The Future of Female

JANUARY 10 - FEBRUARY 22

THE FUTURE OF FEMALE is an exhibition focused on the ideals, hopes, and experiences of women identifying artists. The call for art is open to any women identifying artists who are 18 years or older and who live, work, or attend school in the state of Ohio. All art in any medium, style, and technique were considered. The juror is McLean Emenegger and $600 will be given in prizes.

About the Juror:

A passionate art and artist advocate, seasoned curator and art administrator, McLean Emenegger established a strong voice and decades-long leadership role in the Los Angeles art scene. She relocated to Seattle, WA in the fall of 2020, and founded her first brick-and-mortar fine art gallery AMcE Creative Arts in June 2021.

Prior to opening AMcE Creative Arts, McLean’s exhibitions have garnered reviews in the Los Angeles Times, Artweek, Artscene, Review Magazine and Huffington Post. Her exhibition at Los Angeles World Airports at LAX – Welcome to LA/Please Come Again – was featured on KCET’s Artbound and KPPC radio’s Take Two. McLean’s own art reviews and artist interviews have appeared in multiple publications, and she has been interviewed on radio, television and in print.

McLean has also lead hundreds of visual artist professional development classes and has presented her Business of Art workshops across the US, including at Annenberg Space for Photography, College Art Association, National Arts Marketing Project, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, California Lawyers for the Arts, and Center for Cultural Innovation among many others.

Awards:

Honorable Mentions:

Suzi Hyden, Nodding Trillium

Cynthia Bornhorst-Winslow, Her Past is Past

Roxanne Grooms, Just Look

Maureen O’Keefe, Museum Quality

Angela Reichelderfer, Transmutation

3rd Place - Judith Ford, Searching for Joy

2nd Place - Colleen Kelsey, Tumble

1st Place - Rhonda Duncalf, The Forgotten Women

Participating Artists:

Amy Albert, Cynthia Bornhorst Winslow, Susan Carlson, Kim Ceccarelli, Rhonda Duncalf, Laura Ellstrom, Linnea Fitterer, Judith Ford, Roxanne Grooms, Darbee Hagerty, Sophia Hoersten, Renee Hopson, Suzi Hyden, Colleen Kelsey, Minnie Lucas, Julie Martin, Maureen O'Keefe, Kyndall Potts, Lily Rainey, Angela Reichelderfer, Yetunde Rodriguez, Shauna Schramke, Kim Shelton, Erin Smith Glenn, Tamiko Stump, Lindsey Tribelhorn, Lauren Wells

PROJECT SPACE: Maureen O'Keefe

Artist Statement

Begun in early 2016, this body of work is comprised of paintings completed during the first administration of Donald Trump and in its aftermath. As we find ourselves at the beginning of a second Trump term, I feel a sense of déjà vu.

I was raised in a very religious community which has become increasingly nationalistic as well. In this kind of environment, the use of symbols is incredibly important. All of my work utilizes imagery that will be easily recognized by my neighbors, and can be interpreted through the lens under which they view it. There is no other symbol that is so easily identified as the American flag. As a flat symbol, its reading is effortless. It does not require reflection or introspection. It is like an order barked and then obeyed. But my flags are figural; they give shape to ideas and ask the viewer to contemplate how those ideas come alive in the world. They are an indictment as well as a declaration of hope.

Each painting is an exploration of the American flag as a symbol and as a figure alive with the ideals and flaws with which we as a nation have grappled. Three of the works presented are simple compositions. The flag is folded, crumpled, and bent into different positions to give the object volume and suggest the presence of a figure. The flags are juxtaposed with text taken from documents and songs that embody patriotic sentiments or speak to the founding principles of the nation. In the other works, blind-contour-based figures wear the flag and act as an exploration of my own struggle to come to terms with the diversity of thought in our nation. I often find that I cannot reconcile what I was taught about liberty, patriotism, goodness, or morality with what is actually being done in the name of those ideas. I have been asking myself how a nation that is in agreement about words can be in such disagreement about action.

Biography

Maureen O’Keefe is a portrait and figure painter living and working in mid-western Ohio. Her work investigates identities, values, and belonging, often in a religious or political context. Maureen received her Bachelor of Fine Art from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2005. She is a recipient of the Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award for FY2019 and has exhibited widely. In January of 2023 Maureen was an artist in residence at the Chateau Orquevaux in Orquevaux, France. She is employed as the Marketing Coordinator for Habitat for Humanity of Miami and Shelby Counties, in addition to teaching Drawing as an Adjunct at Edison State Community College in Piqua, Ohio.

