Architecture as Muse: Selections from SUMA's Collection

January 12 - April 26, 2024

Artists have long found inspiration in the natural world. Depictions of landscapes evoke emotional responses of the sublime and invite direct access to divine creation. Since the advent of the Industrial Revolution, however, the built environment has loomed especially large as an artistic muse, celebrating the monumental innovations of humankind and examining our place within the edifices of modernity.

Shown in conjunction with two exhibitions devoted to modernist architectural movements of the 20th century—Brutalism and mid-century modern—Architecture as Muse demonstrates how painters, printmakers, and photographers have translated whole cityscapes and individual structures into new artistic expressions. Works by ten artists, including Jimmie Jones, Brett Weston, and Clarence Millet, comprise the exhibition, exemplifying different ways architecture can be re-interpreted and re-imagined—from colorful abstractions of façades and space to the intimate settings of human activity.

Images from Top to Bottom: 
Jimmie F. Jones (U.S., 1933-2009), Study in Black and White, 1974, Oil on linen, 24 x 40 in., Gift of Jefferson and Rita Fordham (2014), SUMA

Brett Weston (U.S., 1911-1993), Building, 20th century, Silver gelatin print, 14 x 11 in., Gift from the Brett Weston Archive (2019), SUMA

Incandescent: Senior BFA Exhibition Spring 2024

March 18 - April 26, 2024 

The Senior B.F.A. Spring Exhibition showcases the culmination of each graduating art student’s time in the Art Department at SUU. The students’ capstone projects will be on display, demonstrating their ability to visualize, develop, and create a cohesive body of work to kick start their careers in the professional art world. This exhibit will include work from a variety of artistic disciplines: art education, graphic design, ceramics, sculpture, illustration, photography, painting, drawing, and printmaking.

Awards & Opening Reception: Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Photography by Russell Gearhart 

29th Annual Art Auction Preview 

May 6 - 9, 2024

To celebrate the generosity of the artists who donated pieces to SUMA's 29th Annual Art Auction, and to rouse the enthusiasm of those who will attend the event, all artworks that will be sold at SUMA's major fundraising gala will be on display the week of the event. 

View the complete auction lineup before the event on Saturday, May 11, 2024. Works in a variety of media will be on display, from paintings to pastels and aluminum sculpture to weaving. This exhibition will feature work from fan favorites to emerging artists:

View Full Artists

Harry Bertoia: Master Modernist

June 1 - September 28, 2024

Well-known for his sculptural furniture, Harry Bertoia (U.S., b. Italy, 1915-1978) was a prolific artist-designer of the modernist period, whose work traverses media and transcends categorization. Throughout his forty-year career, Bertoia was known to experiment with materials and play with techniques, often shifting between two-dimensional and three-dimensional projects over the course of a day.

Harry Bertoia: Master Modernist is a celebration of the breadth of this pioneering artist’s body of work. Drawing from the collections of Celia Bertoia and the Harry Bertoia Foundation, this exhibition brings together objects that represent the diversity of his creative process. In addition to a multiplicity of sculptures and monotype prints that feature both abstract and organic designs, Bertoia’s so-called tonal or sonambient sculptures, which use sound as a sculptural material, transform the gallery into an ambient sonic environment.

Harry Bertoia: Master Modernist is sponsored by HB Workplaces.

Images from Top to Bottom: 
Harry Bertoia (U.S., b. Italy, 1915–1978), Untitled, 1940-3, Ink on Japanese paper; Block printed monotype, 17 x 14 in., Collection of Celia Bertoia (Washington, UT), TD.MO.720

Harry Bertoia (U.S., b. Italy, 1915-1978), Untitled, c. 1965, stainless steel wire on stone base (not original), 84 x 48 x 48 in., Collection of Celia Bertoia (Washington, UT), S.BW.1

The Past is Present: Art in Times of Crisis

June 1 - September 28, 2024

Artists channel their emotional worlds and lived realities into their artistic practice. Often, however, they not only translate the personal into relatable visual expressions, but they also document shared experiences and communal stories.

This exhibition features two bodies of work by two artists, Gonkar Gyatso (Lhasa, b. 1961) and Stewart Seidman (U.S., b. 1939), who have recorded and responded to the transformative, traumatic, and ongoing events of the last four years: the Covid-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter uprisings, the war in Ukraine, and the war in Gaza. These two distinct series present an archive of individual testimony, while offering viewers instruments of memory and invitations to consider the impact of the past on the present—what’s been lost and gained, how to look behind with deeper understanding and look ahead with greater hope.

Image Credits (Top to Bottom): 

Gonkar Gyatso (Lhasa, b. 1961), The Great Equalizer  (2023), Fiberglass, 35 x 27 x 17 in., Courtesy of the Artist.

Gonkar Gyatso (Lhasa, b. 1961), Daily Doodle: 4/4/2021  (2021), stickers, pastel, pencil, and India ink on paper, 12 x 15 cm., Private Collection, Tibet.

Stewart Seidman (U.S., b. 1939), We Will Return (2022), acrylic on recycled FedEx envelopes, 44 x 56 in. (framed), Courtesy of the Artist. 

Like Water in a Vessel: The Ceramic Art of Kelvin Yazzie

Ceramic artist and SUU alumnus, Kelvin Yazzie (Diné (Navajo), b. 1954), creates pots that swoop and swerve and swell in serpentine curves, voluminous chambers, and twisted knots. His works are deeply biographical, drawing on his childhood on the Navajo Reservation playing with mud and sheep entrails; reflecting his relationships with family, academic mentors and artistic collaborators; and exploring his mindful navigation of sobriety and American politics. Yazzie’s fluid containers that play with volume and emptiness not only evoke the dynamic movement of water, but also embody something of the artist’s character and values: water is formless, taking the shape of the vessel it fills, and thus exemplifies the power of adaptability, the potential for growth, and strength in change.

Image Credits (Left to Right): 

Kelvin Yazzie (Diné (Navajo), b. 1954), Container #88 (Window Rock)  (19XX), Pit-fired and glazed ceramic, Courtesy of the Artist. 

Kelvin Yazzie (Diné (Navajo), b. 1954), Vessel #22 (1988), Pit-fired ceramic, 13 x 9 x12 in., Southern Utah Museum of Art. 

Interwoven: Modernist Tapestries from SUMA's Collection

As a thread that connects the summer exhibition themes of modernism, abstraction, biography, and history, this small show displays four mid-century tapestries by Mathieu Matégot and Thomas Gleb. While Matégot’s pieces demonstrate his versatility as a modernist artist and designer who worked across media, much like Harry Bertoia, the tapestry designed by Gleb, a Holocaust survivor, expresses the power of art to record personal experience, document a shared history, and elicit collective remembrance.

