Artists open their studios as ArtEast lights up the Riverbend

By David Blanchette,Contributing WriterNov 24, 2025

Madison County was transformed into a giant art gallery over the weekend as 25 participating venues took part in ArtEast, a collaboration between the Edwardsville Arts Center, Jacoby Art Center of Alton and the Macoupin County Art Collective to bring artists and the community together to explore the talent of the Riverbend area.

After returning to the local art scene last year, ArtEast aimed to be bigger and better this year with 13 locations in Edwardsville, eight in Alton, and one each in Troy, Wood River, Collinsville, and Staunton. Art lovers used a printable online map to guide them to the galleries and creative spaces where they could meet the artists and watch as they demonstrated their processes.

David Coughtry welcomed ArtEast visitors to his Alton studio as he worked on his latest creation, a series of small oil paintings depicting the movement of both the sun and the full moon over the Alton riverfront during the course of 24 hours.

“Just as the sun was setting one day I looked down toward the river and what I saw took my breath away,” Coughtry said as he added another brush stroke to a painting. “And I thought that I had to paint these two different lights, the sun’s equinox and the moon rising and setting over the river.”

Over at downtown Alton’s Elysian Gallery, photographer Jeff Bohner opined that “God gives us the inspiration, we have a beautiful world and I just get out there, let my mind wander and see things from different angles.”

“I go out and get pictures from all sorts of stuff, I don’t specialize in any one field,” Bohner said. “I hope visitors today will find art that speaks to them and find some new artists with work that they love.”

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