Year End Student Celebration Exhibit Winners Announced

A huge congratulations to the winners of the 2023 Year End Student Celebration Exhibit!

The entries were judged by Kelly Vander Kley, a practicing Southwest Michigan artist who has dedicated herself to the arts and education through her career as a design instructor and her own participation in community art projects.

She has traveled to Italy where she studied book arts at Scuola Internazionale di Grafica in Venice, and Tipoteca Italiana Fondazione in Cornuda (Treviso). Her work has been published in publications such as The Hand magazine which features printmakers from around the country. Her work has also been exhibited in several prestigious art competitions and solo exhibitions spanning two decades and the entire state of Michigan, showcasing her ability to combine traditional printmaking, watercolor, ceramic, and sculpture production techniques with contemporary design concepts.

VanderKley holds an MA in Art Education from Western Michigan University, where she gained a deep understanding of the educational and cultural significance of art. She is committed to sharing her knowledge and expertise with others and has taught printmaking and painting workshops to students of all ages.

"Judging the Kalamazoo Valley Community College student exhibition was both challenging and rewarding," VanderKley said. "It should be noted that the students have done an exceptional job of creating thought-provoking, skillful, and interesting works. The choices made were done with careful study and consideration of all of the entries. The students of 2023 are promising to be talented artists and designers through the entries they have submitted for this show. As I was judging the works, I based my choices on the level of complexity with the medium being used. I considered elements of art such as line, texture, space, color, and shape along with evidence that the artist used these concepts to relay meaning and skill to the viewer."

VanderKley said she paid attention to intended realism as well as purposeful symbolism through use of light, expression, and framing. "I would like to encourage each artist to continue down a path of lifelong learning and development of both style and skill," she said. "I feel confident every one of the artists represented in this exhibition will find their path to be individually unique and especially rewarding as they are all demonstrating an exceptional start here at this show."

This exhibit features a total of 75 unique pieces and is on display now. Come check it out in-person at the Center for New Media Arcus Gallery and South Gallery space. The exhibit will remain on display until the last week of May. The Arcus gallery is open to the public Monday thru Thursday 12-2 p.m. We hope to see you soon.

BEST OF SHOW
An enlarged photo of fresh blueberries. Title: Fresh Blueberries
Artist: Layla Law
Medium: Acrylic

FIRST
A ceramic orb with ceramic mushrooms jutting from it. Title: Mushrooms Grow Strangely 1
Artist: Marigold Fyhrie
Medium: Ceramic

SECOND
An illustrated figure in hooded brown robe. The figure's face is obscured in darkness except for glowing white eyes. Spiralling horns point out from the top of either side of the head. Their head is cocked to the side, eyes in a squinting shaps, and their hands are splayed out in a shrug. Title: Alchema Animatic
Artist: Eldritch Bates
Medium: Animation
Watch here

THIRD
A photo of a sleeping dog taken from behind two parted curtains. Title: Lazy Daisy
Artist: Laura Hoffman
Medium: Photography

HONORABLE MENTION
An illustration of a young woman in long robes and wearing a wide-brimmed hat with a very long flowing veil. She is standing beneath a canopy of pink and white blossoming trees. Title: Anora the Nomadic Mage
Artist: Vanessa Vang
Medium: Digital Painting

DIRECTOR'S CHOICE
A black and white sketch of three pears on a table. Title: Grace and Nobility
Artist: Sophia Shaffer
Medium: Graphite