Image:
Thomas Gleb (b. Poland 1912 - d. France 1991), Hiver Polonais (Polish Winter), 1965, Woven wool fiber, 46 x 72 in., Gift of Lawrence and Frances Jeppson, Southern Utah Museum of Art (2020.5.5)

Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx

Salt lines mark the merging of saltwater and freshwater, where river meets sea. Migrations, manipulations, and transmutations of saltwater and saline bodies, however, have transformed salt into both the maker and marker of climate change. Salt lines now form the boundary between present crisis and future disaster—a line that we as humans are dangerously close to crossing. In Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx, the past, present, and future of salt in our local landscape and global community are examined across three bodies of work that employ multiple media.  

Two immersive installations by Hylozoic/Desires, a multimedia performance duo featuring Himali Singh Soin and David Soin Tappeser, form the heart of the exhibition, tracing salt lines across time and space, and into an imagined future. Namak Nazar, an aural sculpture that takes the form of a “pillar of salt,” employs science, myth, and history to express both the doom of climate change and the redemption of inward reflection. Their Piscean Premonition, on the other hand, creates an archaeological site for future humans. Serving as prophets of a precarious planetary moment, salt-glazed ceramic fish made of local materials and created with local collaborators evoke mass extinction along salty shorelines. Photographic works by noted aerial photographer David Maisel and Utah-based artist Alexandra Fuller casting Great Salt Lake as their subject provide a backdrop for Hylozoic/Desires’ installations and anchor them within a local crisis. These photographs locate the exhibition within the larger conversation surrounding Utah’s saltwater body, where extreme changes endanger its delicate ecosystems and imperil nearby human habitation. 

Through the different artistic perspectives and access points presented, Salt Lines can inspire solidarity across geographic distance, connecting the plight of humans—particularly those inhabiting similar desert environs and working within agricultural economies—as they face a future defined by climate events.

Images by Russell Gearhart for Southern Utah Museum of Art. 

Incandescent: Senior BFA Exhibition Fall 2024

The Senior B.F.A. Spring Exhibition showcases the culmination of each graduating art student’s time in the Art Department at SUU. The students’ capstone projects will be on display, demonstrating their ability to visualize, develop, and create a cohesive body of work to kick start their careers in the professional art world. This exhibit will include work from a variety of artistic disciplines: graphic design, illustration, photography, painting, drawing, and printmaking.

Image: Jade Warren posing with her exhibition; Photo by Russell Gearhart

October 19 - November 16

Ryann Ford, Photography
Gabby Gonzales, Graphic Design
J. Peter Ipson, Graphic Design
Jade Warren, Graphic Design

November 23 - December 19

Sara Loertscher, Illustration
Mia Topham, Drawing/Painting/Printmaking
Grace Walter, Graphic Design
Caroline Watson, Photography

Classic: Works by Art & Design Faculty, Past & Present

January 17 - March 4, 2023

It is traditional for SUMA to exhibit works by SUU's faculty of Film, Art, and Design every two years. In honor of the 125th Anniversary of the University's founding, however, this year the biennial exhibition will be expanded to include former faculty members whose works are held within the museum's collection. Among the diverse visions of current professors, one can find paintings by the founding chair of the Art Department, Mary L. Bastow, as well as watercolors by Thomas Leek, the founding director of the Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery, which preceded SUMA as the campus art museum. From the 1920s to the 2020s, the visual arts have been central to SUU academic life, and this exhibition celebrates the legacy of the influential educators who came before, and the contributions of the artists who inspire and instruct future generations in the present.

Opening Reception: Friday, January 20, 6–8 p.m. 

Image Credit: 
Jason Walker
Nesting with the Socials, 2020
Porcelain, glaze, and underglaze, 15 x 20 x 10 in. 
Courtesy of the Artist 

2023 Senior BFA Exhibition

March 20 - April 28, 2023

From 2D illustration to 3D installation, branding to book design, this year's exhibition of Capstone projects by seniors in the Department of Art & Design encompasses an exciting range of media and subject matter. In conjunction with SUU's Festival of Excellence, the gallery space will be further activated with talks given by students receiving Senior Awards. 

Related Events

Gallery Talks
Tuesday, March 28, 10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. 

Opening Reception
Tuesday, March 28, 6-8 p.m.

Exhibited Students 

Clock Tower: SUU Past, Present, and Future

A Community Art Project Celebrating 125 Years
March 20 - April 28, 2023

Last year, in preparation for the celebration of Southern Utah University’s 125th anniversary, President Mindy Benson formed multiple committees to help engage all of Iron County and beyond in commemorating a century and a quarter. 

The Community Arts committee collaborated with SUU, SUMA, and Cedar City community members to highlight the artist in all of us with this collaborative art project. 

A photo of the Carter Carillon Clock Tower, provided by SUU Marketing, was transferred to vinyl in full color, with a secondary, black and white outline printed onto another piece of vinyl. The latter was cut into a grid and the squares distributed to community members, who shared their artistic talents by creating their own version of their chosen square of the clock tower in the art medium of their choice. These squares were then placed over the full-color photo, leaving portions of the historical clock tower peeking through, all to signify our collective ownership and love of Southern Utah University. 

The final piece will be installed in SUMA’s Austin & Magda Jones "new media" Gallery, where photos of the contributing artists, including members of the Carter family, will also be on view.

Dreamland

Southern Utah Museum of Miniature Art

April 15 - May 18, 2023

Imagine yourself transformed as you discover SUMMA—Southern Utah Museum of Miniature Art and its exhibition Dreamland. 

SUMMA, located in the vestibule of the regular-sized museum, will feature miniature works of art from local southern Utah artists, working in various media—painting, sculpture, collage, photography, drawing, and more. 

See the works for the first time during the Arts Festival on April 15, and return again to explore this miniature museum before it becomes a figment of your imagination. 

28th Annual Art Auction Preview 

May 8 - 18, 2023

To celebrate the generosity of the artists who donated pieces to SUMA's 28th Annual Art Auction, and to rouse the enthusiasm of those who will attend the event, all artworks that will be sold at SUMA's major fundraising gala will be on display during the two weeks ahead of the big day. 

View the complete auction lineup before the event on Saturday, May 20, 2023. Works in a variety of media will be on display, from paintings to pastels and aluminum sculpture to weaving. This exhibition will feature work from fan favorites to emerging artists:

A Dream Deferred: New Perspectives on Black Experience in the Work of Aïsha Lehmann and Vitus Shell

June 10 - September 23, 2023

In connection with Utah Shakespeare Festival’s production of A Raisin in the Sun, SUMA has engaged two artists–Aïsha Lehmann and Vitus Shell—to contribute works that reflect and respond to the themes of the play, and express how they reverberate into the present.

