This semester, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh art department is hosting a new event that will satisfy a craving for creativity.
Created by Allen Priebe Gallery Director Leslie Walfish, Art Bites is a series of exhibitions that give visitors the chance to have an engaging conversation about the featured art while sipping on tea or coffee and having a snack.
Art Bites is open to the UW Oshkosh campus community as well as the wider Oshkosh community, free of charge.
“My aim is to help people realize that the Allen Priebe Gallery is for everyone to enjoy and we welcome all visitors,” Walfish said. “Art Bites provides all who come a little taste of what the art is about. People might just discover they like the exhibition even more once they know more about it.”
The first Art Bites event took place on Feb. 7 in conjunction with the 18th Annual Student Honors Exhibition. Work by seven student artists was chosen by art professors to be featured in the show.
Holly Koenitzer, of Spring Green, and Anthony Abegglen, of Naples, Florida, were two UW Oshkosh students who had their art displayed in the Honors Exhibition.
Koenitzer is a senior this year, graduating in May with a bachelor of fine arts degree in two-dimensional studio art. Her piece, On Witzel, is a pastel drawing that was featured in the show. As an abstract piece, Koenitzer was excited to talk about its origin.
“This was an assignment for my advanced drawing class in which we were to create a drawing using a photograph of a color palette we found somewhere in our daily lives,” Koenitzer said. “I take the public buses everywhere in Oshkosh, so one day when I was going somewhere I noticed that from where I was sitting there was a primary color palette. On Witzel as born through this color palette and abstracting the inside of the bus.”
Many viewers were curious to learn that Koenitzer settled on the name On Witzel because it happened to be the road she was on at the time she took notice in the bus’ interior.
Abegglen is also a senior this year, finishing up his bachelor of fine arts in three-dimensional studio art. His ceramic sculpture, Youth Lagoon III, was displayed at the show as a piece for visitors to interact with.
“My piece is a vessel which holds the wishes of those who come and make their mark,” Abegglen said. “Attendees were very curious about the concept behind my piece. It is derived from the childhood concept of wishing wells. Youth Lagoon III was created for the sole purpose of making wishes and reminding us of that wonder.”
Abegglen provided pen and paper so gallery visitors could became artists when viewing Youth Lagoon III. A hole in the top of the sculpture allows participants to fold up their wish and drop it inside. Instructions displayed near the piece prompt viewers to also add a symbol to the exterior of the sculpture, turning Youth Lagoon III into a collaborative work of art.
Conversation about all the work displayed in the Priebe Gallery was focused on the artists, prompting students like Koenitzer and Abegglen to offer insight into their inspiration and process.
“Talking about my art on any occasion is an exhilarating rush of wonder,” Abegglen said. “Speaking in front of students and folks from around Oshkosh was an especially wonderful experience because I could directly connect with them in a setting which inspires conversation about art and the way they perceive it.”
Throughout the spring semester, four more exhibitions will rotate through the Allen Priebe Gallery, which is located in the main lobby of the Arts and Communication Center. Each show will include a corresponding Art Bites, complete with refreshments and more thought-provoking conversation about art, artists, and the creative process.
“The next Art Bites is on March 7, and will be about the ceramic and encaustic work of Missy McCormick and Blake Williams, two ceramic artists,” Walfish said. “We will begin talking about how the work was made and what the art means to the artist, but just like our first Art Bites, we will follow the discussion wherever it takes us as people ask questions and as they are attracted to different pieces on display.”
Upcoming Art Bites:
•Missy McCormick and Blake Williams: Safe Haven:12:30–12:50 p.m., Wednesday, March 7
•Amir Fallah:12:30-12:50 p.m., Wednesday, April 18
•BFA Studio Senior Exhibition:12:30-12:50 p.m., Wednesday, April 25
•BFA Graphic Design Senior Exhibition:12:30-12:50 p.m., Wednesday, May 9