Insiders in Kansas City’s art world know and appreciate painter Don Kottmann’s work, and thanks to a major grant that he received recently, his work will surely be known more widely soon. Kottmann splits his time between Kansas City and Calgary, Alberta, where he teaches at the Alberta College of Art Design.

If you’ve ever experienced the vibrant and energetic paintings and mixed-media works of Harold Smith there can be little doubt that the spirit and aesthetic of jazz inspires and infuses his efforts.

Embedded with commentary and reflections on history, art and life, Xaviera Simmons’ Number 16 (2013), is a mesmerizing and demanding video work, on view at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. The 60-minute split-screen piece presents side-by-side performances, one by the Brooklyn-based artist, who creates an abstract expressionist painting; the other by a female vocalist, who sings her heart out.