Smiley Pete's Best of Lex: Arts & Culture

by

Community

For the inaugural Smiley Pete's Best of Lex issue (April 2024), we compiled more than 260,000 votes from our readers in 8 different category groups, to highlight the best local businesses, organizations, artists and more. Click here for links to all categories!

Lexington is blessed with an incredible array of citizens, organizations and businesses who create, facilitate and support the world class art, performance and other cultural offerings that enrich the lives of all who live in or visit our city.

From music, theater, literary and visual art, to comedy, festivals, galleries and dance, we are lucky to live in a place rich with art and culture.

In this section, we celebrate those in Lexington who have dedicated their lives to create a community brimming with culture that we all can enjoy. Our readers have voted on their favorite artists, galleries, festivals and other cultural contributions.

Best Art Gallery

1. LexArts Gallery at ArtsPlace

2. Lexington Art League - Loudoun House

3. Institute 193

Honorable mentions:

• Artists’ Attic Studio & Gallery

• Willis Art Gallery

• New Editions Gallery

Best Art Museum

1. University of Kentucky Art Museum

2. 21c Lexington Museum Hotel

3. Living Arts & Science Center

4. The Headley-Whitney Museum

Best City-Run Event

1. Thriller Parade

2. 4th of July Festival & Parade

3. Lexington Roots & Heritage Festival

Best Dance School

1. Arthur Murray Dance Studio

2. Lexington Ballet

3. BurLEX Burlesque Collective

Honorable mentions:

• Mecca Live Studio & Gallery

• Sora Aerial Arts

• Blackbird Dance Theatre

• The Salsa Center Dance Studio

Best Artist (Visual Arts)

1. Wylie Caudill

2. Arturo Sandoval

3. Kiptoo Taurus

Honorable mentions:

• Kayla Weber

• John Lackey

Best Band

1. The Local Honeys

2. Joslyn & the Sweet Compression

3. Vinyl Ritchie

Honorable mentions:

• No Rulez Band

• Dead Air Dennis & Bryan Himes

• Magnolia Boulevard

• Rags & Riches

Best Classical Music Organization

1. Lexington Singers

2. Lexington Chamber Orchestra

3. Big Band & Jazz Series

Best Arts Festival

1. Woodland Arts Fair

2. Kentucky Crafted

3. PlayThink Festival

Best Festival (General)

1. Railbird

2. Lexington PRIDE Festival

3. CRAVE food + music festival

4. Bluegrass BBQ Festival

Best Comedian

1. Becca Sanders

2. Larry Starks

3. Joe Deuce

4. DD Rainbow

Best Mural

1. “Abraham Lincoln” by Eduardo Kobra

2. “John Prine” by SquarePegs Design Studio

3. “Horse on High Knoll”  by Wylie Caudill

Honorable mentions:

• “Louis Armstrong” by Odeith

• “Sweet Evening Breeze” by GAIA

Ode to PRHBTN

Smiley Pete Staff Salute

After more than a decade of facilitating some of the most ambitious and boundary-pushing public art in Lexington, the organization PRHBTN officially hung up the mural production arm of its operations in 2022 — but not without leaving an indelible mark on our city. 

Part public art enterprise, part street art festival, the organization started in 2011 as a labor of love and a desire to deck the public walls of Lexington with large-scale murals from internationally recognized street artists. The organization was fueled by the passion of local couple John and Jessica Winters, who helped commission work from more than 35 notable muralists from all over the world to create beautiful, distinct, thought-provoking and sometimes polarizing art on notable exterior walls on the streets of our town. Whatever your favorite mural in Lexington might be, there’s a high likelihood that it would not be there if not for PRHBTN.

From fundraising to scouting for walls and coordinating between international artists, local businesses and building owners, the project required monumental efforts on behalf of the organizers, who said early on that they would continue to help facilitate murals until they ran out of walls or until it was no fun any more.

Though that time came, most of the murals remain, and the groundwork has been laid for the continued proliferation of public art in Lexington — and that’s something we can all be grateful to PRHBTN for. 

Best Musician

1. Ben Lacy

2. Tee Dee Young

3. Devine Carama

4. Abby Hamilton

Best Sculpture

1. Secretariat Statue by Jocelyn Russell

2. Flight 5191 Memorial by Douwe Blumberg

3. Maji Mazuri by Kiptoo Taurus

Best Tour

1. Bites of the Bluegrass

2. Keeneland Racetrack

3. Aviation Museum of Kentucky

Best Writer

1. Silas House

2. Crystal Wilkinson

3. Frank X Walker

Honorable mentions:

• Bobbie Ann Mason

• Ada Limón

Best Movie Theater

1. The Kentucky Theatre

2. LexLive

3. Movie Tavern Brannon Crossing

Ode to The Kentucky Theatre

By Silas House, Voted as a “Best Writer”

I am so thankful that we have the Kentucky Theatre. Not only is it a beautiful, welcoming space for everyone, but they also go above and beyond on providing entertainment for the whole region. I’m amazed by all they are able to do. This past year, they started the Twelve Lions Film Festival, which brought in filmmakers from around the world. They show the latest in independent, foreign, and art cinema as well as blockbusters and classics. They have grand special events. 

Very few cities have a cinema like The Kentucky and honestly, it’s one of the reasons I love living in Lexington. It’s more than a place to go see films, it’s a community center where I feel at home and where I am always exposed to great art. I’m grateful to Lisa Meek, Hayward Wilkirson, Fred Mills, and the whole staff. 

Best Performing Arts Venue

1. Lexington Opera House

2. Singletary Center

3. Lyric Theatre

Best Theatre Company

1. The Lexington Theatre Company

2. Studio Players

3. ActOut Theatre Group

Click here for the next Category Group (Food & Drink)