New Exhibitions Open Next Week

Birdman, 20th Century, stone, 11 x 8-1/2 x 3-1/4 inches, gift of Mrs. William T. Mulloy, University of Wyoming Art Museum Collection, 1978.247.66

The Art Museum is looking forward to our new spring exhibitions!   Join us to celebrate during the free public reception on Friday, January 31, 6 – 8 p.m.  An awards ceremony recognizing accomplishments in the 39th Annual Juried University of Wyoming Student Exhibition will begin at 6:30 p.m.  See below for a list and description of what exhibitions are opening.  More information, including a link to the most recent newsletter, can be found on our website.

A highlight of Art Museum programming every year, the 39th Annual Juried University of Wyoming Student Exhibition features work from UW students in a variety of media, including small metals, ceramics, painting, drawing, photography, and graphic design.

A triennial exhibition, the UW Art Department Faculty Exhibition showcases the creative work of the University of Wyoming Art Department faculty.  Participating faculty include Kristen Bartel, Diana Baumbach, Ashley Hope Carlisle, Peter Fine, Leah Hardy, Margaret Haydon, David Jones, Patrick Kikut, Ricki Klages, Mark Ritchie, Bailey Russel, Doug Russell, and Shelby Shadwell.

Bently Spang: On Fire is part of an ongoing series of works by artist Bently Spang (Northern Cheyenne, b. 1960) that tell the story of the 2012 Ash Creek wildfire, a fire that devastated his family’s ranch located on their ancestral homeland of the Northern Cheyenne reservation in Montana.  In this work, Spang seeks out the story of the fire from the perspective of the trees he grew up with on his family’s land.  He facilitates their voice through a series of video-documented, performative rubbings on paper of the now charred trees.  Spang is on campus for the spring semester as the Eminent Artist in Residence in the American Indian Studies Program.

Ghastly Swamps and Ghost Towns: American Gothic Landscapes from the Art Museum Collection showcases the Art Museum’s collection of landscapes that exemplify a Gothic style or mood.  While many often think of the swamps and bayous of the American South as being particularly Gothic in nature, this exhibit conveys the variety of American places that can and have been depicted in a Gothic style including several examples from the American West.

Ancestral Spirits: Easter Island Sculpture from the Art Museum Collection presents small sculptures that reflect the culture and capture the artistry of this ancient island.  These sculptures were created as honorary pieces for ancestors, were used as items of personal protection, or were created conjunction with cultural and religious practices.

Continuing the success of the pilot program begun last year, the Art Museum will continue the Pat Guthrie Special Exhibitions Teaching Gallery for the 2014 spring semester.  The five courses utilizing the teaching gallery this semester are: Art 3002 – Mesoamerican Art & Architecture; History 4480/5480 – Modern US History: 1929-1960; History 1221 – US from 1865; Honors 2151 – Modern Japanese Society and Culture; Anthropology 4020/5005 – Anthropology of Childhood.