Lehmann has created a new body of work that centers on the intersections of race, health, and societal opportunity across America, during the time of the play and today. Drawing on the data visualizations W. E. B. Du Bois created to explain the circumstances of Black Americans for the 1900 Paris World Fair, Lehmann overlays demographic information onto maps of U.S. cities and the state of Utah. Her infographics offer a profound education on how systemic racism affects populations of color in different ways across the country. The contradiction of these harsh realities with the gentle aesthetic of her prints only intensifies their message. Vitus Shell’s Ice Cream Man series features a Black man against collaged white backdrops, from which expressions like “Fragility,” “Guilt,” and “Rage” subtly emerge.

If Lehmann’s prints show how White power structures impact Black experience on a societal level, Shell’s paintings present an “every Black man” who is living these experiences, largely contained within and yet contrasted against a White world. Although he might give a face and a body to Lehmann’s maps, Shell’s subject does not melt into the background, but transcends, embodying dignity and pride.

Image: Vitus Shell, Ice Cream Man: White Fragility, 2021

YOU MADE OUR REALITY INTO A GAME?!?!

Pixels, Politics, and Play with Rafael Fajardo

June 10 - September 23, 2023

Colombian-American artist and educator Rafael Fajardo is the founding director of SWEAT, a loose collective of digital creatives who develop socially-conscious video games as a means to explore cultural identities and complex political perspectives. Crosser and La Migra are two such video games, representing opposing viewpoints on the evolving dynamics at the US-Mexico border, exhibited as a diptych. 

The hyper-pixelated retro imagery employed by Fajardo and SWEAT in these video games recalls early arcade graphics, invoking a sense of nostalgia and childlike naivete. By recontextualizing the migration “crisis” at the US-Mexico border through digital gaming and vintage aesthetics, Crosser and La Migra represent the humanity inherent to both sides of this ongoing socio-political conflict, making space for cross-cultural empathy through the simple act of play. 

Guest curated by Emilie Trice

Image: Screenshot of Crosser 

Reaching for the Sky

Trees in the Work of Jimmie Jones & Other Artists, Near & Far

June 10 - September 23, 2023

For the newest installation in the Jimmie F. Jones Gallery, Jimmie’s paintings that feature prominent rim pinyons and ponderosa pines will be displayed in conversation with other tree-celebrating works from our permanent collection and several special loans to SUMA.

This show includes SUMA’s recent acquisition, Jack Rabbit Ridge by Billy Schenck, and two important pieces from our collection of Japanese woodblock prints. This exhibition also marks our next collaboration with Modern West Fine Art, as it will feature contemporary works by Day Christensen, Woody Shepherd, and Navajo artist Shonto Begay.

Access the exhibition online through our CatalogIt Hub. 

Image: Jimmie Jones, Autumn Cottonwood in Zion Canyon, 2009, Oil, 32 x 50 in.

Brutal DC

October 14, 2023 - March 2, 2024

BRUTAL DC is a design exhibition comprising archival documents, recent re-imaginings, and fine art photography that considers the historical underpinnings, current state, and future possibilities of key Brutalist buildings in Washington, DC. 

The exhibition introduces visitors to the history of Brutalism and traces its story in the American capital by examining the past, present, and future of seven exemplary Brutalist buildings and the Metro in DC Archival documents, architectural drawings, and construction photographs illustrate how the Brutalist phenomenon and these structures first emerged in the US capital city during the Cold War; contemporary, fine art photographs of these iconic buildings and Metro stations, as well as commentary from DC locals and visitors, highlight current state of Brutalism; and reimaginings created by leading architecture firms, including Brooks+Scarpa, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Gensler, BLD.US, as well as students from the School of Architecture at UNLV, illustrate potential futures for several of the buildings, such as the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building.

This project is a curatorial partnership between noted professional photographer Ty Cole and award-winning scholar Dr. Angela Person. Cole’s work has been published in Dwell, Architectural Digest, Departures Magazine, and more. Dr. Person is an associate professor of Architecture at the University of Oklahoma, where her research and teaching engage architectural history and behavioral and emotional outcomes of the built environment. They produced BRUTAL DC in consultation with Deane Madsen, a DC-based architectural writer and brutalism preservation advocate, as well as Josh Vermillion and Eric Strain (UNLV) and Eric Weber (University of Arizona), who provided content support.

Image: Diller Scofidio + Renfro's reimagining of the Hirshhorn Museum, 2009. Courtesy of the architects. 

Lennart Anderson: A Retrospective

June 10 - September 23, 2023

Lennart Anderson (U.S.,1928-2015) was an artist renowned for his deceptively complex paintings that transform common delicacies, mundane objects and a sitter’s calm interiority into phenomenological meditations on light, form and time. His paintings reveal a world of things we may overlook; however, with the tender innocence and humor of a haiku poet, he represents to us mysteries worthy of careful consideration. As he worked from observation during the height of non-objective painting, he often described his practice as “humble pie,” but he was unapologetic about his exhaustive search for an elusive quality of light and the nobility of his subject.

Described by the New York Times as one of the “most prominent and admired painters to translate figurative art into a modern idiom,” Anderson was also well-known for a teaching career that deeply influenced future generations of painters, including guest curator and SUU lecturer of art, Randall Cabe.

In collaboration with the Lennart Anderson estate and Leigh Morse Fine Arts, Southern Utah Museum of Art will host the largest iteration of this first major survey featuring 56 works from both private and public collections, such as Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, Brooklyn Museum, Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and Whitney Museum of American Art.

This exhibition is possible through the generous support of Iron County, Center for Figurative Painting, American Macular Degeneration Foundation, Bank of New York Mellon Corporation, and Richard Spurzem.

This exhibition contains nudity. 

2023 Senior BFA Fall Exhibition

October 14 - December 23, 2023

The Senior BFA Fall Exhibition showcases the culmination of each graduating art student’s time in the SUU Department of Filmmaking, Art & Design. The students’ capstone projects will be on display, demonstrating their ability to visualize, develop, and create a cohesive body of work to kickstart their careers in the professional art world. Smaller in scope than the spring, this exhibit will include work from graphic design and photography students.

Related Events

Opening Reception - First Group
Saturday, October 14, 1 - 3 p.m. 

Opening Reception - Second Group
Thursday, November 30, 6-7 p.m. 

