godwin

Hot Springs: "The Cultural Experiment"

By Jennifer Godwin
Honors College Student

Mentors: Drs. David Thomson, Marck L. Beggs, Gary Simmons

Abstract

The arts in Arkansas, for the most part, are overshadowed by the preconceptions everyone has of this "backwards" state. However, recent events that have culminated in Hot Springs are changing this perception. The arts are alive and well in the city that is known as the "valley of the vapors." For many years, it was the place for excessive gambling and other "leisure" activities, including the famous Bathhouse Row. For the early part of the 1900s, this was the picture most had of Hot Springs. Throughout the mid 1900s, Hot Springs experienced a cultural drought. The buildings on Central Avenue, once hailed as architecturally significant relics of yesteryear, were left in a dilapidated state. There was a decline in tourism and the arts remained dormant. That is, until 1987, when the arts took a definitive turn towards prominence.

1987 marks the year that Benini found Hot Springs by accident. Upon his moving here, he opened a studio, set up guidelines for future galleries, and brought in personal friends to open their own galleries. In 1989, five women founded what was to become the most important driving force for the arts, the Arts Cooperative Team. ACT made official the monthly Gallery Walks and began annual events such as the Celebration of the Arts and the Gathering of Poets. It is through the efforts of ACT that the focus shifted from primarily the visual arts to all of the genres. The most recent event to come of the inspiration found at the Benini dining room table is the Documentary Film Festival, the only one of its kind.

The art energy found in Hot Springs is unparalleled in the state, maybe even the region. It has transcended past being just a tourist attraction into a cultural and educational mecca. The city government has rallied their support around the arts, as the Convention Center is a result of funding promoted by the city.

There is much for Hot Springs, even Arkansas, to be proud of. Hot Springs has become a veritable Renaissance city, exhibiting characteristics that are reminiscent of the grandeur of Europe in her glory days.

Generally, when one thinks of Arkansas, seldom is it with a reverence for the arts in mind. Arkansas is better known for other things, such as its natural setting: a postcard‑perfect picture of the sun rising above the emerald Ozarks or the clear tranquility of any number of lakes reflecting towering pines on their mirrored surfaces. Popular opinion still insists that Arkansas is a backward, hillbilly‑infested state. Recently, Clinton's presidency has overshadowed much of the perception of Arkansas. Even before the Monica scandal, the Clinton presidency had convinced an unhealthy number of people that Arkansas was the Indian word for incest (Brantley). However, as eclipsed as the arts are in Arkansas, they are alive and thriving. They are helping to change the perception native residents and the outside world have of Arkansas.

Much of the growth of the arts in Arkansas is due to the recent events that have culminated in Hot Springs. Within the past decade, Hot Springs has morphed from just the Spa City to a community of artists, art dealers, and art advocates who desire to bring Hot Springs to a new cultural level. According to Travel and Leisure, Hot Springs is already there, becoming a major force in middle America art collection (Arts). Along that same train of thought, as stated in the film Hot Springs: City of the Arts, a wave of art consciousness has drawn artists, collectors, and art critics from around the world to occupy the blocks of empty buildings lining Central Avenue (TheArtFoundation). The variety of genres produced range from visual arts, such as painting and sculpting, to the performance‑oriented ones, which include theater, poetry, and dance. As recently as seven years ago, the idea for a documentary film festival was conceived. Annual events as well as festivals display to the public just how much the arts have grown not just in Hot Springs, but in Arkansas as well.

It has long been known that Hot Springs has attracted many in search of aesthetic pleasures. Long ago, the first inhabitants named this area the "valley of the vapors" (TheArtFoundation). For years, many have flocked to Hot Springs for the healing powers thought to be found in the thermal waters. A booming community was built around this notion, and a tourist attraction resulted as thousands have made the pilgrimage to Central Avenue to visit Bathhouse Row. Now all that remains of that legacy is the Buckstaff Bathhouse, the only one of eight bathhouses to remain fully operational. The Fordyce Bathhouse, the only other one to be fully restored, has been turned into a museum. Across the street from the abandoned bathhouses are endless blocks of historic buildings, many of which have been turned into art galleries. According to the film, Hot Springs: City of the Arts, "fine arts have become a major part of the revitalization of the city, and mark the beginning of a new Hot Springs" (TheArtFoundation).

