The Department of Art and Art History will host the second annual Nebraska National Exhibition this Fall, featuring the categories of painting, drawing, and sculpture.
The exhibition opens on First Friday, Sept. 6 and continues through Sept. 27 in the Eisentrager-Howard Gallery in Richards Hall. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday 12:30-4:30 p.m.
An opening reception will be held Friday, Sept. 6 from 6-8 p.m. in the gallery. The Dan and Barbara Howard Awards will be announced shortly after 6 p.m.
“The first year exceeded our highest expectations,” said Department of Art and Art History Chair Peter Pinnell. “We had excellent applicants and were able to put together a really beautiful show that got everybody excited.”
Dan and Barbara Howard have again generously made a contribution to provide awards for the show, including $1,000 for the best in each area and a $1,500 Best of Show award.
Each year’s exhibition features three different disciplines on a two-year, rotating basis. Last year’s categories were ceramics, printmaking and photography.
Last year, Micah Snyder, who graduated in December with his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in studio art, won the award in printmaking.
“I’m not surprised, in a way, that someone in our own department won,” Pinnell said. “The judging was done by outside judges, and we know we have a good department.”
This year’s jurors were JoAnne Carson in painting and drawing and Todd Slaughter in sculpture. Carson is professor of studio art at the University at Albany. Her work has been shown in numerous solo and group exhibitions. She received the Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome and individual artist grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and The Awards in the Visual Arts. Slaughter is professor of sculpture at The Ohio State University and has held many solo and group exhibitions internationally and nationally.
Pinnell said the exhibition promotes what we have to offer to students around the country, and it allows UNL faculty and students to see the best work in the country.
“We want our students to see the best student work and to aim for that level of achievement,” Pinnell said. “I think our students felt pretty good [after seeing the work]. I think they thought it was a good show, and they enjoyed seeing it. And we also just wanted to celebrate quality.”