Children of all ages will be amazed and delighted by the exhibition of original circus sideshow banners from the 1940s, ‘50s and ‘60s, opening at Lubeznik Center for the Arts on Saturday March 17.
On loan from Chicago’s Carl Hammer Gallery and collector Col. Hunsley of LaPorte, Indiana (proprietor of Col. Hunsley's Freaks and Oddities), Ladies & Gentleman, Children Of All Ages, Step Right Up! consists of 16 colorful banners as large as 8’ wide. The exhibition also features taxidermied sideshow artifacts including a 2-headed calf and a 2’ wide by 3’ long snake.
Now widely considered a form of American folk art, painted sideshow banners were a popular and sensational form of advertising through the first half of the 20th century. Boasting impossible claims of scale, origins and abilities, they include images ranging from exotic to fantastic. From “The King of Swords” to “Cyclops Pig,” sideshow banners promise incredible feats or extraordinary deformities, each more outrageous than the last.
Opening on the same night, Lubeznik Center's Area Artists Association will present works in two parts in an exhibition titled Double Take.
Ladies & Gentleman, Children Of All Ages, Step Right Up! and Double Take will be on display through May 20, 2012. A free public opening reception for both exhibits will be held on Friday March 16, from 6-8 p.m. (central). Lubeznik Center for the Arts is located at the lakefront in Michigan City, IN. For more information phone 219.874.4900 or visit www.lubeznikcenter.org.
Lubeznik Center for the Arts is located at 101 W. 2nd St., at the lakefront in Michigan City, IN. Gallery Hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00am to 5:00pm, Saturday and Sunday from 11:00am to 4:00pm. Galleries are closed on Mondays.
Photo: Included in the exhibition will be several examples of work by Johnny Meah, one of the last great sideshow banner painters. Born in 1937 in Bristol Connecticut, his work typically features bold colors, forced perspective and shadowed lettering. King of Swords is an example of Meah’s work.