It is no coincidence that the downtown area of Hot Springs is the originator of the arts revitalization. The Old World architecture of many of the buildings is a reminder of the distinctive culture Hot Springs has harbored since the early 1900s (Simmons). The Doric columns and cornices are neoclassical revivals that stand frozen in time. These buildings were left in a dilapidated condition for most of the mid‑nineteenth century and became low budget storefronts for most of the 1970s and 1980s. That is, until 1987 when the Main Street Project designated the area as a Historic District. This Historic District was transformed as dozens of artists and gallery owners renovated these Victorian and early twentieth century buildings and art studio spaces (Art). Soon, downtown Hot Springs was booming again as a new cultural appreciation swept into the community. A wave of international artists, beginning with Benini in 1987, moved to Hot Springs, bought these neglected structures, and restored them (Hot Springs: City of the Arts).

Although the arts did not start to flourish until 1989, Hot Springs was not void of culture up until that point. Artists had been coming to live and work in Hot Springs since the early 1970s. Jim and Barbara Larkin opened their studio/shop, Fox Pass Pottery, in 1973. Gary and June Simmons were also residents of Hot Springs that same year. The Hot Springs Arts Center and several auction houses served as the first galleries to open in 1973. The only deterrent to keep the arts from growing was the lack of necessity to establish an arts-endowed community centered around art galleries. The art energy was definitely intact. The only part missing was the driving force.

This force came in the form of an artist and his wife. Benini can be credited with devising the entire arts phenomenon. Born in Imola, Italy fifty‑eight years ago, Benini left home at the age of fourteen and has traveled the world ever since. He became a United States citizen in 1977. He lived in Orlando for about ten years, showing his artwork at exhibitions and museums around the country. It was a twist of fate that brought him to Hot Springs. As Benini puts it:

Lorraine and I were driving from Fort Smith along Highway 10 on a Saturday night in November. We got lost and found ourselves in the middle of an abandoned downtown at two in the morning. There was so much beauty and oldness to the place, an elegance that reminded me much of my home in Italy. We checked into the Best Western and when we woke the next morning, we ate lunch and went directly to the Realtor. In eighteen hours we knew that Hot Springs was the place we had been searching for the bulk of seven years. In February of 1988 we closed the sale on the building, and in September, ten months after happening on this place by accident, we became permanent residents. (Benini)

Upon moving to Hot Springs, Benini turned the building he bought on Central Avenue into his gallery, studio, and home all in one. TheArtFoundation, as it came to be called, was the first of many galleries to open and provide a forum for artists to display their work for the public. Many others followed suit and opened galleries of their own, including Melinda Herr‑Chambliss, whom Benini brought to Hot Springs personally. All came to him for advice for starting their own gallery. In response to this overwhelming interest in the promotion of the visual arts, Benini also instituted a set of guidelines for galleries and artists to follow to be credible. While most galleries receive fifty percent of the asking price on artwork, the galleries in Hot Springs were to get only thirty‑three percent of the profit. He became a kind of matchmaker, pairing artists with galleries for the most beneficial working relationships. The process for beginning an arts‑minded community was not a difficult one, according to Benini: "Everyone here has welcomed us with open arms, and even trusted me enough to come for advice. The problem with most small towns is that every aspect is controlled by an elite group of three or so families. Hot Springs is different in that there was no elite. It was easy to establish a cornerstone for the arts because of this fact" (Benini). Even so, Benini insisted, he had to "out‑politic" the local government on certain issues.

This entire buildup of the arts came to a pinnacle in 1989. In response to the overwhelming emphasis on art, five women bonded together and formed the Arts Cooperative Team, or ACT. Lorraine Benini, Carolyn Taylor, Suzanne Tucker, Melinda Herr‑Chambliss, and Linda Palmer sat around the Benini dining room table and conceived the idea out of a need for organization among artists. Their mission is to promote, nourish, and develop the arts in Hot Springs. According to June Simmons of Historic District Antiques, it was through the efforts of ACT that a variety of art forms emerged on the Hot Springs art scene (Simmons). Poetry readings as well as musical events became regular occurrences as artists began to expand their circle. It was not unusual on a Friday night for artists to commune at art galleries and then continue the outing at a local restaurant or someone's house well into the night. It was at these such gatherings, said Benini, that the most ingenious ideas for the furtherance of the arts were born (Benini). The concept of the Celebration of the Arts and the Documentary Film Festival, as well as many other events, came out of conversations held around the infamous Benini dining room table.

