starting out or moderately established, to nationally known artists. Most established artists also exhibit and market their work out of town. Some teach. A few, like Jeri Felix, a transplanted longtime Fairfield landscape artist, also sell their work on the web.

Felix finds her creativity in the prairie. "Living in rural Iowa for twenty years, I've developed a deep appreciation for the soft pastoral beauty of the American Midwest. Layers of lush green trees and foliage... the native prairie, thick with tall grasses and wild flowers... the Iowa contryside is a constant source of inspriation for me," Felix said.

"We have the potential for the whole range of art to be expressed in Fairfield. We want to nourish each of these aspects because the people who come here will have various tastes. They will find fulfillment by connecting with these different expressions of art," he said.

Many Fairfield artists along with Teeple say the new civic center with its large theater and exhibition space will create a focal point for the arts because Fairfield will be known outside of town as a place for performing arts, music and visual arts.

Attention on theater, for example, will lead to interest on visual arts. A visual arts presentation might lead to public interest in a concert. Then visitors stay for coffee. The compounding interest creates a tourist stop where visitors spend money.

Mayor Ed Malloy agrees.

"The development of the civic center says that our community is serious about showcasing the arts in our area. It says that we recognize the arts as a unique feature of our community and an opportunity to attract tourists and possibly grow to re recognized as a center for the arts. The success of that kind of development can only add to the overall attractiveness of the community and add to the quality of life.

It would be a great background for any kind of economic development," Mally said.

According to the Official Iowa Register, the arts are a major force in Iowa's economic development, generating more than $150 million each year creating jobs that serve nearly 2 million people. For every public dollar spent on the arts in Iowa, $300 is generated locally. More than 800,000 people attend Iowa's fairs and festivals, generating over $8 million spent locally each year.

Teeple has his eye on the big picture for Fairfield and sees an opportunity, that with the right guidance, could nuture Fairfield's potential as an art stop.

"I have a strong feeling about Fairfield as an art center. We have to have some more venues to show off the visual arts. We need to set a standard for the region here in Fairfield, that's why I opened the Gallery 51 East because we don't have visual art venues in town."

Teeple said a great place to start with that effort is to have that one person who could serve as a coordinator/facilitator for the arts in the city.