Quad City Arts announces the open Call for Entries for public sculpture to be considered for exhibition in the Quad Cities on a one-year lease. Currently, the cities of Bettendorf, Rock Island and Moline participate in the program with their own selection committees who choose from the available sculptures for pieces that provide points of interest, inspire discussion, and attract visitors to the community. Quad City Arts has facilitated the leasing and installation of public sculpture in the Quad Cities since 2002. All the sculptures are for sale and can be purchased by individuals, businesses,... Read More

In this time of paralyzing pandemic, unreal unemployment, furious racial unrest and bitter political division, we could all use some simple peace and beauty. The eloquent, inspiring artist Cecile Houel provides it – displaying 20 deeply penetrating portraits of Nobel Peace Prize winners throughout the Quad-Cities, in a cooperative exhibit starting Friday. Convinced that art can contribute to world peace, the 56-year-old French woman started the “Nobel Peace Prize Collection: Peace Starts Within” in 2014, to celebrate all of the Nobel Peace laureates of the prestigious Nobel Foundation since... Read More

Quad City Arts has made the difficult decision not to host the 35th-annual Kwik Star Festival of Trees in person this year due to uncertainty and concern for the safety of volunteers, staff, and community as a whole regarding the Covid-19 pandemic. The Holiday Parade and all other special events will also not be held this year. This decision was led by Festival of Trees volunteer management team with the full support of the Quad City Arts’ staff and board of directors, the regional nonprofit announced Wednesday morning. “We recognize that Festival of Trees is a beloved holiday tradition in... Read More

Rock Island-based Quad City Arts was the only organization in the immediate Q-C to earn funding Wednesday from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act grant. Like most of the 855 organizations funded nationwide, the regional nonprofit will get $50,000, on top of a previously approved $30,000 NEA grant last month that was unrelated to Covid-19 relief. Quad City Arts this spring did get Covid-19 relief funding through the federal Paycheck Protection Program, executive director Kevin Maynard said Thursday. Part of the criteria for new funding... Read More

Looking for a fun and safe way to spend New Year’s Eve? Then make plans to hang out at Skate City QCA & Laser Tag Alley! Skate City’s New Year’s Eve Lock-In Skate takes place Tuesday Dec 31 from 6 p.m. – 1 a.m. Tickets are just $30 in advance or $40 at the door (plus skate rental). There are absolutely no drop-offs for the lock-in. All children must be signed in by a parent. Ticket price includes admission, pizza and pop buffet, laser tag, big prize giveaways, music and a midnight balloon drop with over 1,000 balloons! During the balloon drop, participants will receive horns, serpentines,... Read More

Like most Quad Cities citizens, I love economic growth in our community and bringing new vendors to town – especially when it involves attracting new and wildly popular dining or entertainment vendors.  Those of you who’ve heard about the potential for Portillo’s Hot Dogs to expand onto 53rd Street in Davenport are salivating, ready to pull their chairs up to a local helping of this popular restaurant chain that currently requires a round trip to either Rockford or Peoria. (For those of you who aren’t familiar with Portillo’s, they serve a wide variety of hotdogs, burgers, sandwiches,... Read More

Ask Dino Leone, the president of the Quad-City Federation of Labor, what unions have done that goes unrecognized by most people and he answers with a list of accomplishments that is staggering in its scope. “Legislatively, we have been able to pass laws that have benefited all workers, such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment benefits, public education, workers’ compensation, FMLA (the Family and Medical Leave Act), minimum wage, OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration), the Fair Labor Standards Act, prevailing wages, civil rights and the list goes on,” says... Read More