Subiaco Academy, Mt. Magazine latest projects for John Bell

Two of the most unique and beautiful spots in Western Arkansas are captured in the most recent work for noted Fort Smith artist John Bell.

Bell, 73, known nationwide for his landscape and historical paintings, recently completed a commissioned painting to help raise money for the Subiaco Abbey and Academy. And during the Thanksgiving holiday, Bell will present a special showing of his art at the lodge at Mt. Magazine State Park.

The Subiaco project was the brainchild of Sparks physician Kenneth Seiter Sr., but was given legs by Eugene Didion.

“He (Dr. Seiter) mentioned years ago that we do this (commission a painting) and nothing ever came of it. But it put the idea in my head for John Bell, but I couldn’t afford to do that by all by myself. But I thought if I got a bunch of donations to get the painting, then Subiaco could have the painting and make some money selling the prints,” Didion, a 1986 Subiaco Academy graduate, explained.

So Didion put the word out, and more than 10 investors wrote checks for $1,000 each.

“Everyone would say, ‘Bell. Yeah, that’s great.’ So it didn’t take long to get those investors,” Didion said. “When the checks came, I went to John and talked to him about it. So it really worked out good for all of us.”

Four of those checks came from the Seiter family. Dr. Seiter is a Subiaco Academy graduate, as are his sons Kenneth Jr. and Jason — both who are also physicians. Another graduate in the family is Louis Seiter Jr., the brother of Kenneth Sr., who lives in College Station, Texas.

It doesn’t stop there. The Seiter father and grandfather, Louis Seiter, was a Subiaco graduate.

“We talk about sending the fourth generation, but the fourth generation is only 8 years old,” Dr. Kenneth Seiter Sr. said with a laugh.

He said the effort was borne of the need to help an institution that depends primarily on agriculture and education for income

“It’s a project for Subiaco. That’s what it’s all about. … That Abbey depends on the alumni to help support everything they do down there,” Seiter said.

Subiaco Academy is a boarding/day school for males in grades 7-12, and is the only Catholic boarding school in Arkansas. Half of the student population is from out-of-state and several students each year are from foreign countries.

Subiaco Academy began courtesy of the German migration to Arkansas in the 1870s, with the migration primarily fostered by wishes of the Little Rock-Fort Smith Railroad Company to sell land in what is now Logan County to German-Catholic settlers. The railroad asked Swiss Benedictine Monks from Indiana to send missionaries to the area, and the Monks formed a school in 1887. Through a series of stops and starts and fires, the school grew into the institution it is today.

More than 190 students registered for the 2010 school year, with more than 40 faculty and staff and about 50 monks supporting the Abbey and Academy.

Steve Wilmes, director of development for the Subiaco Abby and Academy, said the idea of a commissioned painting was not immediately accepted by Subiaco leadership.

“This is not something we normally do. This was an outside-the-box thing for our development efforts, and at first, I have to tell you, we were not comfortable with this project being dumped in our lap,” Wilmes explained. “But then we met with John and Maxine (Bell’s wife) and they came out and toured and took pictures. … And we talked through the options for how we present that (Subiaco history), and, I don’t know if you’ve seen the painting, but the energy just really comes out of the landscape. It’s pretty amazing.”

Bell said he enjoyed the process and painted a larger image (24 by 36 inches) than normal. Also, he invited the financial supporters to his Fort Smith studio to see the work before it was completed.

“They were really excited about what they saw. That was important for me to satisfy the people I’m working for.  … They said it exceeded their expectations,” Bell explained. “This was, overall, a great thing for me. I enjoyed working with one of the finer groups of people I’ve ever worked with.”

Bell said the most difficult part of the process was in trying to find a view “that was the most descriptive part of the Abbey.” He decided to include the cattle and barns because “it looks like a nice, peaceful, tranquil place, which it really is.”

Kenneth Seiter Sr. said the painting is “timeless.”

“It could be a scene from the 1920s or now. He really captured what I think is a timeless pastoral scene,” Seiter explained.

Bell’s original painting now hangs in the Coury House Retreat Center at the Abbey and Academy. A maximum of 500 prints will be made, with the first 100 already in circulation. The prints are for sale ($250 each) at the Subiaco development office and supply store. Wilmes said the Academy may also use the print for postcards, greeting cards and other uses.

The commissioned painting will be highlighted in the September newsletter mailed to the more than 10,000 Subiaco Academy alum and contributors.

“Only a small portion of those (newsletters) go to our graduates and supporters in this area, so we will educate many of our graduates who may not be familiar with him (Bell) or his work,” Wilmes explained.

The painting will get a broader public showing as part of a Sept. 28 Subiaco Academy jazz ensemble benefit at Neumeier’s Rib Room in downtown Fort Smith. Restaurant and club owner Bill Neumeier is a Subiaco Academy graduate.

With the Subiaco project complete, Bell is busy producing original art of the scenic Mt. Magazine State Park, including the large and modern lodge resting on the side of Arkansas’ highest mountain.

Bell will have up to 15 paintings in the exhibit scheduled for the Thanksgiving holiday. About 10 of the paintings will be of the lodge and surrounding area, with about five paintings of scenes not related to the area.

“The exhibit is there in the big Hearth Room, which has really great natural light and a lot of room,” Bell said. “This is something new for us, and I’m really excited about it.”

The Subiaco and Mt. Magazine projects are the latest in what has been a busy period for Bell.

He recently completed a commissioned painting for the First National Bank of Fort Smith. About the same time, he finished a painting for a War Eagle Mill television documentary produced by Larry Foley, a Fort Smith-area native and professor of journalism at the University of Arkansas.

In September 2009, Bell’s work was on exhibit at the Mullins Library at the University of Arkansas — Bell’s alma mater. Only six artists a year are invited to exhibit at the library.

In August 2009, his “Concert on the Green” piece was unveiled at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith.