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The polls are now open for the 13th annual Bad Art by Good People fundraiser, presented by the Champaign County Arts Council.

Today’s featured artist is Paul Kurtz, Coffee Roaster/Owner Hemisphere Coffee

Education: MA Theology

Organization affiliations: CQI-Licensed Q Grader and Specialty Coffee Association

Arts involvement: Living creatively!

Special skills or interests: Outdoors, hunting, trekking, developing communities and thriving towns in developing countries.

Comments about your artwork: It is no secret that coffee has often been produced and traded in exploitative and unjust circumstances. Hemisphere Coffee Roasters works closely with coffee farmers and growing communities, creating jobs, alleviating poverty, and seeing communities thrive … thus the title of my piece is “Coffee with a Silver Lining” or Coffee Creating Hope!

How to participate

The public can vote for their favorite artwork using PayPal on the Arts Council’s website, www.champaigncountyartscouncil.org. Votes can also be cast with cash, check or credit card at the Arts Council, 119 Miami St., Urbana. The office is open Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Watch the Urbana Daily Citizen during the weeks leading up to the dinner for profiles on each artist and photos of the artists with their creations.

Dinner auction

A limited number of tickets are available for the dinner and auction, which will be held from 6-9 p.m. on Friday, May 3 at Woodruff Farm, 3143 U.S. Route 36. Tickets are $30 and include a catered dinner and dessert.

The “Bad Art” will be auctioned after dinner. All proceeds will benefit the Arts Council.

Tickets are for sale at the Arts Council’s office and online at the Arts Council’s website.

The Diamond sponsor for the event is Wallace & Turner Insurance. Gold sponsor is The V. Patrick Hamilton Group/REMAX Alliance. Silver sponsor is CRSI. Bronze sponsors are Civista Bank and Henderson Land Investment Co.

For more information, contact the Arts Council office at 937-653-7557.