Seven adults and four students were announced as artists whose work will be displayed throughout the Greater Peoria area, part of ArtsPartners of Central Illinois’ annual Sky Art Peoria program.
In its 11th year, Sky Art Peoria continues to celebrate the creativity, imagination and artistic talent found throughout the region, said Dr. Mae Gilliland Wright, Executive Director of ArtsPartners of Central Illinois. This year’s program will feature nine billboards — the largest number in the program’s history — along with two large-scale vinyl installations inside the Peoria Civic Center.
Selected works represent a wide range of artistic styles and mediums, from illustration and printmaking to painting, digital art, photography, and mixed media. The 2026 program includes work by established professional artists, emerging creatives, and student artists from Peoria, Tazewell and Woodford counties.
In the 2026 adult division, billboard winners are: Cathie Crawford, “Glimmer,” LNOR (Eleanor Gentry), “Feed Me, Mother!,” Stacy Hall, “You Don’t Have To Follow In Your Bloodline,” Liz Johnson, “Senescence I & II,” Matthew Keltner-Smith, “Mid Century Modern” and Peggy West, “Flower Market.”
Three student artists also were selected for billboard installations: Reese Bair, “Feeding Frenzy,” Elizabeth Jones, “Dunquin Pier, April 2, 7:47 p.m.” and Joshua Marlow, “There’s No Face to Fear.”
Finally, the 2026 Peoria Civic Center selections are: Patrick Brennan, “The River City” (Adult Division) and Rashmi Kannamalla, “Be Different, Be You” (Student Division).
The winning billboard selections will be reproduced as 48- x 14-foot vinyl billboards displayed throughout Greater Peoria beginning this summer.
Also, ArtsPartners is continuing its partnership with the Peoria Civic Center, which started last year when it brought Sky Art Peoria installations indoors through large-scale vinyl wraps displayed in the venue’s Skylight Lobby.
Go to artspartners.net/skyartpeoria to see the winners
“When we launched Sky Art Peoria, I do not think any of us could have fully imagined how beloved this program would become,” Wright said. “It is striking to drive through our community and suddenly encounter a massive work of local art. Sky Art Peoria is a reminder of the creativity that exists here every day. Whether it is the work of a nationally exhibited artist, a local working creative, or a student seeing their artwork displayed publicly for the first time, Sky Art Peoria reflects the vibrancy and imagination of greater Peoria.”
In addition to its ongoing partnership with Adams Outdoor Advertising, 2026 Sky Art Peoria sponsors include: Bradley University; Fine Arts Society of Peoria; General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport; Joshua D. Herman and Miller, Hall & Triggs; MUIR Omni Graphics; O’Shea Builders; RLI Corp.; and OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois.