MAAA | Programs | Prof. Development | Missouri | OPI | Gainesville

Located in Gainesville, a town with a population of just 600, the Ozark County Community Foundation aspires to provide support and cultural opportunities to a largely underserved area. The Community Foundation was founded just three years ago and has been operating entirely on volunteer support, with no annual operating budget.

For their exhibition the Community Foundation chose This Contest is for Real Hands: Rodeo Photographs of the 1930s due to the great interest in rodeos and country music in the region. Since the Community Foundation has no office or exhibition space of their own, a local business offered their lobby as a temporary gallery.

The Les Gilliam Trio proved to be a perfect performance companion to the exhibition. They performed at an assembly for local elementary students, and wove the history of western music and musicians into the performance providing plenty of cowboy lore. He also performed a concert that evening for the entire community at a local ranch.

The OPI exhibition and performance experience made board members and volunteers of the Ozark County Community Foundation realize the communities need in Gainesville for a proper place to host art exhibitions and performances. They are more committed than ever to raising funds to build a community center. With a total of 581 people attending their OPI exhibition and performance, Gainesville served nearly all of its residents.