For the second year in a row, urban art came to life in the Misplaced Showcase.
In a one-night-only event Oct. 12, the Misplaced Showcase took over Super Top Secret in downtown Salt Lake City to display the heart of the city’s independent art community.
From comic book artists to illustrators to indie arcade programmers, the Misplaced Showcase is in equal parts an art market, interactive exhibition, and a charity event. Fundamentally, the Misplaced Showcase is an opportunity for aspiring local artists to network with other creators across a variety of artistic disciplines, while raising money for the Utah Children’s Justice Center program.
The CJC is based out of the Utah Attorney General’s Office and has over 20 locations statewide dedicated to helping local communities respond to allegations of child abuse in ways that minimize trauma.
In 2018, the Misplaced Showcase met their goal to raise $1,000 for the CJC. In 2019, the Misplaced Showcase hopes to raise $1,500 in donations for the CJC.
The Misplaced Showcase was the brainchild of Lucas Ackley, JJ Harrison, and Bill Galvan, an event co-founded by local artists. The event celebrates the versatility and camaraderie of Salt Lake City’s budding art community.
“JJ and Bill had gone out to a similar art show in Austin,” shares Ackley. “They came back and talked about how it would be nice to have a community-building event that was focused on [showcasing] professional artists of different trades and mediums while also encouraging other local aspiring artists to come.”
For Mark Romney, an art director and illustrator, the Misplaced Showcase is a chance to turn his passion for creativity into a full-time job. Through the print medium, Romney is currently using his artistic abilities as an outlet to share the stories of endangered animals.
“People don’t seem to recognize that we are killing hundreds of animals, sometimes daily,” says Romney, explaining the influence behind his art. “Animals have a lot of love, much more than we give them credit for, and there is a lot we can learn from them.”
For Derek and Brighton Ballard, owners of Neuer Geist in Salt Lake City, the Misplaced Showcase illustrates just how large Salt Lake City’s art community truly is.
“The Misplaced Showcase is a great way to put a face to a product and create opportunities for collaboration,” shares Derek Ballard. “This is our second year with the [Misplaced] Showcase and we love to support it.”
Brighton Ballard recommends that aspiring artists should just put their work out into the community.
“[You] should be prepared to not see results sometimes, it is important to be creating art because you want to be, not because you think you are going to be successful,” Brighton Ballard says.
Visit the Misplaced Showcase website for more information.