I was raised in a very religious community which has become increasingly nationalistic as well. In this kind of environment, the use of symbols is incredibly important. All of my work utilizes imagery that will be easily recognized by my neighbors, and can be interpreted through the lens under which they view it. There is no other symbol that is so easily identified as the American flag. As a flat symbol, its reading is effortless. It does not require reflection or introspection. It is like an order barked and then obeyed. But my flags are figural; they give shape to ideas and ask the viewer to contemplate how those ideas come alive in the world. They are an indictment as well as a declaration of hope.

Each painting is an exploration of the American flag as a symbol and as a figure alive with the ideals and flaws with which we as a nation have grappled. Three of the works presented are simple compositions. The flag is folded, crumpled, and bent into different positions to give the object volume and suggest the presence of a figure. The flags are juxtaposed with text taken from documents and songs that embody patriotic sentiments or speak to the founding principles of the nation. In the other works, blind-contour-based figures wear the flag and act as an exploration of my own struggle to come to terms with the diversity of thought in our nation. I often find that I cannot reconcile what I was taught about liberty, patriotism, goodness, or morality with what is actually being done in the name of those ideas. I have been asking myself how a nation that is in agreement about words can be in such disagreement about action.

Part of a whole: 1 / 2

MARCH 6 - MARCH 29

PART OF A WHOLE: 1/2 is the first in a two-part Dayton Society of Artists annual members’ exhibition. The call for art is open to DSA members in good standing and is open to all mediums, techniques, and styles. This year, members may drop off 1 piece that is guaranteed to be included in the exhibition with a $10 entry fee. The juror for the prizes is past president, Marsha Pippenger, and all artworks will be judged in person. Awarded prizes include: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Honorable Mention, as well as 3 members receiving free entry to the annual spring juried show (no artists may win more than one prize).

About the Juror:

Bridgette Bogle earned her MFA in Painting and Drawing from The Ohio State University in 2003. Her work has been featured in numerous solo, two-person, and group exhibitions across the country, including Sentimental and Not at the Rueff Gallery, Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana. A dedicated leader and educator, Bogle served as President of the Dayton Society of Artists from 2012 to 2015 and is currently a Professor specializing in Painting and Drawing at Sinclair Community College in Dayton.

Awards:

Free Entry into Spring Show

Jesper Beckholt - Maw
Dave Crowell - The Issue
Allyson Mushovic Shank - Love Language

Honorable Mentions

J.D. Claffey - Harvest Moon
Rhonda Duncalf - Tropical Dream
Edd McGatha - End of Shifts

3rd Place

Ariel White - Caught by Surprise

2nd Place

Mark Echtner - We Two

1st Place

Bruce Campbell - Cacti I

Best in Show

Kate Huser Santucci - Ophelia

Participating Artists:

Allyson Mushovic Shank, Annica Damico, Ariel White, Bill Franz, Bob Coates, Bruce Campbell, Carol McNeeley, Carol O'Neal, Charles Booker, Cindy Callahan, Dave Crowell, Don Miceli, Edd McGatha, Emily von Stuckrad-Smolinski, Frank Trick, Gae Helton, James Claffey, Jeanne Fehskens, Jesper Beckholt, Jim McCoullough, Joanne Jannetta, John Rausch, Judd Plattenburg, Kate Huser Santucci, Katherine Harris, Kathleen Caffrey, Katie Timko, Kim Ceccarelli, Linda Hart, Linnea Albers, M. Todd Muskopf, Maria Ann McGinnis, Mark Echtner, Mark Freytag, Merrel Jones, Michael Surber, Michelle Brandt, Nancy Dankof, Renee Hopson, Rhonda Duncalf, Roberta Tresslar, Ron Wilson, Roxann Tulledge Patrick, Roxanne Grooms, Sally A. Struthers, Samantha Wott/S.Wolf, Scotty Davis, Seamus Martin, Tami Beale, Yufeng Wang

Part of a whole: 2 / 2

APRIL 3 - APRIL 26

PART OF A WHOLE: 2/2 is the second in a two-part Dayton Society of Artists annual members’ exhibition. The call for art is open to DSA members in good standing and is open to all mediums, techniques, and styles. This year, members may drop off 1 piece that is guaranteed to be included in the exhibition with a $10 entry fee. The juror for the prizes is past president, Marsha Pippenger, and all artworks will be judged in person. Awarded prizes include: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Honorable Mention, as well as 3 members receiving free entry to the annual spring juried show (no artists may win more than one prize).

