ABOUT THE OLD COURTHOUSE ARTS CENTER

The Old Courthouse Arts Center is now permanently closed.

We will be keeping this website up as a record of the many wonderful art shows and artists we hosted here at the art center over the last 5 years.

 


Our Staff

Victoria Senn
vicki@oldcourthouseartscenter.org

Victoria Senn has worked in watercolor, acrylic, photography and most recently in mixed-media collage.

Senn was born in Chicago, Illinois and is a graduate of the American Academy of Art. She worked as a commercial artist and managed the art department (Howw MFG) while raising her family. Currently Victoria works at The Old Court House Arts Center curating and managing exhibitions.

Richly textured and colorful, her widely exhibited work combines paint, torn hand made Japanese paper, and digital print media. Senn’s collages are representationally grounded and focus on the human condition from a uniquely personal perspective.

 

Katherine Weber
kathy@oldcourthouseartscenter.org

Katherine Weber has tried her artistic hand at various mediums but waited until after retirement to take on the watercolor challenge.

Born in Evanston and raised in rural Woodstock, Katherine continues to reside locally. Her early art education began at the Art Institute of Chicago and she continues classes and workshops.

Most often her subjects are nature and often inspired by a botanical painting background but with amplified creativity and inspiration since having given herself permission to break the botanical/realistic rules. Expanding her repertoire of painting techniques and surfaces continues in her daily painting. A current fascination is with Terraskin paper which is made from stone. In the last few years she has entered the miniature painting competition world where images must measure less 25 square inches. Her works have recently sold in Washington, Kansas and Florida in international juried miniature shows.

 

Maryerin (Emmy) Shearer
emmy@oldcourthouseartscenter.org

Maryerin (Emmy) Shearer is a multimedia artist and recent graduate from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design with a Bachelor’s Degree of Fine Art in New Studio Practice with an emphasis in Integrated Studio Art and Printmaking.

What began as a childhood pastime, drawing crayon dogs with five legs, soon became an integral part of her life after being diagnosed with a chronic illness in middle school and was no longer able to participate in sports or make it through a school day without collapsing. Art turned into her catharsis.

Emmy’s art ranges from illustration, painting, sculpting, photography, drafting, printmaking, and more recently into the digital world in an attempt to branch off into programs such as Blender, Unreal Engine, Adobe After Effects, and more, with the intention of moving to storyboarding and animation. Her wide bodies of work often change with the seasons as new subject matter pique her interest; though, a more recent body of work has focused on personifying the daily symptoms of chronic illness through exaggerated illustrations of what the pain feel like in each affected part of the body.

 


History of the Old Courthouse Arts Center

The Old Courthouse was constructed in 1857, a classic brick structure designed by one of the country’s most prominent architects, John Mills Van Osdel. The adjoining Sheriff’s House & Jail was built 30 years later. After 115 years as the focal point of McHenry County government, the county outgrew the buildings in 1972 and the complex was to be demolished for a parking lot. But it was saved from the wrecker’s ball by Woodstock residents Cliff and Bev Ganschow. The Ganschows bought the buildings and began an extensive renovation program completed for American’s Bicentennial in 1976. Because of the buildings’ architectural and historical significance, both the Old Courthouse and Sheriff’s House & Jail are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Today the Old Courthouse complex is a proud landmark. Revival as the anchor of historic Woodstock Square (originally named Courthouse Square) for you and your family’s and friends’ enjoyment. Its entire three floors, totaling more than 30,000 square feet, are no occupied by unique restaurants, galleries and studios. Here you can still see the original pressed tin ceilings… impenetrable wooden jail doors…massive iron vaults with doors that are beautifully decorated with hand painted murals and floral motifs…election tallies recorded and preserved on a giant chalkboard…high arched doorways…an elegant winding stairway, and many other handsome vestiges of the 19th century which make the Old Courthouse complex a fascinating place to explore. The Woodstock Public House, which occupies the entire ground level floor, complements the authentic atmosphere with an All-America dining experience.

Over the years, the Old Courthouse and the Sheriff’s House & Jail has witnessed a panorama of American life and history. One of the most famous prisoners was Socialist leader Eugene V. Debs, jailed here after the great Pullman strikes of the late 1800’s. In the Roaring Twenties two of American’s most notorious bootleggers, ‘Dapper Dan’ McCarthy and Ear Weiss served a stretch in the McHenry County Jail. In 1932 ‘Lone Wolf; Loftus, billed as America’s greatest bank robber, was captured and jailed in Woodstock after authorities bad been trailing him for nearly three years. Another notorious gangster, Frank ‘Red’ McGee, sawed his way out of jail during the holidays leaving a farewell Merry Christmas note to the sheriff. The Jail’s death cell was used only once, after a minor Chicago politician and all-around hoodlum murdered a Chicago alderman over a drink of whiskey. He was hanged in the Square in 1886, the only hanging ever in McHenry County.

Courtroom Set Up Lobby Gallery Show

 

 


Gallery Hours

 


Staff at OCAC

 


History of The Old
Courthouse

 


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Arts Center