Exhibiting Students 

October 14 - November 11, 2023

Vada J. Despain, Photography
Lindsey Snyder, Graphic Design
Layna Wilcock, Photography

November 18 - December 23, 2023

Sophia Wall, Graphic Design
Autumn Richardson, Photography
Marét Bone, Graphic Design
Emmarie Hampton, Graphic Design & Marketing 

L. Robert Gardner, Architect: Cedar City Mid-Century Modern

October 14, 2023 - March 2, 2024

When L. Robert Gardner (1918-1992) returned to his hometown of Cedar City in 1948 to open his own architecture practice, he was the only licensed architect between Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. He had graduated from MIT and cut his teeth in northern Utah, but ultimately Gardner made his mark across the southern part of the state and bordering regions, designing dozens of residential, institutional, and commercial structures over the course of four decades. A product of his time, Gardner designed buildings that exemplify mid-century modernism, contributing to the suburban development of rural Cedar City. 

Drawing from Gardner’s expansive archive, held in Southern Utah University’s Special Collections, this exhibition illuminates the profound impact of L. Robert Gardner on the built environment and architectural history of the university and its wider community. A selection of his campus, residential, commercial, and civic buildings serve not only to demonstrate the breadth of his work and its impact but also to illustrate the key attributes of mid-century modern architecture. Shown in conjunction with BRUTAL DC, which centers on Brutalist architecture in our nation’s capital, the Gardner exhibition highlights the connections between these modernist movements, while celebrating the local examples of a global aesthetic, all designed by one of Cedar City’s own.  

Image: Artist's Rendering of SUSC Administration Building (SUU's Bennion Building), completed 1973, L. Robert Gardner (Courtesy of L. Robert Gardner Collection, SUU Special Collections and University Archives) 

Reclaiming Agency: Ukrainian Women Photographers Today

October 8 - December 23, 2022

 Reclaiming Agency: Ukrainian Women Photographers Today presents works by ten Ukrainian female photographers, who have all been active in the decades following Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. During the Soviet period, photography was not approved by the communist regime as an official artistic medium. Although underground artists in Soviet Russia rarely worked with photography, a group working in Kharkiv, Ukraine utilized this medium exclusively. This collective, whose members were predominantly male, came to be known as the Kharkiv School of Photography. What these Soviet-era underground artistic milieus shared—both in Russia and Ukraine—was a scarcity of female artists and an absence of female photographers. In Ukraine, this situation continued beyond the Soviet period into the 21st century; it was only in the late 2000s that the number of women artist-photographers began to grow. More and more women have joined men in taking private courses in photography despite the continued dearth of university-level programs in the medium. This exhibition gives a platform to these groundbreaking voices and a new audience for their singular visions.

The work of the ten women photographers presented here, encompassing photographs as well as artist photobooks, displays an array of motivations, working practices, subject matter, and styles. A frequent motif that appears in these works is average people—their singular lives, complex identities, and relations with others. These portraits vary from poignant to humorous, but each reflects both a unique identity and a relatable humanity. Ukraine’s Soviet past and Russia’s present military aggression—extending from the 2014 annexation of Crimea to the ongoing invasion of the Ukrainian nation—surface in visual stories about people and their environments. 

Although the cultural, political, and military conflicts of the past and present are conveyed in documentary or metaphorical ways by some of these women artists, these various upheavals have caused havoc in the lives of all of them. Amidst chaos and despair, photography has allowed these women to reclaim agency over the rich and diverse narratives of their lives, their communities, and their country. These photographs show their worlds as viewed through their unique lenses.

Featured photographers: Maryna Brodovska, Olena Bulygina, Maryna Frolova, Alena Grom, Olia Koval, Yulia Krivich, Bella Logachova, Olena Morozova, Julia Po and the L∞k Group, and Polina Polikarpova. 

Guest-curated by Joanna Matuszak

Special thanks to the Dixie and Anne Leavitt Family Foundation for their continued support of SUMA by sponsoring Reclaiming Agency and related programming.

Image:
Maryna Brodovska (Mykolaiv, Ukraine, b. 1988) 
I Carry All My Things With Me, 2022
Archival inkjet print of a digital collage (Exhibition Print; Original Edition of 5)
Courtesy of the artist

The accompanying catalog is available for purchase on BookBaby. 

Resistance, Memory, and Play

October 8 - December 23, 2022

Resistance, Memory, and Play highlights the work of Joseph DeLappe, who has been working with electronic and new media since 1983. He has exhibited his artwork, which includes online gaming performances and sculpture, in Australia, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Mexico, Italy, Peru, Sweden, and Canada. A recipient of the 2017 Guggenheim Fellowship, DeLappe’s work examines relationships between art, technology, and social issues. Through multimedia, including video games, paintings, and sculpture, he confronts audiences with his perspective on relevant current issues, such as gun violence, drone warfare, and the complicated relationship between humans and technology.

Previously on display at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma, this exhibition will open at SUMA in October 2022. Special thanks to Pete Froslie, Dr. Robert Bailey, Thomas Smith, and Brad Stevens for their help organizing this second iteration of the exhibition.

Image: Joseph DeLappe (U.S., b. 1963) 
Joystick Ball, 2002
Joysticks, hardware, 4 × 4 × 5 ft.
Photo by Todd Stewart; image courtesy of the artist

I'm Walkin' for My Freedom

June 4 - September 24, 2022

I’m Walkin’ for My Freedom presents the Civil Rights Movement through the eyes and work of photojournalist Matt Herron. Based in Mississippi in the early 60s, Herron covered the Civil Rights struggle for Life, Look, Time, Newsweek, and the Saturday Evening Post, as well as providing pictures and support for the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

In reference to this experience, Herron said:

My wife and I went down to Mississippi in 1963 to put our shoulders to the wheel of civil rights, with a personal mission to advance the cause of nonviolence. The movement was small and embattled, and we had no idea it would ever be as successful as it was. But we knew that this was a historic change, and I was always aware I was photographing history.

I was a photographer who was offering his professional services, and I was willing to put my body on the line. And there were no barriers in those days between anyone who was there in the cause of civil rights. I don't know the exact analogy, but I always thought we were on the front lines; we were in danger; we cleaved to each other; we sang together; we hugged each other. It was the only time in my life when I lived in a truly integrated, loving society. We referred to it as “The Beloved Community.” It was a golden moment, and I'll never experience it again.

Matt Herron died on August 7, 2020, when a glider he was piloting crashed in Northern California. This compilation of photographs is on loan from the Center for Documentary Expression and Art in Salt Lake City, UT to be displayed at Southern Utah Museum of Art.

This exhibition is organized by Matt Herron and the Center for Documentary Expression and Art. It is shown here with the permission of the Matt and Jeannine Herron Trust, 2001.

