Stauth Memorial Museum

Stylistic Variations
2015-11-08 - 2015-11-29 | Stauth Memorial Museum, 111 N. Aztec, Montezuma, KS, 67867, United States
An art show featuring Western Kansas artist Chuck Bonner will be on display at the Stauth Memorial Museum in Montezuma, KS from November 8, 2015 thru November 29, 2015. Mr. Bonner has been creating art his entire life inspired by the southwest Kansas landscapes where he grew up, the famous Bonner family fossil history, and the varied and humorous world around him.
The exhibit entitled, Stylistic Variations, explores various art styles and media Chuck uses. It is somewhat of a retrospective show, but also incorporates new pieces recently completed. The exhibit consists of 29 paintings within four categories; Invented Landscapes, Primordial Soup, Pure Abstraction, and Whimsical Application.

Chuck Bonner was born in Scott City, Kansas in 1950 and grew up in the western Kansas town of Leoti. His formative years were spent in an artistic and scientific background; his father was a fossil collector and his mother an artist. Chuck attended Fort Hays State University where he received an A.B. in art and an M.A. in painting.
While at the University, Bonner worked at the Sternberg Memorial Museum where he prepared exhibits, painted scientific restorations and portraits, and prepared fossils for exhibit. This experience has helped him with his latest venture, Keystone Gallery, which he and his wife, Barbara Shelton, opened in the fall of 1991. The gallery is a combination of art gallery, fossil museum and gift shop located 18 miles north of Scott City on US Highway 83. To enhance the museum fossil collection, Chuck has painted a 24′ by 6′ mural of prehistoric life in the Kansas Cretaceous Sea.
Bonner has completed many other public works of art, including murals for Fort Hays State University and the Ellis County Historical Museum–both in Hays, Kansas. He also painted a Kansas prehistoric sea mural for the El Quartelejo Museum in Scott City, Kansas.
In 2007, Chuck was commissioned to paint two prehistoric scenes and a tribute painting to his father Marion for the Museum of the Great Plains in Leoti, Kansas. The next year he completed four murals of paleontological and archaeological themes totaling two hundred square feet for the Stanton County Museum in Johnson, Kansas.
Some exciting news, PBS will present a three-part NOVA series, Making North America, on November 4, 11, and 18, 2015. Host Kirk Johnson, renowned paleontologist and Smithsonian Museum Director, explores how the continent was shaped—and how it shaped us. Part 2, on November 11th, explains the Western Interior Seaway and features Chuck, Barbara, and Kirk out in the fossil beds in western Kansas.
Chuck enjoys the challenge of commission work whether for public organizations such as museums or for individuals. He continues to produce various styles of artwork and sells to collectors throughout the world. Now, Chuck invites you to come and enjoy his show while it is on display for this short, 3 week exhibit in his native, southwest Kansas. For information about his art, the history of the building that houses the Keystone Gallery, local Monument Rock or even Kansas fossils found in their area, contact Chuck Bonner, Keystone Gallery 620.872.2762. Keystone Gallery is located on one of the designated Kansas Scenic Byways. It is one of the primary sites along the Western Vistas Historic Byways (WVHB) route. Their historic limestone building plus the museum full of fossils make for a great interpretation of the past, both historic and geologic. Join them on their quest to increase the knowledge of western Kansas’ contributions to the realms of science and history. Check out their website at KeystoneGallery.com
Call the Stauth Museum at 620-846-2527 for more information about the exhibit or to set up a tour for groups of 5 or more. Museum hours: Tue -Sat 9-12 1-4:30, Sun 1:30-4:30. We are closed on Mondays and all major holidays including Thanksgiving Day. Admission is free, but donations are gratefully accepted!

Suited for Space
2015-07-19 - 2015-11-01
Organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit Service (SITES)
The history of this country is one of perilous voyages and uncharted territory, but few journeys have captured the imagination and hearts of the public as the race into space. It was seemingly unattainable, but American ingenuity, innovation, and determination made the impossible possible. And it is that ingenuity and innovation that is explored and celebrated in the SITES exhibit Suited for Space.
Through rare and original photography, including unique, new x-ray images of the interiors of the spacesuits, the exhibit reveals how the modern technological marvel that is the spacesuit enables astronauts to live and work in space. This exhibit reveals the remarkable creativity and determination of the extraordinary few who ventured into space, but it highlights and showcases the brilliant ingenuity of the hundreds more who worked tirelessly—and often anonymously—to get them there.
In May 1961, when President Kennedy made the promise that America would put a man on the moon within a decade, the ability to fulfill that promise existed only in theory. The spacesuit was a critical piece of engineering that allowed Neil Armstrong to step onto another world and survive in the hostile environment of outer space. The Apollo spacesuit he wore evolved from the groundbreaking advances of the Gemini and Mercury mission suits, facilitating movement and dexterity in small spaces, remaining pressurized in zero gravity, and providing essential oxygen, heating, and cooling in as efficient a manner as possible. Suited for Space is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) and the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum. The national exhibition tour is generously supported by DuPont.

Western Kansas Art "Hang-In" 2015
2015-06-21 - 2015-07-12
This exhibit is designed to give the many talented artists in Western Kansas a showcase to exhibit their work. Student, amateur and professional artists will display beautiful 2 and 3 dimensional art including paintings, drawings, woodcarving, metal arts, mixed media, sculpture, photography, ceramics, textiles, drawings and more! This is not a juried (judged) art exhibit, but just a fun way to showcase the many talented people in western Kansas. Come see the talent western Kansas has to be proud of and vote for your favorite piece. Art will be displayed from artists from many western Kansas communities. Please contact Museum Staff to get your name on the mailing list if YOU are interested in participating in this exciting exhibit. The show will be on display from June 21st to July 12th.

Test: Bridge Club meeting
2015-04-15 14:00 - 16:00 (America/Chicago)
Weekly bridge club meeting

50 Greatest Photographs from National Geographic
2015-03-22 - 2015-06-14
50 Greatest Photographs of National Geographic showcases some of National Geographic’s most compelling photographs. From Steve McCurry’s unforgettable Afghan girl to Nick Nichols’ iconic image of Jane Goodall and chimpanzee to Thomas Abercrombie’s never-before-seen view of Mecca, the exhibition includes some of National Geographic magazine’s most-remembered and celebrated photographs from its more-than-120-year history. In addition to seeing the photographs as they appeared in the magazine, visitors to the exhibition will learn the stories behind the photos and more about the photographers themselves. For some images, visitors will be able to see the “near frames” taken by the photographer: the sequence of images made in the field before and after the perfect shot. The exhibition is based on the popular iPad app released by National Geographic in 2011 and featured by iTunes as an iPad “App of the Week.” Devices featuring the app will be available in the gallery for visitors to experience. Exhibit on tour through National Geographic Traveling Exhibit Service.
