In Living Color

University Galleries of Illinois State University is pleased to present In Living Color from May 19 through August 10, 2022. All events are free and open to the public.

Curated by the Teen Art Group at University Galleries, In Living Color features stop-motion animations and videos, mixed-media collages, drawings, paintings, and ceramics by artists Aaron Caldwell, Jess T. Dugan, Fidencio Fifield-Perez, Jin Lee, Melissa Oresky, Rashod Taylor, and Selina Trepp.

The Teen Art Group was founded in 2018 at University Galleries by director and chief curator Kendra Paitz, with support from the Illinois Prairie Community Foundation—Mirza Arts and Culture Fund. Each academic year, students from Bloomington High School participate in professional development activities, take field trips, and curate an exhibition. The 2021–2022 cohort was led by Kendra Paitz; Tanya Scott, University Galleries’ curator of education; and Monica Estabrook, Bloomington High School art teacher. The group visited Melissa Oresky's (professor, Wonsook Kim School of Art) studio, Normal Editions Workshop, and studio classes in the Wonsook Kim School of Art; participated in art-making workshops, meetings, and exhibition tours at University Galleries; curated this exhibition; and developed ideas for educational workshops. 

In Living Color presents works by artists the students learned about during the program. First, the students identified issues they were most concerned with, including gender, environment, outer space, portraiture, abstraction, family, and racial issues. Then, the program leaders presented relevant artists for discussion. The group originally planned to select one artist for a solo exhibition, but as they researched the artists and thought about relationships among the works, they decided to invite several artists to participate in a group exhibition. The Teen Art Group selected each of the works, determined the exhibition layout, decided the exhibition title, and conducted an interview with artist Selina Trepp.

This exhibition is organized by the following Teen Art Group participants: Safa Ahmad, Delilah Higgins, Will Hopper, A. Jackson, Carter Shrode, Row Wissmiller, and Emma Zimmerman. This project is supported by University Galleries' grants from the Illinois Prairie Community Foundation—Mirza Arts and Culture Fund, and the Illinois Arts Council Agency.

Events and programming

All events are free and open to the public.

• Friday, June 3, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.: Exhibition reception

• Wednesday, June 15, from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.: Sensory-friendly morning. Experience the gallery before opening hours. The lights will be dimmed, and video volumes will be turned down.

University Galleries

University Galleries, a unit in the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts, is located at 11 Uptown Circle, Suite 103, at the corner of Beaufort and Broadway streets. Parking is available in the Uptown Station parking deck located directly above University Galleries—the first hour is free, as well as any time after 5:01 p.m.

You can find University Galleries on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and sign up to receive email updates through the newsletter. Please contact gallery@IllinoisState.edu or call (309) 438-5487 if you need to arrange an accommodation to participate in any events related to these exhibitions.