Northwest Arts Center: ‘Amalgam’

The Northwest Arts Center presents the 2022 Senior Capstone Exhibition, ‘Amalgam,’ for graduating Minot State University Art Majors. The exhibition showcases the following artists:

JOCELYN BEXELL:
Jocelyn Bexell will be showcasing an original written and illustrated graphic novel, “Overgrown.”

“I enjoy themes about identity, surrealism, and the relationship between people, nature, and technology. I have always been drawn to digital art as a medium and graphic novels as a storytelling device. As storytelling is an inherent part of illustration, comics come naturally to it.”

JAY GAARE:
Jay Gaare’s ‘I DON’T KNOW EITHER’ is a body of three dimensional mixed media artwork. Their title stemmed from a small ceramic tray that’s in the exhibit. Painted inside the tray in underglaze are the words ‘IT’S OK, I DON’T KNOW EITHER.

“I was, and still am, at a time in my life experiencing more uncertainty than anything else. ‘I DON”T KNOW EITHER’ resulted from allowing myself to forget about a theme or purpose for the art and just make. Ultimately I consider this body of work to be a bunch of junk put together; but, like, really nice junk.”

CHESNEA GRIFFIN:
Chesnea Griffin artwork explores interpretations of dreams through the medium of cyanotype printmaking.

“In my work, I like to explore human psychology. For this series I analyzed my dreams, the feelings and the lessons I found they were trying to teach me; and interpreted them and the feelings into artwork. I made cyanotypes because I like the work you put into it and have the surprise of how it will turn out to delay instant gratification.

ALEX JIMENEZ:
Alex Jimenez will be presenting his collection of prints, ‘Abstractiture.’ His group of work explores digitally abstracted black and white photographs of the human form.

“To control the way light rests on a body is to sculpt a being of your own design. Ever since my first studio photoshoot when I discovered the power of controlling light, I have grown increasingly more infatuated with dramatically posing and lighting the human figure. ‘Abstractiture’ further explores this concept by incorporating digital manipulation of the already abstract portrait and body photos, forcing the familiar to become foreign. The images take on an otherworldly nature; just as the eye strains to discern recognizable shapes in the darkness, the alien compositions of ‘Abstractiture’ hide their true nature in plain sight, only revealing their recognizable forms when observed longer.”

AGATA MROZIK:
Agata Mrozik will be exhibiting multiple, large acrylic paintings. Her work investigate attributes of the human form through an expressive use of color.

“‘You can always paint over it’ has been my motto while creating. I am a very indecisive person, I honestly never really know how a painting will turn out till I’m done with it. I always have an initial idea, a ‘recipe,’ but the final results are never exactly as originally planned for. I’ve been fond of acrylic painting because of it’s incredibly forgiving nature. I draw inspiration from Egon Schiele’s expressionist figurative painting and Oscar-Claude Monet’s use of color.”

HANNAH NANTT:
Hannah Nantt’s artwork marries witty text and unique characters with wheel-thrown ceramics.

“I create art for creation’s sake. I don’t force myself to have a work fully planned out because I find joy in the discovery process of making something. I try to make my art relevant to where I’m personally at, mentally, at the time of making, so sometimes my pieces are more silly and sometimes my pieces are more serious, but they are always true to myself and what I find interesting.”

ALEXA OROZCO:
Alexa Orozco has created multiple oil paintings that are a result of a deeper investigation of anatomy and observing the human form.

“This series of work drew inspiration from a recent art course studying and drawing human forms. I wanted to further pursue human studies to further improve my understanding of anatomy. I usually paint with acrylics, but I chose oil paints to explore and challenge myself to learn a new medium. It is fascinating how the human body alone can be so expressive.”

An opening reception is scheduled for Friday, May 13 at 6:30 to 8 p.m. with remarks at 7 p.m. Both exhibition and reception are free and open to the public. Please see the reception event or NAC Facebook event for more details. Masks are not required, but individuals who are not fully vaccinated or deemed vulnerable are encouraged to continue to wear masks.

This project is supported in part by a grant from the North Dakota Council on the Arts, which receives funding from the state legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.