Master of Fine Arts Exhibition 2017

FAU's Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters' presents the "Master of Fine Arts Exhibition 2017" featuring work from the graduating MFA candidates in the department. The exhibition will be open from Friday, April 14 until Saturday, May 6 in the Schmidt Center Gallery, 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton campus. There will be an opening reception on Thursday, April 13 at 6:30 p.m. The opening reception and exhibition are free and open to the public.

Artists Ingrid Barreneche, Ashley Cassens, Penelope Fedor, Michele Francoeur, Sammi McLean and Amber Tutwiler will showcase work in sculpture, printmaking, painting and mixed media installation.

• Barreneche uses observation, sound and video, plaster casting, overlooked materials, concrete, soil, plants, lint, wooden boxes, water and memories to depict resilient objects and images of reflection. She relates memories to her journey in life within a space and time, in order to trigger the sense of wonder in the viewer's mind. 
• Cassens' uses the act of painting an individual as a way to be cognizant of them on a deeper level. By reconstructing her partner in her works, she seeks to not only bridge their physical distance but search for meaningful internal conversations as she makes visual discoveries that refresh her understanding of him everyday.
• Fedor's work generates a visual narrative that has no sense of order.  It is disorganized chaos reflecting her time in the service as a soldier in the   U.S. Army. Using symbolic imagery such as the great white shark, decomposed apples, and decaying teeth from both humans and sharks, Fedor conveys confusion and lack of certainty.
• Francoeur draws inspiration from the visible world around her.  She abstracts colors and shapes in her paintings to express the beauty experienced in the landscapes that surround her
• McLean creates work as a means to connect with her experiences of longing deeply. Through the act of making, she seeks out a particular sense of longing that feels impossible to satiate, bringing that which feels absent to the surface. In some ways, her artwork functions as the only physical tie she has to significant people, places or things that have been lost.
• Tutwiler is an installation-based hybrid maker that investigates various aspects of the human body. Among the many interests in Tutwiler's work are life and death, ephemerality and permanence, narrative and memory, body and nature, and the space between each breath.

 

The University Galleries are open Tuesday through Friday from 1 to 4 p.m., and Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. Visitors must obtain a $2 parking pass or use the limited metered parking before visiting the gallery. More extensive parking directions are available online at www.fau.edu/galleries. The University Galleries operate an active Museum Education Program that is approved as a field experience provider by the School District of Palm Beach County. Class and other group tours can be arranged during and outside of open hours by appointment. For more information regarding the exhibition, contact the University Galleries at 561-297-2966.