08/26/2026
River Oaks Explores Home, Memory, and Place in New Fall Exhibitions
River Oaks Square Arts Center is preparing to open a new set of exhibitions that explores the places we carry with us, the landscapes that shape our identity, and the memories that continue to influence how we see the world. Beginning August 27, the galleries will feature Reflections of Home by Larry “Kip” Hayes in the Bolton-Davis Gallery, Through the Cypress Veil by Leah Morace in the Galerie des Amis, and The Shape of Place: Childhood Memories by Katy Keppinger Arbour in the Stokes-Harris Gallery. Though each artist works from a distinct perspective, all three exhibitions share a deep connection to Louisiana and the powerful sense of place found throughout the region.
“This group of exhibitions feels especially meaningful because each artist is looking at home through a different lens,” says Rachael Dauzat, Executive Director at River Oaks. Larry “Kip” Hayes preserves the rural landscapes and structures that are slowly disappearing, Leah Morace captures the mystery and beauty of Louisiana’s wild places, and Katy Arbour reflects on the memories formed on her family’s farm. Together, their work reminds us that place is more than geography. It becomes part of who we are.”
In the Stokes-Harris Gallery, Katy Keppinger Arbour presents The Shape of Place: Childhood Memories. Using painted and printed papers, Arbour creates layered mixed-media collages inspired by life on her family’s ancestral farm in Central Louisiana. Open fields, seasonal changes, and ordinary moments from childhood become the foundation for abstract compositions that examine how memory can preserve not only what a place looked like, but how it felt.
Arbour also draws inspiration from watching her children experience the same landscape that shaped her own early years. This connection across generations gives the work added depth, allowing the farm to function as both a personal memory and an ongoing family story. The exhibition explores how familiar places change over time while remaining deeply embedded in identity.
The Shape of Place: Childhood Memories is dedicated to Arbour’s mother, Ella Elizabeth James, an accomplished Central Louisiana artist whose creativity continues to inspire her. That dedication brings an additional layer of intimacy to the exhibition, linking the artistic influence of one generation to the work of the next. Through collage, texture, color, and fragments of memory, Arbour considers how family, landscape, and creativity can become inseparable.
“My mixed-media collage work is inspired by the recollections of life on my family’s ancestral farm in Central Louisiana. Using painted and printed papers, I create layered abstract compositions that reflect memories of childhood and the rural landscape that shaped my early years. Open fields, seasonal changes, and everyday moments on the farm serve as the foundation of my work. I also draw from the experiences of our children, who have had the opportunity to experience the same environment. Through these compositions, I explore themes of memory, family, and a sense of place. This work is dedicated to my mother, Ella Elizabeth James, an accomplished Central Louisiana artist whose creativity continues to inspire me.”
- Katy Keppinger Arbour
The fall exhibitions will be on display from August 27 through October 10, 2026, with an opening reception scheduled for Thursday, August 27, from 5-7 p.m. The opening reception is free and open to the public. The exhibitions and reception are sponsored by Explore Alexandria Pineville CVB, the City of Alexandria, Hotel Bentley, the Louisiana Office of Cultural Development, Red River Bank, Cleco, The Bentley Room, The Mirror Room, RoyOMartin, Legacy Floral Designs, and Diamond Grill.
For more information about upcoming programs at River Oaks, call (318) 473-2670, visit RiverOaksArtsCenter.com, or follow River Oaks Arts Center on Facebook.
River Oaks Square Arts Center
Katy Arbour
