From Don Covington

dt_common_streams_StreamServer, a photo by bucklesw1 on Flickr. Jack Cripe created this image of "Penguin Boy," part of an exhibition of original circus sideshow banners that has an opening reception March 16, and then runs through May 20 at the Lubeznik Center for the Arts in Michigan City, Ind. If you go What: “Ladies & Gentlemen, Children of All Ages, Step Right Up!” — an exhibition of vintage circus sideshow banners Where: Lubeznik Center for the Arts, 101 W. 2nd St., Michigan City When: A free opening reception for the public takes place at the Lubeznik Center from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, March 16. The exhibition then runs through Sunday, May 20. Admission: A voluntary $3 per-person donation is requested at the door. There is no additional charge to see the circus banner exhibit. More details: For hours of operation and other information on the center’s exhibits, visit www.lubeznikcenter.org or call 874-4900. Rope them in. Old-time circuses knew how to do that. Sensationalism and bluster were used to lure audiences. Circus sideshow banners that display the art of colorful advertising are showcased in a new exhibition at the Lubeznik Center for the Arts in Michigan City. Kicking off with a March 16 opening reception and then running through May 20, “Ladies & Gentlemen, Children of All Ages, Step Right Up!” trots out 16 original banners from the 1940s through the ’60s. They herald amazing feats and outrageous oddities, including a “cyclops pig.” These promotional tools reflect an era that came before high-tech elements entered the world of big-top entertainment. The banners often made claims that seemed outlandish by utilizing fantastic images. The eye-catching creations at the Lubeznik Center’s Hyndman Gallery are as large as 8 feet wide. “It’s uniquely American folk art the whole family can appreciate,” CarolAnn Brown, the Lubeznik Center’s exhibitions curator, said. Chicago’s Carl Hammer Gallery and Col. Hunsley of LaPorte County supplied banners for this flashback of fantasy that includes sideshow artifacts of the surreal variety. A two-headed calf and a snake with weird dimensions are served up to show the twisted side of the taxidermy process. Six of the banners are on loan from Hunsley, proprietor of Col. Hunsley’s Freaks and Oddities, according to the Lubeznik Center. Those types of painted works reflect a bygone era when such banners drummed up money from the public by depicting “very bizarre things,” according to Hunsley. Aside from the link to the circus midway, Hunsley has purchased sideshow banners for a simple reason. “The art appealed to me,” the collector noted. According to the Lubeznik Center, painted sideshow banners were a popular and sensational form of advertising through the first half of the 20th century. Johnny Meah and Jack Cripe were in the intriguing realm of banner painters during that era, and are represented in the Lubeznik Center exhibition.