Public Allowed Inside Mysterious

 Castle at Rogue’s Manor

            Over the past few years, residents of and motorists driving through Holiday Island and the town of Beaver have marveled as surreal structures emerged from a bluff overlooking Table Rock Lake.  “It’s hard to miss six medieval edifices on top of a mountain, after all,” quipped owner and builder Smith Treuer. 

Until now though, only a precious few have been allowed inside the mysterious Castle Rogue’s Manor.   Two structures, the completed Gatekeeper’s Cottage and the under-construction Great Hall, have been available only for private functions.  That’s all about to change, however.  The castle will reveal its secrets as part of the Eureka Springs 2007 May Festival of the Arts.

On Saturday, May 19^th, from 2 to 4 pm, the Castle Rogue’s Manor will be available for public viewing.  A tour of the Gatekeeper’s Cottage and the Great Hall will be highlighted by unveilings from celebrated artists Larry Mansker and Mel Shipley. 

Mansker’s paintings and huge murals are on display at the castle as well as at Rogue’s Manor at Sweet Spring, a restaurant owned by Treuer and Debbie Sederstrom.  Mansker will unveil wall art in the ornate Gatekeeper’s Cottage, explaining the intricate details of selecting art that exquisitely accents its surroundings. 

Next door, Eureka Springs sculptor Shipley will unveil his massive bronze mantle sculpture commissioned for the Grand Hall, a work in progress.  Guests will enjoy the magnificent 4-dragon bronze mantelpiece created by Shipley that adorns the huge medieval fireplace.  Shipley is especially proud of the 5^th item adorning the mantle.  According to Shipley, “It’s a representation of Smith Treuer.”  All five mantle figures also serve a practical purpose, being the conduits for heat exchanged into the room from the fireplace.   

The previous Saturday, from 2 to 4 pm on May 12^th, Mansker and Shipley will host a presentation entitled “Make It Personal…Commission It!” at Rogue’s Manor restaurant, 124 Spring Street.  Mansker, using as an example the giant mural he painted there, will explain the process of getting this piece commissioned.  He and Shipley, who has had five works commissioned, will guide visitors through the steps of having their own art commissioned. 

Both weekends are filled with plenty of other activities for visitors to Eureka Springs during the 2007 May Festival of the Arts.  Free Art and Music in the Park begins at 10 am on the weekends of May 12-13, 19-20, and 26-27 at Basin Spring Park and at the Art Colony.  The artist’s reception and gallery walk is set for May 12^th from 6 to 9 pm.  And the always popular White Street Studio Walk will take place Friday, May 18^th, from 4 to 10 pm. 

“America’s little Victorian town,” Eureka Springs, has long been known as both an artist’s mecca and a shopaholic’s’ dream.  It prides itself on having more artists and art galleries per capita than any other city in the country.  The 2007 May Festival of the Arts continues through the end of May.