As a new year begins, Low Key Arts recaps the eventful year the organization had in 2017 and looks forward to a new year.
Low Key presented the 10th anniversary Arkansas Shorts film festival in early January, not only giving Arkansas filmmakers a showcase for their films but also highlighting some of the best short films from around the world in the International block, providing perspective and inspiration to local filmmakers.
In March, the Valley of the Vapors festival took place in downtown Hot Springs. Celebrating its 13th year, VOV presented an exciting mix of international, national and local performers, in the process attracting people from all over Arkansas and beyond to the city, many for the first time. Besides offering cutting-edge independent music from around the globe, free workshops taught by professionals in their trades expanded educational opportunities for the community. In 2017, writing was a focus with workshops on Sketch Comedy and How to Be a Rock Critic. Students in Low Key Art's filmmaking class, Inception to Projection, honed their skills at scriptwriting under the instruction of David Hill, a member of the Upright Citizen's Brigade, and directed their own short films with the talented Jen Gerber and other professionals in the film industry. Their work was featured in the 2018 Arkansas Shorts on Saturday.
In October, the 7th annual Hot Water Hills music and arts festival took place at Hill Wheatley Plaza, bringing art, music and families downtown. With record numbers in attendance and a truly magical and eclectic lineup of widely-recognized artists, Hot Water Hills even saw students from the nearby Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts taking the stage.
Hot Springs' community-oriented radio station, KUHS 97.9 FM, continues to make its presence known in Hot Springs and around the country as a flagship entity in Arkansas' movement towards a green economy as the first solar-powered radio station in the United States. KUHS celebrated its second full year on air, giving a voice to 60-plus volunteer DJs who present a diverse range of programming daily. DJs lent their technological skill and production talents in live broadcasts from Hot Water Hills as well as the Downtown Association's Chili Cook Off and Visit Hot Springs' Reels and Wheels Pop-Up Drive-In Theater. The station is preparing to make the jump to a more optimal number on the dial, 102.5, in the spring of 2018.
A wide range of individual shows took place at Low Key Arts throughout the year, including Captured! by Robots, Dead Rider, Octopus Project, and Japan's Shonen Knife, to name a few, with many more in the works for 2018. Under the guidance of artistic director Bobby Missile, Low Key Arts has established itself as a premier live music venue for touring acts passing through the state.
Low Key Arts also announced Sonny Kay as its new executive director, replacing the outgoing, and much beloved, David Hill. Kay comes to Hot Springs from Los Angeles, by way of Las Vegas. An internationally-recognized graphic artist and musician, he founded the cult record label GSL, releasing music by The Mars Volta and The Locust, not to mention Hot Springs' own Attractive and Popular, before turning his attention to creating album art for 311, Shooter Jennings, and dozens more. Having permanently relocated to Hot Springs, Kay's vision for Low Key Arts emphasizes programming for a broader cross-section of the local community and attracting even more prestigious acts and makers to this burgeoning haven for the arts.
Low Key Arts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Tax-deductible gifts to the organization will be used to help reinforce the modest structure of its financing.
Entertainment on 01/08/2018