Seward artist Mark Anschutz is crafting Seward’s artistic legacy as the town’s first artist-in-residence through the Seward Arts Council.
An artist-in-residence is an artist who is not only showcasing their art in town but is also living in the community. Anschultz already lives in Seward and has a studio across from the post office.
“Mark is very well-versed as an artist and has been around a long time, and so it's great to be able to share some of his work at Red Path (Gallery and Tasting Room) right now,” Seward Arts Council President Jeanne Wiemer said.
One of Anschutz’s acrylic latex paintings on Masonite pieces, “Going Beyond our Boundaries,” is currently on display at the vault at Red Path Gallery. Wiemer said there will be a full exhibit of his artwork in the gallery during November and December.
Anschutz is a former art director and permanent resident artist for The Center for Liturgical Arts at Concordia University. He earned his Master’s of Arts in painting at Pittsburg State University and his Master’s of Fine Arts in sculpture at Wichita State University.
Anschutz said he connects with the quotes “Artists are the eyes for other people, showing others things they would not see,” by Henry Moore and “Why talk when you can paint?” by Milton Avery.
“I enjoy walking in the woods and seeing how God has made everything simple and complex at the same time,” he said. “Whether it is macro or micro, everything is in harmony.”
He has completed major commissions of stained glass windows for the Lutheran Center in Baltimore, Maryland; Concordia University Chapel in Seward; the Mulvane Museum of Art at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas; Faith Lutheran Church in Lincoln and 72 stained glass windows to fill a two-story wall at the Church of All Nations School in Hong Kong.
He also created the “Lightfall” mosaic in Valparaiso University’s Welcome Center.
Anschutz values telling stories with his art and displaying meaningful connections to significant historical milestones and current achievements. When he does a commission, he takes special care to have ongoing communication with the body the commission is being designed for so the art will become more deeply rooted in its future home.
Anschutz said he is fascinated by the relationship of the parts to each other and the parts to the whole in a piece of art.
“I think paintings are answers to questions that have not yet been asked,” he said. “When a painting changes me, it is done.”
Anschutz was good friends with Reinhold Marxhausen, a renowned artist from Seward, and studied art under him. He said he is excited to be part of the vision Marxhausen, a founding member of the Seward Arts Council, had for the organization.
“There are many opportunities for Seward to keep building a rich and vibrant art community that will draw people to visit and grow the city,” Anschutz said.
Downtown Seward was named a Creative District in November of 2023, and the area must continue being a hub for the arts to keep that distinction. The artist-in-residence program is part of the SAC’s strategic plan to help the town flourish as a Creative District.
Wiemer said the SAC plans to bring artists from outside of Seward to be artists-in-residence in the future. They will likely stay at Liberty House and have a studio or showcase somewhere downtown. Wiemer said the SAC is working with Concordia University to plan for artists-in-residence to also be involved with the Center for Liturgical Arts.
“It’s to bring artists to be seen in downtown and in the Creative District so people get used to the artist walking around and then having art available to see and promoting art,” she said. “It's just getting more interaction with an artist that would be residing within the community.”
Wiemer said Anschutz’s time as artist-in-residence is like a pilot for the program. SAC will later decide on specifics such as lengths of time an artist will stay. The program is applying for a grant through the Nebraska Arts Council to go toward paying for a studio space for the artist and giving the artist a stipend for groceries and other necessities while staying in Seward.
The SAC is also raising money through a show on display right now at Red Path Gallery.
Wiemer said she is looking forward to watching the people of Seward connect and learn from Anshutz and future artists-in-residence.
“I think it will just bring a lot more awareness to the arts within the Creative District,” she said.