Current Exhibitions

America 250: We Hold These Truths: We Walk These Grounds

SCHMIDT CENTER GALLERY & PUBLIC SPACE

On View Until March 29, 2026

On the eve of the United States’ 250th anniversary, We Hold These Truths: We Walk These Grounds brings together contemporary artists whose works examine the layered meanings of American identity, land, and legacy. Through photography, fine craft, and installation, artists reimagine familiar symbols—apple trees, wild horses, longhorn steer, presidential portraits, and family heirlooms—as portals into personal and collective memory. Some award-winning artists featured include Pulitzer Prize winner Doug Mills, Robert Rauschenberg Foundation Artistic Innovation grantee John Hitchcock, and NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow Daesha Devón Harris.

Upcoming Exhibitions

Insecurities in Paradise

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: February 10, 2026 – March 1, 2026

Opening Reception: February 10, 2026, from 4:30pm - 6:30pm

The Insecurities in Paradise exhibit features visual narratives by five Florida Atlantic University students confronting the realities of housing insecurity while pursuing their education. Through photography and personal storytelling, the project offers an intimate lens into their Struggles, highlighting the resilience of student communities and prompting reflection on how universities can more effectively respond to basic needs insecurity.

Insights VIII: Brainy Days

RITTER ART GALLERY

On View: February 19, 2026 – March 15, 2026

Opening Reception: February 19, 2026, from 4:30pm - 8:30pm

The Ritter Art Gallery is honored to present Insights VIII, a compelling exhibition showcasing the passion and creativity of artists living with bipolar disorder. Selected from over 200 national submissions, these works illuminate the healing resonance of visual language as it gives form to psychological states and interior landscapes. Insights VIII challenges stigma and celebrates resilience, revealing the complex landscape of bipolar experience while fostering awareness, empathy, and dialogue through the transformative power of art. This exhibition is made possible through the generosity of the Ryan Licht Sang Bipolar Foundation, dedicated to fostering awareness and understanding of bipolar disorder, and is proudly sponsored by FAU’s Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute.

Annual Juried Student Exhibition

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: March 26, 2026 – April 12, 2026

Opening Reception: March 26, 2026, from 4:30pm - 8:30pm

Juried and selected by guest arts professionals, this exhibition presents the top works submitted by FAU students across all majors and campuses. Produced and organized by students for students, the resulting exhibition presents a diverse spectrum of the creative and artistic talents at FAU. The exhibition is produced by the University Galleries, FAU, with help from the Department of Visual Arts and Art History.

Art of Science

RITTER ART GALLERY

On View: March 31, 2026 – April 19, 2026

Opening Reception: March 31, 2026, from 4pm - 6pm

The Art of Science showcases original images and footage of the inherent beauty in research, scholarship, and creative activity across Florida Atlantic University. Its contest opens once a year to all members of the Florida Atlantic community (faculty, students, staff, and postdocs), where their images are put on display in the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters University Galleries. The Art of Science is more than just a contest; it’s a wide-ranging collection of research from all colleges at the university.

Outside Office Hours: FAU Faculty Showcase

SCHMIDT CENTER GALLERY

On View: April 16, 2026 – July 17, 2026

Opening Reception: April 16, 2026, from 4:30 pm - 8:30 pm

Outside Office Hours showcases the diverse and dynamic artistic talents of Florida Atlantic University’s faculty and staff, revealing the creative research that unfolds beyond their academic and administrative roles. Spanning a range of media—from sculpture to video and installation—each work tells a unique story, offering insight into the personal and professional intersections that shape artistic practice.

Through experimentation with materials and concepts, these artists challenge traditional notions of collaboration, forging connections across disciplines and campuses. The exhibition highlights not only individual creative pursuits but also the collective energy that drives FAU’s artistic community.

Beyond the classroom, lecture hall, or office, Outside Office Hours underscores the power of creativity, mentorship, and innovation within our institution. It offers a rare glimpse into the faculty’s artistic endeavors, demonstrating how their work inspires, informs, and influences the next generation of artists and cultural leaders.

Spring Graduates Showcase

RITTER ART GALLERY

On View: April 30, 2026 – May 10, 2026

Opening Reception: April 30, 2026, from 4:30 pm - 8:30 pm

The Master of Fine Art Degree (MFA) exhibition is the culminating project for students earning this terminal degree in the Department of Visual Arts and Art History.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) exhibition is the culminating project for students earning this degree in the Department of Visual Arts and Art History. This semester, the graduating class led by Associate Professor Corey Lamb presents works in a variety of studio media.

National Collage Society Small Format Exhibit

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: May 14, 2026 – June 30, 2026

The National Collage Society aims to foster appreciation and interest in the recognized medium of collage. Collage has only been identified and defined as a fine art during the twentieth century. The NCS, Inc. advances the stature of collage as a significant art medium and assists in public education through exhibits and workshops, lectures, and publications.