There was a sense of camaraderie at the onset of this resurgence. Artists who formerly were independent came together to establish professional and personal relationships with one another. No one knew exactly in which direction the movement was headed, but none of them wanted to withdraw their support. Instead, what exactly happened can only be described as a phenomenon. The welcoming attitude of the community fostered other art forms to join the progress and the energy accelerated, rippling through all aspects of the community (TheArtFoundation).

This arts renaissance began primarily with the visual arts. Benini and many others opened their gallery doors to thousands of eager patrons. New Choice magazine says the turnout shows that Hot Springs is a bit more cosmopolitan than other Southern cities (Arts). The artists had the community backing, and it was not long before monthly gallery walks officially started through the efforts of ACT.

Hot Springs can now boast that it is home to fourteen art galleries and around forty residential artists. According to John Villani, these art galleries exhibit work from local, national, and international artists [. . . ] with a particularly strong emphasis on contemporary art (15). This high concentration of art galleries cannot be found anywhere else in the area. Concurrently, Hot Springs has begun to be known as an arts venue that is unequaled in any other city in the state. (City of the Arts). It even surpasses Little Rock as the state's cultural center. Hot Springs is well known in the national art scene as well. The art galleries have steadily developed a collector base from Memphis, Dallas, Houston, Little Rock, Kansas City, St. Louis, and even California (Villani 15). Art sales from these galleries total over two million dollars a year (City of the Arts). All of these galleries are located within walking distance from one another on Central Avenue. The following is a list of the available art galleries and their owners:

•American Art Gallery 4 James (Willie) & Ann Gilbert, owners

•Amold‑Engman Fine Arts Beth Arnold & Penny Fires, owners

•Artist's Workshop Gallery N/A

•Bakari's Art Gallery Vicki Gant, owner

•Blue Moon Gallery Pat Scavo, owner

•Groden Fine Art Studio/Gallery Randy Groden, owner

•Jeanfo Studio/Gallery/Outdoor Sculpture Jeanfo, owner

•Legacy Fine Art Roger, Richard, & Beth Gipe, owners

•Palmer's Gallery 800 Linda Palmer, owner

•Taylor's Contemporanea Fine Arts Carolyn Taylor, owner

•TheArtFoundation Lorraine Benini, owner

•Wazelle's Earth Gallery N/A

There is cohesiveness to the galleries in Hot Springs. Gallery owners do not consider themselves rivals, but instead adhere to a strong commitment of professionalism. All the galleries work together to promote the beauty of the arts. This is best exemplified by the Gallery Walks held the first Thursday and Friday of every month. Almost all of the galleries participate in this Gallery Walk, opening their doors to everyone, complete with refreshments and warm smiles. Sometimes the artists themselves are on hand to answer questions and join in the festivities. This is most important, according to Benini, because it allows social exchange between the population at large and the artists (Benini).

The monthly Gallery Walk is celebrating its 113th month of existence this December. It has turned from just a curiosity to a major event that has helped to foster other art forms (The Art Foundation). The Gallery Walk expanded into a three‑day event that focused on all the arts, and came to be known as the Celebration of the Arts. The Celebration consisted of national acts in theater, dance, and music. In 1997, the festival took a unique turn of direction (Villani 15). Instead of bringing in troupes for performances, the festival commissioned new works to be created in all genres. The artists receiving the commissions were celebrated professionals with national reputations as well as strong Arkansas connections. This brought attention to deserving Arkansas artists such as Jennifer Maddox, Steven Bryant, and Werner Trieschmann.