Additional Resources

I'm Walkin' For My Freedom Playlist

The Space Between: Visions of the Southwest

June 4 - September 24, 2022

The infinitely expansive horizons and ruggedly majestic terrain of the Southwest’s high deserts have enraptured generations of artists. For Indigenous artists, traditional materials, forms, and symbols connect their original work to their ancestral lands. For many transplanted artists, on the other hand, immersion in this enchanting landscape has inspired departures from convention and new experimentations with color and abstraction. The Space Between brings together works from four artists who represent the past, present, and future of abstract art forged in the creative crucible of the desert: Louis Ribak (American, b. Lithuania, 1902-1979) and Beatrice Mandelman (American, 1912-1998), the groundbreaking forces behind Taos Modernism; and Arlo Namingha (American, Tewa/Hopi, b. 1974) and Shalee Cooper (American, b. 1978), two exciting contemporary artists who embody the enduring legacy of their predecessors and the new visions emerging from this environment. Echoing the dynamism of the desert, these artists engage space, shape, and scale in parallel but different ways, each finding meaning where these elements meet and in the spaces between.

Ribak and Mandelman first came to New Mexico in the mid-1940s, seeking to transcend the competing forces of social realism and abstract expressionism within New York’s art scene. Informed by European and East Coast modernist movements, this couple transformed conventional western-art into a new form of American Modernism that centered on abstractions of nature. Although both Mandelman and Ribak lived and painted in the same artistic community they helped to found, these two artists responded to their shared influences and environment differently. Whereas Ribak employs organic forms and lyrical brushwork reminiscent of Asian calligraphy, Mandelman engages in a more geometric abstraction, playing with color and collage.

A native of Santa Fe and a citizen of the Tewa/Hopi tribe, Arlo Namingha was born into a family of internationally renowned artists. His sculptural works not only draw on the landscapes of his home, the culture of his community, and the lasting impact of Modernism, but they also engage universal themes of exchange and collaboration. Components comprising two of his sculptures featured in The Space Between can be reassembled in different arrangements, creating a conversation between the artist, curators, and viewers that represents the possibilities of new ideas and multiple perspectives coexisting and co-creating. Similarly, the multi-piece installation and monumental works of Salt Lake City artist, Shalee Cooper challenge curators and viewers alike to create individualized and varied experiences through mutable layouts. Her black and white paintings echo the geometric abstractions of the Taos Modernists as she seeks to capture the relationship between light and shadow in its most basic and meditative forms.

This exhibition is presented in partnership with Modern West Fine Art in Salt Lake City. Special thanks to the Sam and Diane Stewart Family Foundation for its continued support of SUMA's exhibitions and related programming. 

Jeanne Jo: What Am I Doing Here?

June 4 - September 24, 2022

Austin & Magda Jones Gallery

Jeanne Jo (JEE-nee JOH) is a Los Angeles-based filmmaker and visual artist whose award-winning films and artworks have been shown in festivals and galleries around the world. She has an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and a PhD from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. She currently has a half-hour comedy show in development with her collaborator Keenan Coogler, is producing a documentary on Redwood tree activists, and is attached to direct two feature films.

Using humor as a point of entry, Jeanne Jo’s visual art and narrative films highlight the artist’s ongoing investigations into gender, power, and physical and emotional vulnerability. In </ What Am I Doing Here? , she collaborates with film directors to create individual works centered on specific performative actions, blurring the boundaries between performance art and narrative fiction.

Collaborators for the project include: Alan Michnoff, Auden Bui, Camille Shooshani, Christine Serchia, Clementine Leger, Fangso Liu, Harris McCabe, Jamari Perry, Kate Stayman-London, Kim Ford and Jake Greene, Leandro Tadashi, Michael Kellman, Michael Schatz, and Oates Wu.

The Art of the Preparator

June 4 - September 24, 2022

Preparators are the workers at an art museum who do the physical labor necessary for works of art to be shown in a gallery. They take artworks out of storage, get them ready to be seen, install them, deinstall them, and return them to storage. When done well, their work escapes notice, disappearing so that art may appear, which means that every exhibition of art is also an exhibition of preparators’ overlooked labor.

In The Art of the Preparator, Mallory Sanders and James Culbertson reference tropes of the conceptual art movement and its conceptualist predecessors to transform the materials and techniques of their daily work as two of the preparators at Southern Utah Museum of Art into artistic installations that highlight rather than conceal their ordinarily hidden labor.

Aïsha Lehmann: Formation

February 19 - March 19, 2022

Race is fundamentally a social construct. Despite its manmade origins, the concept manifests itself in very real ways. On one hand, race determines how a person is treated and what opportunities are available to them in society, often resulting in inequitable outcomes for people of color. On the other hand, race contributes to a person’s heritage, family, and culture—the more sentimental and lovely components of being human. These rivaling manifestations contribute to an individual’s identity formation, or in other words, the complex process which culminates into who and what a person is. These works examine this process through various narrative and several miniseries. Each focus on specific factors of identity formation such as the effects of historical and ongoing housing segregation, the mutability of mixed-race identity and its associated privileges and disadvantages, and the nuanced characteristics of race. Using mixed media and printmaking techniques, this body of work explores patterns, stories, practices, events, and human intervention which constitute race.

Aïsha is represented by Modern West Fine Art in Salt Lake City, UT. For more information visit Modern West Fine Art.

January 19 - March 19, 2022

Artist and researcher Nina Elder creates projects that reveal humanity’s dependence on and interruption of the natural world. With a focus on changing cultures and ecologies, Nina advocates for collaboration, fostering relationships between institutions, artists, scientists and diverse communities. Her work takes many forms, including drawings, performative lectures, pedagogy and critical writing, long-term community-based projects, and public art.

Tongue Stones depicts Elder’s futile attempt to gain intimacy, knowledge, and empathy with geologic materials by forcing them into her mouth. Filmed at the edge of a receding glacier in Alaska, this video is an inquiry into displaced and disregarded materials. In Tongue Stones, Nina embodies and implicates herself in the legacies of disruption, extraction, and neglect that shape the American Western landscape. By stretching herself beyond capacity, she manifests the exploitation and voracity that emboldens capitalism, and the overburdening that creates trauma in human and ecological bodies. The title Tongue Stones connotes the carved stones that are placed in the mouths of the dead in many cultures. 

Patrick Dean Hubbell Exhibit

January 19 - February 12, 2022 

Born and raised in the Navajo Nation, on the border of Arizona and New Mexico, Patrick Dean Hubbell grew up in a very small, rural town and was raised practicing Navajo traditions and cultural beliefs. He is one of the region’s fastest-rising artists with participation in over 20 exhibitions in the past four years and with a recent exhibition at Gerald Peters Contemporary in New York.

Hubbell received a BFA in 2010 from Arizona State University and completed his MFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) in 2021.  He has been highlighted by Southwest Art’s list of “21 under 31,” and is a recipient of the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, Inc. Grant Award and the New Artist Society Award of SAIC. Reviews of Hubbell’s work have been published in the Albuquerque Journal, the Western Art and Architecture Magazine, 15 Bytes - Utah’s Art Magazine, and Southwest Art Magazine, among others. His work has been exhibited at the Heard Museum, Phoenix, AZ; The Autry Museum of the West, Los Angeles; Rochester Contemporary Art Center, Rochester, NY; and in numerous public and private collections.

