Preparations Underway for New Exhibitions

Every year the UW Art Museum closes in January to get ready for the upcoming year of new exhibitions and programs. The Art Museum galleries are now closed and will reopen on January 29th with the spring opening reception.

This time period allows museum staff members to do things like de-install the current exhibitions, spruce up the galleries with spackle and paint, the custodians polish the floors, and finally, install new exhibitions that open at the end of the month.

Exhibitions that will open on January 29th are: Peter Sarkisian: Video Works, 1996-2008, James Surls: Flowers, American Modernists in Wyoming: George McNeil, Ilya Bolotowsky, and Leon Kelly, and the always popular 35th Annual Juried University of Wyoming Student Exhibition. The opening of these exhibitions will be marked by a reception on January 29th, from 6-8 pm, which is free and open to the public.

Sculpture: A Wyoming Invitational continues on the campus of UW and throughout the city of Laramie. Artists from France: Paintings and Prints from the Art Museum Collection, will continue through December 23, 2010.

Keep checking this blog, our facebook page, and our website, for information about the upcoming exhibitions, classes, and public programs.

If you are a current UW student, you are eligible to participate in the Annual Juried UW Student Exhibition. The dates to submit artwork, brought in person to the Art Museum, are January 14th and 15th. Work will not be accepted before or after these dates. Hard copies of information packets can be found at the Student Union Information Desk, the front desk at the Art Museum, and in the Fine Arts Office. For more information, or questions, please call 307.766.6621.

James Surls at the University of Wyoming

Now available on the University of Wyoming webpage! Listen to James Surls discussing his new permanent installation in Coe Library.

Click here. Click on refresh to cycle through to the video clip.

Still have holiday shopping to do?

The Museum Store at the UW Art Museum has all you need for holiday shopping. The Museum Store has Christmas cards, holiday decorations and ornaments and FREE gift wrapping! Stop by today to see the selection of:

• Handmade jewelry in a variety of styles


• Unique art books


• Handcrafted items by local and national artisans


• Museum publications from past exhibitions


• Fine art reproductions and posters


• Kids items


• One-of-a-kind items

There's something for everyone, so be sure to stop by the Museum Store today! The Museum Store is open 10 am - 5 pm, Monday through Saturday. For more information, call 307.766.3982.

The Museum Store on facebook - become a fan today! Look for the new ONLINE Museum Store to launch in the new year!

We're Going Green!

An exhibition of the work by New Mexico artist Peter Sarkisian, pictured above, is just one of many exhibitions discussed in the upcoming spring newsletter.
Photo courtesy of I-20 Gallery

As we get ready to publish our upcoming spring newsletter, the Art Museum would like to remind everyone that we are going green! In an effort to cut waste, we are now encouraging museum fans and followers to sign up to receive an electronic version of our newsletters.

The e-newsletter is in a .pdf file format and will be sent directly to your email account. If you have more than one email account, you can sign them all up to be sure that you receive the newsletter in your inbox! As opposed to the black and white version of the printed newsletter, the electronic version will be in full color.

The newsletter contains information on the collection, upcoming exhibitions and events, education programs, and a monthly calendar so you can plan your visits.

To sign up for the electronic, color version of the newsletter, please email the Art Museum's administrative assistant Bev Schroeder at bschroed@uwyo.edu with ENEWS in the subject line.

You may also call Bev at 307.766.3477 if you wish to continue to receive a printed version.

*PLEASE NOTE - if you do not contact the Art Museum with your preference, you may not receive the spring newsletter!

Happy Holidays, Laramie!

Happy Holidays, Laramie! is a community celebration held every year at the UW Art Museum. Join us tomorrow, Saturday, December 5 from 10:30 am - 4 pm for a day full of live music, refreshments, holiday trees decorated by folks from the Laramie community, Santa Claus, and even a holiday store especially for kids! All events are free and open to the public.

The schedule of musical performances is as follows:

Performing in the Gallery:

10:30 am
Beitel Bulldog Choir and Beitel Chime Choirs

11:00 am
Indian Paintbrush Choir

11:30 am
Slade Elementary School Choir

Noon
String Academy of Wyoming

12:30 pm
United Presbyterian Church Bell Choir

1:00 pm
Snowy Range Academy Chorus and Orchestra

1:30 pm
Lorene Sims' Piano Students

2:00 pm
St. Laurence School

2:30 pm
UW Saxophone Quartet

3:00 pm
Laramie Community Band

Performing in the Lobby:

10:30 am
Gloria Orr-Weiss' Piano Students

11:00 am
High Plains Sinfonia

11:30 am

Dee Moody, Cheryl Hemphill, and Marilyn Sprinkle's Piano Students

Noon
Alla Latchininsky's Piano Students

12:30 pm
Elena Berlinsky's Piano Students

1:00 pm
Elena Berlinsky and Nancy Shaw's Piano Students

1:30 pm
Cindy Peterson's Piano Students

2:00 pm
Laramie Junior High Concert Orchestra

2:30 pm
Spring Creek Singers


Santa Claus will be downstairs in the Centennial Complex Restaurant, along with cookies from Home Bakery and orange drink from McDonalds.

The Kids' Store can be found upstairs, just inside the entrance.

Congratulations to KP Endsley who won the People's Choice Award at last night's Tree Lighting Ceremony for her tree, "The William 'Bill' Hysong Memorial Tree 2009."

Stop by tomorrow to see her tree, and many others. There is a silent auction to purchase any of the trees on display. The auction ends at 2:30 pm.

The exhibition of children's art created by kids in Laramie will be on view tomorrow as well, and will remain on exhibition through December 23.

For more information, call the Art Museum at 307.766.6622.

Lighting of the Trees Ceremony TONIGHT!

Kicking off the annual Festival of Trees and Happy Holidays, Laramie! event, the Lighting of the Trees Ceremony will be held tonight from 6-8 pm at the Art Museum. Stop by the museum to see over 30 decorated trees lit up, and to place advance bids on the trees at the silent auction. Also included at tonight's event will be live music, refreshments, and the first chance to see the exhibition of artwork by local Laramie children.

The Festival of Trees and Happy Holidays, Laramie! will continue on Saturday with musical performances throughout the day, cookies from Home Bakery, Santa Claus and the conclusion of the silent auction.

All of these events are free and open to the public. For more information, call the Art Museum at 307.766.6622.

Interview with artist Kwang-Young Chun now online

A video still of the interview with Korean artist Kwang-Young Chun at the UW Art Museum.

The UW Art Museum has recently partnered with UWTV on an exciting new project to record and film interviews with regional, national and international contemporary artists. Every year, the Art Museum brings 5-8 contemporary artists onto campus for exhibitions, hands-on demonstrations and public programs. Now, with the help of UWTV, these artists' words, ideas, inspiration and their unique artistic voice will be captured on video and made available to students, community members, and anyone with Internet access!

The first filmed interview of what will hopefully be many to come, is with Korean artist Kwang-Young Chun, whose work is currently on view at the Art Museum. In this short video Chun explains the ideas behind his work, and it also shows the Art Museum's Education Curator, Wendy Bredehoft, interacting with local junior high students in the gallery.

These interviews provide insight into work and exhibitions that are on view at the Art Museum. Hearing directly from an artist about his or her work is a great way to learn about the art, and maybe gain a greater understanding and appreciation for the work.

The filmed interview with Chun can now be seen on the UW homepage. As the University rotates main features on their website, you may have to click the "refresh" or "reload" button several times until the webpage cycles to the interview.

The next interview that will be made available is James Surls, who talks about his new work that was recently installed in Coe Library.