Midwest Living Magazine honors McCook's ArtBank

McCOOK Neb. - Midwest Living magazine recently released its Spring 2024 issue and named McCook’s ArtBank in its Best of the Midwest 2024 Award Winners. Editors selected ArtBank in the Arts and Culture category: “Rural Nebraska, four hours from a big city, isn’t the place you’d expect to find a contemporary art gallery – yet husband and wife Chad Graff and Joann Falkenburg have launched two.

The 6th Floor Project came first in 2021; last year, they added ArtBank. In a renovated historic bank, see a wealth of work from international artists (like iridescent steel sculptures, huge floral cutouts, and vibrant mixed media pieces).”

“It’s awesome to be recognized by one of our region’s most widely circulated magazines and to be celebrated with prestigious new venues for arts and culture in Chicago (The Salt Shed), Indianapolis (RH Indianapolis), and South Bend (Raclin Murphy Museum of Art),” said ArtBank founders Chad Graff and Joann Falkenburg.

The main floor of the ArtBank, 108 West D in McCook, open Thursdays 5-8 p.m. and Saturdays, 1-5 p.m. The 6th Gloor, 402 Norris in the Keystone Business Center, is open 1-5 pm. Thursdays and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Lucas Kotschwar/Courtesy Photo

Midwest Living profiled 25 dynamic new travel destinations for awards in a twelve-state region that includes Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. Kiewit Luminarium in Omaha is the only other Nebraska venue recognized in this year’s awards.

ArtBank’s founders emphasized: “This recognition is well-deserved credit to the artisans who transformed the historic building, including Ron Nelson, Cole Einspahr, Roxanne Owens, Lucas Kotschwar, Eliza Anker and Randall Goltl, as well as to the artists whose works put the space in beautiful dialogue with our surrounding landscape, including John Thein, Bob Blunk, Steve Stramel, Jack Stevens, Lucas Kotschwar, Deb Goodenberger, Thomas and Christopher Prinz, Shonto Begay, and many more.”

ArtBank and the 6th Floor recently opened for a new 2024 season to go from April through October with open hours on the 6th Floor at 402 Norris Avenue on Thursdays, 1 to 5 p.m., and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and open hours at ArtBank, 108 West D Street, on Thursdays, 5 to 8 p.m., and Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m. Visits are also available by appointment.

Anticipated highlights of the 2024 season include youth piano recitals, a summer music camp, a summer youth arts program, a youth docent program, an artist presentation and tours during Buffalo Commons, speakers from Humanities Nebraska during Heritage Days, the 2024 Conference of Nebraska Art Teachers Association on October 11 and 12, new exhibits and more.

More information is available by calling/texting (308) 340-7854 or e-mailing 6thfloormccook@gmail.com.