Just this year, the Celebration of the Arts changed its format again, this time to accommodate the popularity of poetry as a performing art. "A Gathering of Poets VII," the Arkansas Grand Slam, and other activities round out the program. 1998 marks the seventh year of "A Gathering of Poets," that has, through the years, offered the public the opportunity not only to hear poetry, but to meet some of the most highly acclaimed poets of our time. Past poets include, Allen Ginsberg, Poet Laureate Rita Dove, Miller Williams, and Gary Snyder. This year's lineup includes the publisher of City Lights Books, a Grammy Award Winning singer/songwriter, and the founder of Slam Poetry-Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Lucinda Williams, and Marc Smith, respectively. Poetry was not new to Hot Springs. As Bud Kenny states, "the Poets of the Roundtable has for many years been the main poetry group in town" (Kenny). In 1989 Kenny began the ritual of Wednesday Night Poetry Readings. February of 1999 will make ten years without missing a single Wednesday night of Poetry Readings. The location has changed from the Groto Restaurant in Spencer's Corner to all kinds of other sites and has now found its permanent home at the Poet's Loft. This place was made available because of the Medici‑like patronage of Dr. Paul and Suzanne Tucker, who are immensely involved with the arts in Hot Springs.

Just recently the decision to separate the Celebration of the Arts into two distinctive categories came about, according to Carolyn Taylor: "We [ACT] decided that since there were so many events and not enough time, separating the festival into a springtime visual program and a fall performance program would be beneficial to all. Spring is the perfect time of year to get out and walk around, enjoying the weather and outside art displays as well. And it just so works out that fall is the best time to be inside, appreciating the performance side of Hot Springs" (Taylor 1).

Just as the Celebration of the Arts derived from the Gallery Walks, other events evolved from the Celebration of the Arts. Although they may have had their beginnings in the celebration, there was a need for them to become individual events in their own right. Such events include the Jazz Festival and the Documentary Film Festival.

Music has always been unfaltering in the Hot Springs area, dating back to when jazz bands played at Vapors and The Sands. It is still very much a part of the Hot Springs art scene. On any given night, it is possible to hear musicians playing in the Ohio Club, Maxine's, or the ballroom at the Arlington. In addition, The Hot Springs Jazz and Blues Festival is held every September and the Hot Springs Music Festival occurs during the first two weeks in June. The Hot Springs Music Festival is a major event, bringing in over 200 international musicians, 20,000 attendees, and 6.4 million radio listeners this past year. Villani maintains that the festival has carved out a place on the nation's classical music map (15). The premise of the festival is to pair world‑class mentor musicians from major orchestras, chamber ensembles, and conservatory faculties with pre‑professional apprentices (Hot Springs Music Festival). The two groups play side‑by side in such non‑traditional venues like art galleries, churches, historic buildings, and amphitheaters. Richard and Laura Rosenberg are responsible for making the music festival possible. Their first encounter with Hot Springs is much like Benini's. As Carolyn Taylor relates, the Rosenbergs were peering in a gallery window as she and her husband walked by. They began talking, and the Taylors invited them to their house for some good wine and conversation. The front porch on that summer night turned permanent when the Rosenbergs decided to move from Philadelphia to Hot Springs, purchasing a house within two weeks of their first day in Hot Springs (Taylor).

To outsiders, it is difficult to grasp what makes Hot Springs such a mecca for the arts. But to those artists who have come here and experienced it for themselves, it seems as if Hot Springs was touched by Minerva herself. All of the artists agree that there is a certain energy found here that is like no other.

Recently, this energy has manifested itself into one of the biggest draws of the year, the Documentary Film Festival. The idea for this film festival came about during a dinner conversation. Unbeknownst to the group at the time, this would be the first film festival of its kind, focusing only on documentaries. The festival was launched in 1992 as a cooperative effort between the Southern Alliance and a small group of Hot Springs volunteers who believed it would be beneficial to all (About HSDFI). The festival became such a success that it prompted James Earl Jones to say: "I see the 1990s as holding the promise of an unparalleled era of popularity for nonfiction films and video [. . .] with the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival as one of the genre's most important venues" (About HSDFI). Now in its seventh year, the HSDFF continues to gain international recognition. Similar festivals in Seattle and Chicago are modeled after the one in Hot Springs. Since its humble beginnings, the HSDFF has grown both in size and stature. Travel and Leisure Magazine named it one of the top twenty film festivals worldwide, citing its emphasis on the cinematic art form and the career advancement of filmmakers whose works are featured (About HSDFI). The films are shown at the historic Malco Theater. To ensure that the festival will have a permanent home, in 1996 the HSDFI board of directors voted to accept a long‑term lease/purchase. The Hot Springs Documentary Film Institute has dedicated itself not only to the festival, but also the renovation of the Malco. Many of the renovations could not be done without the support of many affluent people.

