The Hastings College Department of Visual Arts is featuring the art of four graduating seniors for their senior thesis show titled “Vessels” at the Jackson Dinsdale Art Center (JDAC). The exhibition opens May 5 and runs through May 20.
The artists will give a lecture on their work on Saturday, May 5, at 1:00 p.m. in the Wilson Center auditorium, with a reception to follow at the JDAC. The exhibition and lecture are free and open to the public.
Gallery hours in the JDAC are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Saturdays.
The showcase features art from seniors Caleb Merritt of Brookings, South Dakota; Kasey Lammers of Grand Island, Nebraska; Jenna Kulwicki of Hastings, Nebraska; and Jeff Burke of Frederick, Colorado.
Merritt’s portion of the show features large scale pen and ink drawings that represent questions, illustrations and narration.
“The vast range of content parallels a journal entry and simultaneously presents paradoxical proposals about vulnerability, perceptions of self and the act of autobiography,” Merritt said.
Lammers uses mixed media to create a series of animal totems.
“They are humorous pieces, referencing the mythic totemic object, as well as taxidermy practices,” he said.
Kulwicki explored pain, grief and brokenness, and how those feelings shape an individual’s personality.
“I utilize ceramic vessels as a metaphor for the human form and experience,” Kulwicki said.
Burke rounds out the exhibition with his mixed media series. His artwork reflects a simple message of acceptance and love.
“Although we are different, we are the same. When differences are accepted as individual beauty, we can come together to become a greater and stronger whole; we are far stronger united than divided,” he said.
Hastings College is a private, four-year institution located in Hastings, Nebraska, that focuses on student academic and extracurricular achievement. With more than 60 majors and 15 pre-professional programs, Hastings College has been named among “Great Schools, Great Prices” by U.S. News & World Report and a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review. For more, go to hastings.edu.
