Smithsonian Spark! Innovation Exhibit Opens Free at Yuma Art Center

For the first time in its history, the Yuma Art Center at 254 South Main Street is hosting a Smithsonian Institution exhibition, and it remains open to the public at no charge through March 28.

"Spark! Places of Innovation," a traveling exhibition inspired by the Smithsonian's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, explores how innovation emerges through the unique combination of people, place, and circumstance. The exhibition draws on stories gathered from towns across the nation, using photographs, objects, videos, and interactive elements to examine technical, social, cultural, and artistic innovation in communities large and small. Yuma is one of only six Arizona communities selected to host the touring show.

The Yuma Art Center & Historic Theatre has paired the national exhibition with a companion exhibit rooted in local identity: agricultural innovation. A phone booth-style installation invites community members to step in and record personal stories about working in or being influenced by agriculture, creating an oral history component that connects Yuma's identity as a major agricultural hub directly to the Smithsonian's broader themes of place-based invention.

Local artists are also invited to contribute original work to the companion exhibit. The City of Yuma's Arts and Culture Division has opened submissions across virtually every visual medium, including ceramics, drawing, fiber, glass, jewelry, metal, mixed media, painting, paper, photography, printmaking, and wood, with the requirement that work reflect the role agriculture plays in everyday life in Yuma. Submission details are available at yumaaz.gov/galleries.

The exhibition runs through the end of March. The Yuma Art Center & Historic Theatre can be reached at (928) 373-5202 for questions about hours or the artist submission process.