“My work is an exploration of my Diné and Indigenous identity and journey within the contemporary moment. The foundation of my practice is inspired by cultural methodologies, references to traditional Indigenous art and philosophy and the abstractness of language, nature, time, and place. Incorporating a variety of mediums, including natural earth pigment collected from my Diné homelands, and two-dimensional painting and drawing mediums, my work aims to challenge the imposition of categorizations and to amplify aspects of Indigenous identity within the western ideologies of contemporary art. The physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of my life are translated through a combination of intuitive, gestural mark making, automatic drawing, and design. Using both elements of traditional substrate and incorporating sculptural elements of display, the two dimensional surface format recontextualizes figurative entities of abstraction. By expanding the principles and aesthetics of the western canon, my work seeks to redefine the visibility of the Indigenous experience.”

For more about the artist, visit Modern West Fine Art. 

Andy Warhol: Cowboys and Indians and Billy Schenck: Myth of the West

January 19 - March 19, 2022

Andy Warhol was the undisputed leader of American pop art, a movement characterized by artists’ use of household items, advertising images, other “low” art forms, and commercial printing techniques in an effort to democratize art. Warhol had a tremendous gift for understanding the myths of the Baby Boomer generation. His ability to identify images that expressed the essence of the Boomers can be seen in his early work in the 1960s, including Soup Cans and the Elvis Presley series. The Cowboys and Indians series, Warhol’s last major project before he passed in 1987, pays tribute to the archetypal symbols of a popular, romanticized version of the American West. Distilling an ocean of imagery down to ten prints, Warhol challenged the meaning of playing “Cowboys and Indians” in American media culture.

Warhol initially selected 14 images to make trial proofs, but contractual arrangements led him to change his selection. This was the only time Warhol tested more than the ten images he included in a final edition. Andy Warhol: Cowboys and Indians will feature the full portfolio plus four additional trial prints. These images combine iconic portraits and totemic images, traditional and new Western representation using modern reproduction methods. Now iconic itself, the Cowboys and Indians series is a time capsule of America in the 1980s, when we had a cowboy in the White House. Only 250 copies of the portfolio were printed.

Despite the beliefs of many in the art community that mainstream modern art is the direct antithesis of what has come to be known as Western art, Warhol’s Cowboys and Indians suite links the two art genres in a new aesthetic. Rejecting the abstractness of modernism and embracing a more traditional representational approach, Warhol and the pop art movement established a link to Western art and its use of icons and, in so doing, helped reestablish respectability for representational art among contemporary collectors.

Billy Schenck was one of a handful of artists in the 1970s inspired by Warhol to apply pop art ideology and techniques to images of the American West. A founder of the Western pop movement, Schenck combined influences from his many artist-heroes in the pop movement—including Roy Lichtenstein—in his exploration of every aspect of the West’s potent iconography. In his early work, Schenck found inspiration and image sources in Western paintings and movie stills, but being a genuine cowboy himself, he increasingly turned to his personal photographs for material. With his signature reductivist style, Schenck transformed traditional Western images from a realist’s replica of detail into flat, sharply defined, simplified areas of color and stylized patterns. This retrospective of the artist’s work showcases 26 pieces in his distinctive style.

 Press Release: Andy Warhol and Billy Schenck Western Pop Art to Exhibit at SUMA 

Related Programs

Curator Discussion: Billy Schenck
Thursday, February 17, 2022, 6-7 p.m. 

Shalee Cooper, Director + Curator of Modern West Fine Art, and Jessica Kinsey, Executive Director of SUMA, will talk with Billy Schenck about his concurrent exhibitions Schenck's Utah: A Land Less Traveled and Billy Schenck: Myth of the West. Join us on Zoom or in-person at the Charles Hunter Room at the Hunter Conference Center where we will be broadcasting the conversation live. 

Audio guides

Our audio tours highlight exhibitions currently on display in the museum offering an alternative to reading wall text.

Virtual Tours

Virtual Tours Explore the museum through thematic tours highlighting our exhibitions and permanent collections.

This Earth: Notes and Observations by Montello Foundation Artists

October 16 - December 23, 2021

The deserts of Nevada and Utah have been potent landscapes for artists to render since first traversing these regions. Drawn to vast vistas, unique flora and fauna, and the subtle changes in geographic proportions and colors, there are extensive interpretations of nature and its meaning.

The Montello Foundation, founded by Stefan Hagen, has a direct mission statement: it is a “foundation dedicated to support artists who foster our understanding of nature, its fragility and our need to protect it.” Each year, international artists apply to the foundation, whose work is centered around a residency program. This solitary retreat is where artists can experience the vastness of the region from a base camp, or small building that provides a living space and a studio space. The residency affords a unique landscape for inspiration and creation, a place that provides a shield from distractions in the solitude of the desert.

Annual residencies have taken place since summer 2015, with an ever-expanding roster of artists who find their work aligns with the foundation’s mission. This Earth: Notes and Observations by Montello Foundation Artists brings together, for the first time, work by 37 artists who present a broad understanding of experiences with nature.

Curated by Hagen and Hikmet Sidney Loe, art historian and author of The Spiral Jetty Encyclo, one goal is to engage the exhibit’s audience in the processes each artist undertakes and the transformations they wish to impart through their work. Thus, the exhibit is organized thematically rather than by artist, technique, or materials:

• Observing Nature is focused on the great tradition of artists as observers and note takers. While some meticulously record the sights and sounds experienced in nature, others abstract these observations, while others are focused on transcendental experiences.
• In Dialog with Nature presents a number of artists working with natural elements and materials, transforming them with their practice. Others recreate aspects of the environment, allowing the audience to witness a dialog between artist and nature.
• Human Interactions with Nature finds artists focused on the effect humans have on the natural world. Some artists display well-meaning and caring interactions, while others show the devastating outcomes humans have on nature.
• Preserving Nature completes the exhibit. While all exhibiting artists engage their audience to understand nature and its fragility, some are very direct and clear with their message: we need to protect nature. Their work includes performative actions and activism; active audience participation is often central to their work.

Through the Montello Foundation’s modest shelter and studio in eastern Nevada, artists explore, then return to the foundation to realize their unique view of the world. Afforded through a singular retreat in the desert, each artists’ desire to share their insights with an audience is achieved through residency, and for some, through This Earth.

