Dr. Massey acknowledges BFA students who received exhibition honors at the Baum Gallery, (behind) Josh Reynolds (left to right) Mary Rice (exhibition excellence), Allison Suits, Shelby Staton, Mackenzie Drozd, Jillian Bateman, and Hannah Bender.
UCA’s Baum Gallery hosted the opening reception for the BA/BFA Juried Senior Exhibition on Thursday, April 7, which features an array of media by graduating seniors from the department of art.
The Baum Gallery hosts two BA/BFA exhibitions a year, one in the spring and one in the fall.
The BFA practicum submission guidelines state, “Students must present work that demonstrates perceptual acuity, conceptual understanding, and technical facility at a professional entry-level in their chosen field.”
“BFA students have to write a practicum proposal that the faculty review. The proposal consists of a statement of the problem and its significance. The proposal also requires a list of related work, a proposed budget, and a schedule,” Allison Suits, BFA major and senior said.
“This exhibition is the culmination of the last four-and-a-half, five years for BFA students and four years for BA students, to put together all their work,” Bryan Massey, department chair and art professor said.
Faculty voted on exhibition honors and best of show.
Students who received exhibition honors are Mary Rice, Allison Suits, Shelby Staton, Mackenzie Drozd, Josh Reynolds, Jillian Bateman and Hannah Bender.
Mary Rice was voted best of the show and awarded exhibition excellence.
“I am very excited, I did not think I was going to win, there are so many awesome artists here and so much great work. I was very surprised when Dr. Massey said my name,” Rice said.
Rice’s work reflects her artist statement as “an advocate for bodies to be normalized, especially women’s bodies.”
An excerpt from Rice’s artist statement reads, “Normalize” exposes the outdated idea that bodies are supposed to fit into society’s standards. As these pieces demand attention, they also demand acceptance. “Normalize” is not about being liked or disliked, it is about simply being and letting others be.”
The work featured in the BA/BFA exhibition is placed throughout the gallery.
“A lot of people brought a lot of really good work. This room is kind of the room of curiosity, we have such different work that is whimsical and fun,” Mackenzie Drozd said.
A section of Suits work “incorporates chiaroscuro, personal handwriting, a subtle color palette, and depictions of cherished ordinary furniture. The elements combined create a sense of comfort and familiarity,” according to Suits artist statement.
Through silkscreen printing, Shelby Staton’s artist statement said she “focuses on the spiritual feeling that I derive from places of religion, such as cathedrals and churches and mundane environments. I seek settings that are typically forgotten or possibly overlooked, with the hope to remind people of their beauty.”
“I’m honored to receive exhibition honors. It does feel nice after all this hard work,” Bender said.
Reynolds said, “I feel like exhibition honors is a great achievement. I know a lot of these artists put in a lot of hard work, and there’s a lot of good work here, so to be considered one of the top — it’s definitely an honor.”
Reynolds sculptures “Unscathed I: Baghdad, 2022, Unscathed II: Fallujah, 2022, Unscathed III: Ramadi, 2022” were inspired by his three tours in Iraq.
Bateman’s “Rooted Magazine” was created from a desire to share with others who Jesus is through contemporary, graphic design. Editorial design has always interested me, so a magazine becomes fitting for this project. This allows the viewer to tangibly engage with the printed medium and take in its content at their own pace, reads Bateman’s artist statement.
The exhibition will be on display until April 28.