About the Juror:

Bridgette Bogle earned her MFA in Painting and Drawing from The Ohio State University in 2003. Her work has been featured in numerous solo, two-person, and group exhibitions across the country, including Sentimental and Not at the Rueff Gallery, Purdue University, in West Lafayette, Indiana. A dedicated leader and educator, Bogle served as President of the Dayton Society of Artists from 2012 to 2015 and is currently a Professor specializing in Painting and Drawing at Sinclair Community College in Dayton.

Awards:

Participating Artists:

peace talks: 2025 spring juried show

MAY 2 - JUNE 21

The Dayton Society of Artists (DSA) is pleased to present our annual spring juried show, PEACE TALKS. Dayton, Ohio has a unique place in history as the city where the Dayton Peace Accords ended the Bosnian War in 1995. Nearly three decades later, the world continues to grapple with the delicate balance of peace and conflict. This exhibition examines how peace is never guaranteed—it is negotiated, upheld, and sometimes broken. Artwork submitted should engage in the conversation of the complicated nature of peace. The call for art is open to any artist 18 years or older living in the United States. All art in any medium, style, and technique will be considered. Art must be original. The juror is Daniel Esquivia Zapata and $600 will be given in prizes.

About the Juror

Daniel Esquivia Zapata is an Afro-Colombian artist and educator. He is an Assistant Professor of Art at Auburn University, specializing in drawing. He holds an MFA from the New York Academy of Art and a BA in Studio Art from Benedict College (Historical Black College). Before teaching at Auburn, Daniel taught at various institutions, including Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, Colombia, focusing on a wide range of drawing courses on human anatomy, figure drawing, fundamental drawing, and experimental drawing. In addition to his teaching. Daniel has a strong exhibition record with solo and group shows across the United States, Colombia, and internationally. His work has been featured in venues such as the Whatcom Museum and the Richard Demato Gallery. He has also participated in numerous artist residencies, including the Santa Fe Art Institute and a fellowship at the Vermont Studio Center; recently, he was a summer artist at 701 CCA in Columbia, SC, and was selected as a 2025 visiting artist to the Gibbes Museum of Art. His contributions to the art community extend beyond the classroom and gallery. He has been involved in public art projects, including murals that address memory and social justice themes. His research and presentations often explore the intersection of art, violence, and historical memory, reflecting his commitment to using drawing as a tool for social change and as a mode of inquiry.

https://www.danielesquiviazapata.com/

Awards
TBA

Participating Artists
TBA

Crosstown connection:
A COLLABORATIVE exhibition

JULY 11 - AUGUST 25

CROSSTOWN CONNECTION is a collaborative exhibition between the Dayton Society of Artists (DSA) and the African American Visual Artists Guild (AAVAG). This group exhibition brings together two of Dayton’s vibrant art organizations in a celebration of shared creativity, artistic mediums, and the connections that unite us. Through this partnership, we honor our commonalities, reflect on past collaborations, and look forward to future opportunities to uplift and support artists in our community.

Showcasing a collection of works from both organizations, this exhibition will be held at both galleries, celebrating the rich artistic talent within our community. Artwork will be displayed at AAVAG (840 Germantown Street, Dayton, OH 45402) and DSA (48 High Street, Dayton, OH 45403).

Participating Artists: TBD

School of the DAI Retrospective

SEPTEMBER 5 - SEPTEMBER 27

SCHOOL OF THE DAI RETROSPECTIVE is an exhibition dedicated to the alumni of the School of the Dayton Art Institute. Participants must have attended the formal School of the Dayton Art Institute with the intention of graduating with a degree to be included in this exhibition.

Participating Artists: TBD

ARCHIVED exhibitions

2025 exhibitions

The Future of Female

Part of a whole: 1 / 2

Part of a whole: 2 / 2

peace talks: 2025 spring juried show

Crosstown connection:
A COLLABORATIVE exhibition

School of the DAI Retrospective

SMALL BUT MIGHTY 2025

ARCHIVED exhibitions

2025 exhibitions

The Future of Female

Part of a whole: 1 / 2

Part of a whole: 2 / 2

peace talks: 2025 spring juried show

Crosstown connection:A COLLABORATIVE exhibition

School of the DAI Retrospective

SMALL BUT MIGHTY 2025

Crosstown connection:
A COLLABORATIVE exhibition