Educational Materials

Audio Guides

Virtual Tour This Earth

Elementos Sinérgicos: Selected Works from a Private Collection

October 16 - November 6, 2021 

Elementos Sinérgicos (Synergetic Elements) features contemporary and indigenous artwork on loan from a local collector, Brett Ridpath. During his elaborate travels, the collector purchased these pieces from several Latin American countries: Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, and Peru. Explorations of culture and the connections that art can form between human beings are central themes of this exhibition. For the collector, his affinity is more than just the art. It is equally about the many adventures he had that expanded his horizons and provided opportunities to collect Indigenous and contemporary artwork from Latin America.

All gallery content is available in both English and Spanish.

Elementos Sinérgicos: Obras selectas de una colección privada

16 de octubre - 6 de noviembre, 2021

Elementos Sinérgicos (Synergetic Elements) presenta obras de arte contemporáneas e indígenas prestadas por el coleccionista local, Brett Ridpath. Durante sus elaborados viajes, el coleccionista compró estas piezas en varios países de Latinoamérica: Chile, Ecuador, México, Panamá y Perú. La exploración cultural y las conexiones que el arte puede establecer entre los seres humanos son temas centrales de esta exposición. Para el coleccionista, su afinidad es más que el arte. Se trata igualmente de las muchas aventuras que tuvo que expandieron sus horizontes y le brindaron oportunidades para coleccionar obras de arte indígenas y contemporáneas de Latinoamérica.

Todo el contenido de la galería está disponible en inglés y en español.

Utah Shakespeare Festival: 60th Anniversary Exhibition

Open July 24th through September 25th

The Corset as Art: Past and Present

July 24 - September 25, 2021

The most extreme form of corsetry happened in the last two decades of the 19th century when the waist was constrained to the point of ill health. Corsets still signify intrigue. They have a sexual connotation since they are women’s undergarments. While at the same time, they render the form impervious to touch. Even in our more androgynous times, the corset creates a uniquely feminine shape. And when worn by men, they are not used to improve the form but rather to make a statement. This exhibition shows the corset meant to enhance or intrigue the viewer either on or off of a body as a work of art in itself.

Free and open to the public, thanks to our sponsors Shelley Berkley and Dr. Larry Lehrner through their support of the Utah Shakespeare Festival.

Texture, Thread, Clay: Selected Works from the Permanent Collection

July 24th - September 25, 2021

Textures define us. They are everywhere we look: the patterns on a shirt, the stitching in a seam, creases in an earlobe. In the basics of design, texture creates visual interest, an opera for our eye, stimulating our memory to produce a sensory reaction. It reminds us what it is like to touch, feel, our fingertips vicariously experiencing the smooth, rough, or soft surfaces in the painting, or photograph before us; texture allows us to touch, without touching. This exhibition features a variety of media and techniques through a selection of works from the permanent collection that were acquired since 2018.

Observations: People and Stories Visualized by Stewart Seidman

May 8 - July 10, 2021

Stewart Seidman grew up in Brooklyn, New York and like most of his friends, he loved sports. When he wasn’t playing baseball or boxing, he was drawing, often creating portraits of his friends’ favorite athletes. This early demonstration of his artistic talent was recognized by his friends and father, who provided Stewart with admiration and encouragement.

Now living in St. George, he offers a unique point of view, observing and painting a variety of subjects and images that capture his interest. Stewart’s paintings are expressive, emotionally charged, imaginative, and full of powerful messages that convey a story to the viewer in a decorative and sometimes amusing manner. The technique is striking and expressive, with energy, emotion, and passion that brings wonder and joy to the viewer.

Michael Lawrence: The Arena of Sensation

May 8 - July 10, 2021

Rocki Alice Gallery

“By making painting and sculpture, I make myself; I am creating me, or my own sense of me. My sense of art is in the arena of sensation” - Michael Lawrence

To Lawrence, the true adventure of painting lies within the heart and mind. Lawrence’s method for creating paintings—like the ones included in this exhibition —is fluid and forgiving; he begins with a basic, dynamic sketch before intuitively selecting bright colors to push about with his paintbrush against the canvas.

Enter the arena of sensation as you explore the life and paintings of Michael Lawrence, through this student-curated exhibition from our permanent collection.

2021 Senior BFA Exhibition

March 22 - May 1, 2021

The Senior B.F.A. Capstone Exhibition showcases the culmination of each graduating art student’s time in the Art Department at SUU. The students’ capstone projects will be on display, demonstrating their ability to visualize, develop, and create a cohesive body of work to kick start their careers in the professional art world. This exhibit will include work from a variety of artistic disciplines: art education, graphic design, ceramics, sculpture, illustration, photography, painting, drawing, and printmaking.

Art in Action Fundraiser Exhibition

March 22 - April 9, 2021

The Art in Action fundraiser will feature a variety of donated two and three-dimensional works from students, faculty, and staff of Southern Utah University. All donated works will be sized less than 15”x15” and will be available for purchase for the flat price of $20. All proceeds from the sales of this exhibit will go towards an SUU Art & Design student scholarship. Artwork will be available for purchase at the museum or online for the duration of the exhibition. All works will be sold on a first come first serve basis.

For more information on the Art in Action Fundraiser, please visit the Art in ActionFundraiser page.

2021 Art & Design Faculty Exhibition

January 11 - March 13, 2021

The 2021 Art & Design Faculty Exhibition features the work of nearly 20 artists, both full-time faculty and part-time adjunct faculty. This biennial exhibition is an opportunity for the campus and community to celebrate the work of SUU's distinguished faculty members, who have earned regional, national, and international recognition for excellence in their areas. The variety found in this exhibition offers different perspectives and media, including painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, installation art, digital, photography, and graphic design.

Organized Chaos:
The Works of Clayton Rippey

January 11 - March 13, 2021

Although outwardly unassuming, Clayton Rippey was lively, intensely curious, and craved to execute the creative process as he neared a century-long existence. In his own words, “While they are often childlike or cartoonish in technique, the meaning behind the image is far more profound, and the great difficulty lies in creating the marriage of childhood to the philosophical choice of the adult.” Organized Chaos displays Rippey's exploration of what was both mysterious and of comfort to him, balancing his humorous and rebellious self with his spiritual and contemplative self, and establishing a semblance of order within his human experience. These selected works, dating from 2015 to 2019, come from the same original chaos but are organized differently as the artist offered an order in an ever-changing environment.

SUMA on the Go:
Artwork from Fall 2020

January 11 - March 11, 2021

Last fall, elementary classes throughout Iron County virtually visited the museum through the SUMA on the Go program. After experiencing a tour of the gallery through video, students were guided through an art activity that related to the exhibition, Right Here Right Now. Thanks to the generous support of the Cedar City RAP Tax, the museum provided materials for this activity to more than 1,700 students at ten different schools.

