Editor's note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat.
Two business people have headed off a crisis for Art on the Square, Belleville’s biggest community event.
Rebecca Boyer and Karl Gilpin volunteered to become the organization’s new co-directors after learning that next year’s show was at risk of being canceled due to lack of leadership.
Boyer, 39, is vice president of operations at Kaskaskia Engineering Group. Gilpin, 50, is a real estate developer and president of Tygracon Properties.
“I just think it’s really important for the city to continue to have this event,” Boyer said. “Both Karl and I have significant vested interest in downtown Belleville’s success and a commitment to our neighbors and friends there.”
Boyer and Gilpin met over the weekend with Carol Bartle and Stephanie Dorris, who have co-directed Art on the Square for three years, and Art Director Will Mathis to discuss the transition.
Boyer and Gilpin will lead a non-profit organization with a six-member board, 30 committee members and 300 volunteers who produce a three-day juried show each year. It draws tens of thousands of people to view and buy the artwork of more than 100 artists from all over the country.
“(Boyer and Gilpin have) a big job ahead of them, and they know that,” Dorris said. “But the good news is that Carol, Will and I will be around to help them transition through this. It’s not like we’re leaving tomorrow.
“And they will have a group of great committee members behind them. Most everyone knows what to do. They’ve been doing it all these years. They just needed a leader.”
Next year’s Art on the Square will be held May 16-18, as originally planned, according to Dorris.
Email provoked action
Bartle and Dorris sent an email to committee members on Sept. 4, stating that they didn’t “see a path” for putting on a show in 2025. Bartle, 78, a volunteer since Art on the Square began in 2002, is retiring. Dorris, 61, a volunteer for 14 years, is moving to Florida to be closer to family.
Bartle and Dorris said they had searched nearly a year for an executive director or two co-directors, and after finally getting someone to take on the volunteer position, she withdrew in late August.
Gilpin said he learned of these problems on Friday from a Belleville News-Democrat article, which also revealed a strained three-year relationship between Bartle and Dorris and Belleville Mayor Patty Gregory, who co-founded the show and formerly served as executive director for 20 years.
“I’m not involved in any of the politics or behind-the-scenes stuff, so I had no idea what was or wasn’t taking place,” said Gilpin, a volunteer for the past four years. “I just couldn’t believe we were at the point of losing the show.”
Tom Barnett, a past board president and volunteer for about 15 years, until 2021, said Thursday that a committee member had forwarded the email from Bartle and Dorris to him, and he became alarmed because of the art show’s importance to the community.
Barnett said he and others began exploring the idea of establishing a new non-profit organization for a different art show and, on Gregory’s recommendation, contacted Southwestern Illinois College President Nick Mance to get permission to raise money through the college’s foundation.
The BND asked Barnett Saturday if that effort would continue now that the Art on the Square board was planning to produce a show next year with Boyer and Gilpin at the helm.
“I don’t think we’ll do that,” Barnett said. “Our whole issue in the beginning was they weren’t going to have an art show, and we did not want it to die. If they’re going to have an art show, then that’s great.”
Gregory couldn’t be reached for comment.
Rising out of conflict
Bartle and Dorris told the BND that Gregory wanted to continue leading Art on the Square after being elected mayor in 2021, but board members rejected the idea due to ethical, legal and practical concerns.
Bartle and Dorris said this decision resulted in three years of hostility from Gregory, caused a major sponsor to end financial support and contributed to political pressure that led a SWIC employee who had agreed this summer to become executive director to withdraw.
“We don’t want to see (the art show) end,” Bartle said last week. “We want to see it continue on. But this nonsense has got to stop. I have given 23 years, and there is no excuse for what is going on here. It breaks my heart.”
Boyer handles marketing and business development for Kaskaskia Engineering Group, which she joined in 2009.
Boyer serves on boards for Catholic Urban Programs, Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce, Belleville School District 118 Foundation and Belleville Achieves Strength in Character. She also has helped organize community events.
“I think it’s important to recognize what Patty Gregory started with Art on the Square, as well as the continued success that the next group of leaders have had,” Boyer said. “Karl and I are just going to do our best and make sure we don’t mess it up.”
Gilpin has overseen several development projects in Belleville through Tygracon Properties. He’s a retired U.S. Army officer who helps with Grafted Wine Bar & Lounge, his wife’s business in downtown Belleville. He serves on the Belleville Sister Cities and Belleville School District 118 Foundation boards.
Gilpin joked that he and Boyer will need plenty of “hand-holding” and other support to succeed with Art on the Square. He said he has good relationships with all involved, including Gregory.
“I hope that everyone will breathe a sigh of relief that we stepped up and got involved,” Gilpin said. “Obviously, there was some serious infighting going on, and I’m neutral on all of that. I don’t have an agenda. I just want to save the show for Belleville.”
Teri Maddox is a reporter with the Belleville News-Democrat, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
