From students to artists

More than 50 people attended the opening reception for the “Juried Student Exhibition” last Tuesday in the Art Gallery at Rusteberg Hall on the Brownsville campus.

Maria de Lourdes Ballard won “Best of Show” for her oil-on-canvas piece, “North Dakota.”

The “Best 2D” award went to Iliana Salazar Rodriguez for her piece, “De Colores.” Salazar used ballpoint pens to create the portrait.

Andres A. Aceves received “Best 3D” for his mixed-media piece, “Zombae.”

Receiving honorable mention were Vivian Zapata for “Neon Bloom,” a digital photography piece; Michael Peña for “How’s it Hanging,” a peephole box; Natalia N. Soto for “Blue Green Coral,”  which consists of earthenware, aluminum, acrylic and ink; Josie Del Castillo for “We Are Always Changing,” an oil-on-wood piece; and Carla Santillana for “Ataraxia,” a mixed-media piece.

The exhibition showcases more than 25 pieces ranging from digital photography, oil on canvas, ceramic and aluminum to oil on wood, ink on paper, collages and colored-ballpoint pen, among others, by undergraduate and graduate students from both campuses.

Art Lecturer Ruth Keitz, the judge of the show, said choosing the Best of Show was a difficult decision.

“It is important for the students to have juried shows because this will show on their résumé,” Keitz said.

She said she based her decision on how well students controlled the medium they selected and the message of the piece.

“I was also looking at the presentation, the framing, how they presented the work,” Keitz said.

Students who sent their work to the exhibit think it is a good opportunity for them to showcase their work and see the reactions and suggestions of the public.

“You never know what you’re going to find,” Santillana said. “You won’t regret this.”

She submitted a mixed-media piece inspired by her “weird dreams,” named “Ataraxia.”

“I am really into dreams and looking into their meanings,” Santillana said. “One time, I had a really weird dream and I told my teacher. She told me, ‘Why don’t you just draw that for the competition?’”

She said students in the art field should take opportunities like this.

Art Lecturer Stephen Hawks said seeing the work students from both campuses are doing is interesting.

“It’s the first time we’ve had a student show combined on this campus,” Hawks said. “It’s good to see what the other students are doing.”

Graphic design freshman Jorge Abundiz hopes students enjoy the piece he submitted.

“What inspired me is downtown [Brownsville] and how it looks,” Abundiz said. “How historical it is.”

He submitted a digital photo titled “Alley Life.”

Graphic design freshman Manuel Gamez submitted a mixed-media piece titled “Lucid,” in which he spent more than four hours editing a digital photograph of a student.

“I wanted to make her look like a doll,” Gamez said. “It looks like she is dreaming.”

The exhibition will run until April 14 and is open to the public.

For more information, email Gallery Coordinator and Art Lecturer Alejandro Macias at alejandro.macias@utrgv.edu.