In Good Company

Every spring, the Western Gallery presents works by graduating students in Western’s Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art program. The year-long program is designed to guide artists, build on their strengths, and prepare them for careers in contemporary art.

Students work with a facilitator and faculty advisors who challenge and support them in the effort of conceptualizing and articulating their artistic endeavors. Over the course of a year, the students develop projects and navigate the arduous process of fabricating new works.

Their ambitions and impressive abilities are richly displayed in the graduation exhibition. Works vary widely, and present interconnected themes of self-discovery, identity, place, domesticity, and storytelling.

Students in the Art History 475 class work with the BFA artists to write interpretive texts that are included in the gallery and in the resultant catalogue, complementing the visual bounty of the BFA work with their literary creativity. Western Gallery interns from the Museum Studies minor coordinate and facilitate public artist talks throughout the exhibition.

Image by Ava Wadleigh