The Harlin Museum will open for its 2022 season of events by accepting entries on Friday, January 14th and Saturday, January 15th (12pm-4pm each day) for their annual Fiber & Textile Arts Competition Show, which will be on display to the public in the museum’s Hathcock Gallery from January 21st through February 13th, 2022..

The museum is putting out a call for submissions to all regional fiber arts and textile arts artists. Entry fees for competition will be: 1 entry – $15.00; 2 entries – $20.00, 3 entries -$25.00, 4 entries – $30. Enter 4 pieces; get the 5th entry FREE!  Limit 5 entries per artist. Entry fees may be paid using cash, check, or card. Entries and entry fees are to be brought to the main gallery of the museum between 12 pm-4 pm on the appointed days for drop-off and each entry must meet the given guidelines for acceptance into the competition portion of the show.

Submissions may include any item that was created using fibers or textiles, including examples of: quilts/quilt art, afghans, crocheted & knitted articles, embroidery, hand-woven or machine-woven articles, felted wool projects, lacework, tatting, applique, handmade apparel from pattern or personal design, beaded items, woven rope, canvas work (needlepoint, petit pointe, etc.), macramé, rugs, etc.

The guidelines for the competition are that any type of art or craft item that utilizes fiber or textile components as part of the piece is eligible to enter, all pieces must be the work of the artist entering the competition,  and entries must not have been previously entered in a Harlin Museum Competition Show. All competition entries will be evaluated 25% for general appearance, 50% for construction, and 25% for artistic design. A complete list of all submission guidelines can be found HERE.

Any questions regarding eligibility or other inquiries can be emailed to the museum at or you may contact the museum directly at (417) 256-7801. We look forward to another exciting year of art and regional history at The Harlin!

See you at the museum!

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The Harlin Museum of West Plains, MO is proud to announce the winners of their 2021 Welcome To The Wilderness: Discovering The Great Outdoors Of The Ozarks Multimedia Competition Show, which is on display in the museum’s Hathcock Gallery until Sunday, November 28, 2021. The museum is open to the public on Friday, Saturday, & Sunday afternoons from 12 pm to 4 pm, and will be open during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Multimedia shows include both fine art categories and photography categories, making it one of the most diverse competition shows held at the museum. The theme of the show is the Ozarks Wilderness, and all entries are to interpret the show’s theme. Along with the art competition, the exhibit also features a display of Metal Canoe Art by Bob Parker of Raymondville, MO. the WPHS Trap Shooting team history, firearms on loan by the Anthony Eldringhoff family, and items about the Ozarks’ history of hunting dogs, on loan from West Plains resident, Billy Sexton.

The winner of the Best Of Show award is a Fine Art entry titled “Gold”, a colored pencil drawing by artist Nanci Harlin of West Plains, MO..

Gold, by Nanci Harlin of West Plains, MO.

In the Fine Arts Category, the winners are:

1st Place: #001-Lobo by Nanci Harlin of West Plains, MO

2nd Place: #004-Winter White Tails by Nanci Harlin of West Plains, MO

3rd Place: #008-Carl’s River by Katy Irvin of West Plains, MO

Honorable Mention:

#038-Quiet Moments, by Barak Pinnon of Caulfield, MO

In the Photography Category,, the winners are:

1st Place: #011-Daybreak by Hallie Horne of West Plains, MO

2nd Place: #015-Fungus Among The Fungus by Allen Hampton of West Plains, MO

3rd Place: #030-Roadblock Alert by Linda Kirk of Cabool, MO

Honorable Mention:

#044-Black Powder Smoke In My Eyes by Vicki Warren-Martin of West Plains, MO

And, in the Mixed Media Category, the winner is:

1st Place: #016-eternals by Terry Hampton of West Plains, MO

Congratulations to all of the winners!

Come visit the exhibit before it closes on Sunday, November 28th….the gallery is located at 405 Worcester, West Plains, MO.

Private tours are available at request.

#2021 #OzarksWildernessExhibit #HarlinMuseum #DiscoverYourOzarks #CaulfieldMO #CaboolMO #WestPlainsMO

(Pictured from left to right: Temi Lasater, Harlin Museum Board Treasurer; Pam Woodward, West Plains Savings & Loan Manager; Cleo Cockrum, Harlin Museum Board Vice President) 

The Harlin Museum is pleased to announce the contribution of $500 from West Plains Savings & Loan (located at 417 Broadway, West Plains, MO) for the winner of the Best Of Show award at the museum’s upcoming 46th Annual Fall Art Show Competition. 

West Plains Savings & Loan has been a devoted local patron of the arts for years, most notably honored for their consistent donation of funds to the Harlin in an effort to help support the museum’s combined missions of preserving regional history and offering access to the cultural contribution of and education in the creation of art—a mission that includes offering opportunities for local artists to share their artwork with the public through art competitions and gallery shows.

THANK YOU to West Plains Savings & Loan for being such a valued and generous member of our #Ozarks community!

#westplainsmo #harlinmuseum #sponsorships #charitabledonation #WestPlainslocal #DiscoverYourOzarks

This history-based exhibit will focus on the 30-volume magazine publication (in print 1978-1987) that focused on our regional area of the Ozarks—sharing the beginnings of our communities, spotlighting important residents and local heroes, and telling the stories of significant families who have been a part of our history—with some of the best historic Ozarks photography collections ever on display. This will be exhibit one of two based on the publication published by one of West Plains’ native sons, Russ Cochran, with the first focusing on the earlier volumes of the magazine, while part two, scheduled for exhibit in July 2022, will focus on the later years of the publication.

Featured articles of Part One of the exhibit include:

Howell County History (1839 – 1866) by Dorthea Reavis

Howell County History (1865 – 1899) by Dorthea Reavis

Howell County History (1900 – 1908) by Dorthea Reavis

Howell County History (1911) by Dorthea Reavis

The History of West Plains

……and much more!

The public’s opportunity to view the treasured Pioneers of the Ozarks collection of portraits and Ozarks’ landscapes created by historic Shannon County artist, L.L. Broadfoot, is happening now during the Ozark Heritage exhibit at the Harlin Museum. The annual exhibit opened earlier in the month in conjunction with the Old-Time Music & Ozark Heritage Festival and will be on display in the museum’s main gallery until June 27th.

The exhibit features the entire collection of cultural depictions of a by-gone Ozarks era and the individual portraits and complete character studies drawn or painted by Broadfoot and included in his book, Pioneers of the Ozarks, which was first published in 1944. Today, the book is in its’ fifth edition copy, having sold hundreds of copies around the world, and is still available for purchase through the Harlin Museum’s gift shop and website.

Due to the size of the original collection being so large (there are over 80 pieces to the Pioneers of the Ozarks part of the collection and over 200 pieces to the Broadfoot collection total), the gallery is only able to showcase the entire Pioneers-portion during this annual exhibit. As, over the years, the museum has been contacted by many individuals who claim to be either a descendant of the artist or a descendant of someone who sat for one of Broadfoot’s portraits and would like the chance to see the work in person, the Harlin encourages all those who wish to view the art to come stop in at the museum and take it in—in all its’ splendor of a time and a place almost forgotten to the ages.

Those who are interested in scheduling an individual or group tour can contact the museum at or phone the museum directly at (417) 256-7801. The museum is currently open Friday, Saturday, & Sunday (12 pm – 4 pm).

We are pleased to announce the entry dates for our 2021 Spring Art Show, Friday, April 2, and Saturday, April 3. This is an open call for artists to submit their pieces for the competition show. Please see guidelines in attached photo.