Past Exhibitions

Nathan-ism

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: January 15, 2026 – January 30, 2026

After the war, Allied powers – the United States, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union – came together to form the International Military Tribunal (IMT). From 1945 to 1946, Nazi German leaders stood trial for crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and conspiracy to commit any of the foregoing crimes. Nathan-ism captures the life and memories of Nathan Hilu, a Jewish artist whose recollections span historical milestones, including his role as a guard at the Nuremberg Trials. This experience fueled a lifetime of artistic inspiration for Nathan, a virtually unknown "outsider artist," who spent the next 70 years obsessively creating a visual narrative from his memories.

The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: December 9, 2025 – December 16, 2025

In recognition of World AIDS Day, the University Galleries is honored to partner for the third year with Compass Community Center and its collaborators to display six panels from the AIDS Memorial Quilt—the largest community art project in history. Now over 35 years old, the quilt is composed of more than 50,000 hand-sewn panels, each one commemorating an individual lost to HIV/AIDS.
The project began in 1985, when activist Cleve Jones invited participants in a candlelight march in San Francisco to honor those who had died by writing their names on placards. Arranged like a patchwork quilt, these placards became the inspiration for what would become the NAMES Project, first exhibited at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in 1987.

Fall Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibition

RITTER ART GALLERY

On View: December 4, 2025 – December 17, 2025

The Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) exhibition is the culminating project for students earning this degree in the Department of Visual Arts and Art History. This semester, the graduating class led by Associate Professor Corey Lamb presents works in a variety of studio media.

A Century of Jews in Boca Raton: History, Community, Legacy

SCHMIDT CENTER GALLERY

On View: October 27, 2025 – December 14, 2025

This interdisciplinary cultural celebration traces the rich history and enduring contributions of the Jewish community in Boca Raton over the past 100 years. Through photographs, performances, historical documents, and personal narratives, A Century of Jews in Boca Raton explores the cultural, social, and economic impact of Jewish residents, from early settlers to the thriving community of today. Highlighting stories of resilience, activism, and tradition, the exhibition reflects on the evolving identity of Jewish life in South Florida and its lasting influence on the region’s history.

Art Amidst Darkness: Holocaust Testimonies from the Yad Vashem Collection

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: October 16, 2025 – November 27, 2025

Collaboration between the Arthur and Emalie Gutterman Family Center for Holocaust and Human Rights Education and the University Galleries between 1939 and 1945, artists created these artworks from the Yad Vashem Collection, representing a living testimony from the Holocaust and a declaration of the indomitable human spirit that refuses to surrender. The exhibition provides a glimpse into art created during the Holocaust in ghettos, camps, forests, and while in hiding.

Sarah Paul, Self Stitched: Electric Care

SCHMIDT CENTER GALLERY

On View: August 28, 2025 – October 10, 2025

This solo exhibition on healing, power and the fabric of self surveys the immersive, interdisciplinary practice of artist Sarah Paul, whose work transforms trauma into tactile, participatory environments. Using fiber, video, sound, and light, Paul crafts spaces that hold both pain and possibility, inviting viewers to engage with the body as a site of vulnerability and resilience. Rooted in feminist, punk, and queer traditions, her work explores themes of mental health, power, and the physical and psychological labor of healing. From the enveloping architecture of Fiber Chamber to the performative journeys of Little Miss Cleveland, Paul’s installations challenge societal norms while offering space for reflection, reclamation, and radical self-definition.

Unearthed Futures: The Archaeology of Tomorrow

RITTER ART GALLERY

On View: August 28, 2025 – November 9, 2025

This exhibition invites viewers into three chambers where imagined relics of the future offer a poetic critique of the past. In chamber one, Angelo Caruso constructs tactile, tech-infused works destabilizing sensory expectations of “visual art.” Second, Mariana Monteagudo excavates layered narratives, blending organic textures with digital aesthetics to evoke artifacts from yet-to-exist civilizations. In the final chamber, AI-generated texts reimagine the contested histories of early 20th-century African and Oceanian objects—created for the tourist export market and now held in FAU’s collections—using speculative history and sly humor to question collecting ethics and the fictions we tell about provenance. Together, these works suggest that the futures we unearth are never neutral—they are constructed, contested, and strangely familiar. With a cameo by renowned artist Matthew Angelo Harrison, whose sculptural practice interrogates cultural ownership and labor through the lens of post-industrial preservation, this is archaeology turned inside out.

A Global Lens: Capturing Culture Through Summer Study

SCHMIDT CENTER PUBLIC SPACE

On View: August 28, 2025 – September 21, 2025

A Global Lens showcases projects and photographs created by students and faculty during FAU’s College of Arts and Letters summer programs on campus and abroad, notably in Ecuador and Italy. Through hands-on learning and cultural immersion, participants earn course credits while engaging with local traditions, landscapes, and artistic heritage. This exhibition highlights their summer experiences, offering a glimpse into the transformative power of global education. Featuring images provided by students and faculty supervisors, A Global Lens celebrates the intersection of travel, learning, and creative exploration.