Hollister, MO—In its upcoming art exhibit, Southern Missouri Arts Connection (SMAC) will be featuring the work of Luis Renato Cortes in Duality. The exhibit will run from March 1-30 at the SMAC Art Center gallery on historic Downing Street in Hollister. An opening night reception will be held Friday, March 1, from 6-9 p.m. Both the exhibit and reception are free and open to the public. Attendees may view the exhibit, tour the private studios and enjoy complimentary refreshments. The Vintage Paris Coffee kiosk will also be on site.

“My original idea was to make the show about portraits,” Luis Cortes said. “But there are plenty of those around. So then, I thought ‘why not do double portraits of people and the animals they feel share some traits with them.” He approached family and friends and asked then if they had a spirit animal what it would be. He then created portraits of the people with the animals they had chosen. “I got some interesting answers and reasons for the choices,” he added. The exhibit is sure to be interesting and thought-provoking.

Each month during their exhibits, SMAC highlights one of the many local non-profit organizations that serves the area. This month SMAC is drawing attention to the fine work of Elevate Branson, which addresses the root causes of generational poverty to create lasting change. They provide resources, relationships and a network of support that provides hope, dignity and purposeful work.

Southern Missouri Arts Connection (SMAC), a 501C3 non-profit local center of creativity, art education, innovation, and community partnership, strives to improve the quality of life in southern Missouri by connecting individuals with the arts, for the benefit of all.

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The above is a Southern Missouri Arts Connection (SMAC) press release.