In fact, much of the progress that has been made could not have been possible if it had not been for some dedicated souls who have tirelessly volunteered and made their mark. The most recent evidence of this unwavering effort has been the new state‑of‑the-art Hot Springs Convention Center. The opening of the center has, in a sense, brought the people of Hot Springs together. Carolyn Taylor echoes this sentiment, insisting that the Civic Center has united the community and has had an impact on everyone (Taylor).

The economic and social impact the arts have had on Hot Springs made city officials stand up and take notice. It took nine years before the city government recognized the permanence of the arts. The city was recently designated City of the Arts by the Hot Springs City Board of Directors. Much of the credit should be given to the City Manager, Kent Myers, who has been extremely helpful in the effort to make the arts an eminent force. The work has paid off. Hot Springs has become very high‑profile these past few years. The Hot Springs National Park is one of only two parks in the nation with a sculpture gracing its land-Washington D.C. being the site of the other park. It has even overshadowed Little Rock, ascending to the status of the state's cultural center (Villani 14).

The road to get to this level of cultural greatness was a long and treacherous one. As Benini maintains though, "nothing worthy is born without struggle" (Benini). At the beginning of the movement, there were problems with some temperamental artists who came to Hot Springs just to make a financial gain. Then came the controversy with the Alvin Hotel, a historic building located on Central Avenue. Nations Bank wanted to tear the building down to make room for a parking lot. Many people of the town protested, Benini included. Seventy fervent supporters even went so far as to picket the day before the building was to be sold. The town came together and was able to save the hotel from the wrecker's ball. No plans as of yet have been made concerning the future of the building, but it is the hope of many that it will one day be used as an arts center.

Not only have the arts bonded the community in a way no one thought possible, the people responsible are making strides in art education as well. Keeping the arts alive is a main concern of all the artists and gallery owners, and they feel the best way to do that is to instill a love for it at a young age. There is an imminent threat that art education in schools will soon be done away with; so with the help of schoolteachers, the galleries have opened their doors for field trips. Usually the artists are on hand to describe their artwork and even do some interesting projects with the children. In fact, the new Convention Center will display 120 panels of artwork done by children. This is just one of the many ways the artists give back to the community.

The energy of the art scene has ebbed and flowed throughout the years. Everyone is in a reflective state at this point, looking back on past accomplishments and wondering what the future holds. While the energy is at a somewhat low point right now, there is much to be proud of. All remain optimistic, though. Art has become so infused into the culture that it has become the future of Hot Springs. Now that the government has acknowledged the arts as an effective force, they are making sure to fund appropriately. Benini's attitude best exemplifies the sign of the times: "There is no limit of what can happen. Hot Springs is not a barren place. She is nurturing and people will continue to flock here for that atmosphere" (Benini).

Works Cited

"About HSDFI." http://www.DocuFilmInst.org/about.html. (3 Nov. 1998).
"Art." http://www.hotsprings.org/arts/index4.html. (28 Oct. 1998).
"Arts." http://www.hotsprings.ofg/arts/index.html. (3 Nov. 1998).
Benini. Personal interview. 2 Nov. 1998.
Brantley, Max. "Wooooo, pig, soooie!" Arkansas Times. 2 Oct. 1998: 9.
"City of the Arts." http2://www.cityofthearts/act.org/aboutus.htm. (28 Oct. 1998).
Hot Springs: City of the Arts. TheArtFoundation. 1992. Videocassette.
"Hot Springs Music Festival: About the Festival." http://www.hotspringsmusicorg/thefestival/index.html (3 Nov. 1998).

Kenny, Bud. E-mail to the author. 25 Nov. 1998.
Simmons, June. Personal interview. 11 Oct 1998.
Taylor, Carolyn. Personal interview. 14 Nov. 1998.
Villani, John. The 100 Best Small Art Towns in America. Ed. Goldstein, Peg, et. al. Santa Fe: John Muir, 1998.

Biographical Sketch

Jennifer Godwin is a senior Mass Media/English major and Dance minor from Jacksonville. Besides being in the Honors College, she is also in the Dance Company, AretJ, Masquers, Gamma Beta Phi, and Alpha Chi. Upon graduation, she plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in either law or broadcast journalism, as her tastes are varied and quite capricious.

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