Heyde Center for the Arts
Chippewa Valley Cultural Association

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Opening Reception - 59th Annual Spring Art Show

Come explore one of the largest, non-juried community art exhibits in western WI. Each year the exhibit includes the artwork of well over 80 artists - young and old, experienced and novice - displaying artwork of many different types of styles and media. The Opening Reception will include a chance to walk through two floors of artwork; talk to many of the artists; attend a panel discussion; learn who won awards; and enjoy some food and drink.

1:00pm Open Discussion "What Is Original Art?"

Moderator Ned Gannon (professor at UWEC) along with panelists Allan Servoss (Artist/Instructor) and Erik Evenson (professor at UW-Stout) will lead a discussion about defining the term "original art," especially in this age of advanced technology. Everyone is invited!!

Ned Gannon Painter, illustrator, and writer, Ned Gannon attended the Kansas City Art Institute and the School of Visual Arts in New York where he received his M.F.A. He lived and worked on the North Shore of Staten Island in New York City for seven years before moving to Wisconsin. His work has appeared in New York galleries, the Society of Illustrators of New York and Los Angeles, and in Communication Arts. His clients include American Airlines, Boyds Mills Press, Cobblestone, Cricket, and Odyssey Magazines, Woodbine Publishing, and St. Vladimir’s Press. His work is in private collections in Australia and the United States, including the Staten Island Museum. He is currently a UW-Eau Claire professor in Art and Design.

Erik Evensen Erik Evensen is an Associate Professor and director of the MFA program. His creative work, research, and teaching focus on the synthesis of illustration and visual communication design—his course load has included studio courses in design drawing, illustration, concept art, graphic design, and typography. He began his career as a graphic designer and illustrator in the Boston area, with works honored by Graphic Design USA. As an illustrator, his comics industry credits include the "Ghostbusters" and "Back to the Future" comic series from IDW Publishing, and the Xeric-winning graphic novel "Gods of Asgard," the definitive comics adaptation of the Norse myths, which has been the subject of many academic papers and adopted as a textbook at several universities. He is also the game artist and co-producer for the tabletop games "Marrying Mr. Darcy" and "Distilled."

Allan Servoss Allan has conducted watercolor and colored pencil workshops for over 20 years. These include workshops in California, Washington D.C., Arizona, Montana, Minnesota, Florida, Illinois, and Wisconsin. In 1998, he was one of two artists selected to conduct a master class at the International CPSA (Colored Pencil Society of America) Exhibition. He was also invited to teach a workshop and jury the Midwest Color Exhibition in Chicago, IL in 1999. His colored pencil drawings and watercolors have been exhibited nationally in juried exhibitions, galleries, museums and colleges. Allan is a signature member of the Colored Pencil Society of America and has his ten-year merit award. Allan's work was the subject of an article titled COLORED PENCIL IMPROVISATION in the January 2006 issue of AMERICAN ARTIST MAGAZINE and his work was also featured in the Winter 2005 issue of AMERICAN ARTIST/DRAWING MAGAZINE. He has also been published in THE ARTIST'S MAGAZINE and THE INTERNATIONAL ARTIST'S MAGAZINE.

2:30pm Award Ceremony

No cost for admission.