Silent Art Auction for Collections Support

Silent Art Auction for Collections Support
100 Works of Art by Eunice Bronkar

Saturday, October 19

2:00 – 5:00pm

$10 per Bid Card | Free General Admission

Live music, cash bar, refreshments, and fun for the whole family

Featuring 100 works of art by the late artist and friend of the Museum, Eunice Bronkar. All proceeds support the care and preservation of SMoA’s art collection. Whether you are an avid art collector, or this is your first time purchasing art, this event is for you! Art at all price points will be available. Celebrate with us at this casual and fun event.

This event celebrates the launch of the Eunice and Charles Bronkar Endowment Fund for Collections Care, which will provide critical funds to support ongoing stewardship and care of the over 2,000 works of art in the collection of the Springfield Museum of Art.

To contribute directly to the Eunice and Charles Bronkar Endowment Fund for Collections Care, please email Patrick Wicker at pwicker@springifeldart.net or call 937-346-8478.

Live music, cash bar, refreshments, and fun for the whole family

The artwork is currently on display at the Springfield Museum of Art for preview.

How the auction works:

To bid on art you will sign up at the event (or beforehand) for a bid card with assigned bidder number for just $10. Browse the large display of Eunice Bronkar’s art. When you see artworks that interest you, place your bidder number and bid amount on the bid sheet for that artwork. Each work of art will have a starting bid and a minimum increment to up bid. Enjoy the lively competition and keep checking back to make sure you don’t get outbid! The highest bidder at the end of the auction wins the work. Buy it now prices will be listed for those works of art that you simply MUST have.

About Eunice Bronkar:

Eunice Bronkar (1934-2023) was a beloved artist and educator of immense generosity, curiosity, talent, and kindness. A lifelong advocate of the arts, she earned her B.F.A. and M.A. in Art Education from Wright State University and shared over 30 years as an arts educator. Bronkar began her teaching career at the Springfield Museum of Art in Ohio, and later served as a Lead Teacher and Assistant Professor at Clark State College in Springfield, Ohio. Known for her ability to deliver keen observations balanced with care and encouragement to her students, she earned an Outstanding Teacher Excellence award before retiring in 1994.

A gifted artist, Bronkar’s work has been celebrated in over 100 area, state, regional, and national juried exhibitions, with her art featured in numerous public and private collections. She was commissioned for several prestigious projects, including two portraits for the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Washington, DC, and a portrait of A.B. Graham for the Ohio 4-H Foundation. Throughout her career, Eunice earned over 50 competitive awards, including multiple Best of Show honors.

Among her significant exhibitions were the Four Artists: Landscapes at the Springfield Museum of Art and her solo exhibition, Capturing Likenesses: Portraits by Eunice Bronkar, also at the Museum. Her landscapes were featured by the Champaign County Arts Council. Bronkar was lauded as one of the nine “first women” to break the glass ceiling at the prestigious, historically all-male Cincinnati Art Club, and was included in their Women of the Club exhibition in 2022. Bronkar was an active figure in the professional art community, serving as a founding member of the Western Ohio Watercolor Society and participating in numerous art organizations, including the Springfield Museum of Art, the Dayton Society of Artists, Ohio Plein Air Society, Pastel Society of America, Allied Artists of America, the Cincinnati Art Club, and as an Elected Member of the Audubon Artists Society.

The Springfield Museum of Art would like to thank Eunice Bronkar’s daughter, Ramona Bronkar Bannayan and her husband John Bannayan for their significant insight and generosity. As the former Senior Deputy Director of Exhibitions and Collections at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Ramona’s expert knowledge of museums and collections and deep care for her mother’s legacy has been invaluable throughout this process. We are humbled by and grateful for their vision, stewardship, and generosity.