Using brown paper and oil pastels, students traced their hands and filled in the silhouette with colors, lines, and shapes that represent them, their interests, and their stories. The result is hundreds of colorful hands, each as unique as the students that created them. The artwork will rotate regularly throughout the semester until all of the submitted art has been displayed.
To confirm when your child’s artwork will be on display, please email experiencesuma@suu.edu.

Right Here Right Now: Featuring the Work in Progress Mural

September 25 - December 23, 2020

Right Here Right Now

This year marks the 150th anniversary of women's suffrage in Utah and the 100th anniversary of the19th amendment of our Country’s Constitution.  Because of these momentous and important events, Modern West would like to acknowledge and pay homage to women artists.  The exhibition Right Here Right Now celebrates and acknowledges the significance of these anniversaries by honoring the contributions of the past, while highlighting the voices and expressions of women today. The exhibition will feature the Work in Progress Mural alongside works by 20 contemporary women artists. 

The works by the 20 contemporary women artists were curated to highlight work that speaks to the experience of being a woman here and now. All 20 artists either reside in or have ties to Utah. They are Trent Alvey, Christine Baczek, Liberty Blake, Pam Bowman, Sandy Brunvand, Rebecca Campbell, Shalee Cooper, Al Denyer, Stefanie Dykes, Angela Ellsworth, Kiki Gaffney, Jann Haworth, Amy Jorgensen, Lenka Konopasek, Sara Lindsay, Jiyoun Lee-Lodge, Pia Van Nuland, Jean Richardson, Wren Ross and Laura Sharp Wilson.

This important exhibition honors and celebrates the perspectives and contributions—past and present—of women to our cultural society. The Work in Progress Mural encourages you to take note of the women you recognize and acknowledge their contributions while providing the opportunity to discover those that are lesser-known. The 20 contemporary women artists are the voices of today, expressing where we are… Right Here Right Now.

Work in Progress

The Work in Progress mural is a community-based project, driven by artist Jann Haworth and collaged by Liberty Blake. It consists of more than 300 stencil portraits created by more than 250 local and national contributors, most of whom are self-confessed non-artists. The mural features an international crowd of women both historical and contemporary, being recognized as catalysts for change in the arts, sciences, and social activism. Over the last four years, the mural has grown from 28 ft to 60 ft in length. Workshops have been held in several Utah locations, New Orleans, Denver, and San Francisco. The mural has also been produced as a series of banners and over the last three years; it has traveled to over 24 venues, including Austria, England, New York, and San Francisco. It continues to be a ‘work in progress.’ 

Work in Progress by Jann Haworth and Liberty Blake, 2016-2020

Press Release: Southern Utah Museum of Art Fills Gallery With Women Artists During Fall Season

From Dust

September 25, 2020 - May 1, 2021

One-hundred and seventy miles west of Cedar City, the U.S. Government tested more than 1,000 nuclear weapons. Between 1951 and 1962, 100 of these tests were conducted above ground. In the push to develop a nuclear arsenal in the early years of the Cold War, the Nevada Test Site was chosen by the Atomic Energy Commission (A.E.C.) for its presumed remoteness, which has often read as a willful disregard for the relatively small populations that did exist in the “virtually uninhabited” regions surrounding the site. Scores of people living in southern Utah, including Cedar City, suffered the often unseen and unacknowledged but gruesome consequences from radioactive fallout.

If we peel back a layer we find the material that comprised the bombs, mined in the same region the fallout was raining down.

One-hundred and seventy miles east of Cedar City are more than 1,000 abandoned uranium mines in and around Monument Valley and the Navajo Nation left in the wake of the uranium program sponsored by the U.S. Government as part of this same domestic weapons development enterprise. The A.E.C. was encouraging uranium mining throughout the southwest, attracting everyone from locals, in desperate need of employment, to wealthy east coast prospectors. But it was the people living in southern Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico, and especially the Navajo Nation who were saddled with the legacy of radioactive contamination left behind by this boom. This history—which is really still the present as contaminated water, radiation-induced illness and nuclear waste storage and spills today continue to compound the impact of uranium in the region—is even further hidden from view. Monument Valley and the picturesque deserts of the region as a whole largely exist in the eyes of the world as the backdrop for John Ford’s westerns and the psychic embodiment of the rugged American frontiersman.

One more layer.

The monumental front man of these iconic pictures, John Wayne, was being cultivated as a cultural symbol of patriotism at the same time the A.E.C. was appealing to a similar sense of civic duty and national pride to collectively pitch in to this grand effort to be prepared for war. Just as there was no indication of what realities existed beyond the fourth wall of the cinematic setting, neither was there unequivocal information, warnings, or intentional protection from the harms that could befall downwinders and miners given. The taste for post-war romantic nostalgia for a bygone frontier era that was imaginary to begin with lingered longer than the poisonous truth, although in the end the fact met the fiction. Shortly after the Operation Upshot-Knothole series of tests, among the most devastating to southern Utah communities, Howard Hughes’ film The Conqueror was shot in Snow Canyon, Utah.Nearly a third of the cast and crew ultimately developed, and many died from cancer, including John Wayne.

This exhibition is dedicated to those downstream and downwind in an effort to peel back the foreground so that we might see the background more clearly.

About the Artist

Cara Despain is an artist working in film and video, sculpture, photography and installation addressing issues of land use, the desert, climate change, visualizing the Anthropocene, land ownership and the problematics of frontierism. Writing and research play a major role in all of her creative work, and which often includes extensive field work. She was born in Salt Lake City, Utah (1983) and currently lives in Miami, Florida and works between the two. She holds a BFA from the University of Utah (2006). In 2012, she received the Salt Lake City Mayor's Award in visual arts, and in 2016 she was selected for the South Florida Consortium Fellowship. Her work is included in Rubell Family Collection, as well as the State of Utah and Salt Lake County art collections. Her film credits include Art Director for the feature film The Strongest Man that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival (2015), and A Name Without a Place which premiered at the Miami International Film Festival (2019). She was recently selected for a Ellie's Award through Oolite Arts to write and produce her own feature film Earthbound Objects, and this year will complete a public art commission for the Underline with Miami-Dade County.

Find the Distance: A Jimmie F. Jones Retrospective

July 13 - September 12, 2020

A long-awaited retrospective, this exhibition will display Jim Jones’ art from grade school, high school, college, his Mexico period (1961-1975), and especially his now-famous landscape period (1976-2009). It includes all seventeen paintings from his last show in the fall of 2009 at the Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery, shortly before his death. Works appear chronologically. Thus, visitors can see how this unique artist grew and evolved: from a portrait and figure painter, using a spare palette inspired by Andrew Wyeth, to a landscapist who “found the distance,” as Cézanne put it, like no other. For locals, this show is a chance to reconnect with an artist and paintings they know and love. For newcomers, it allows SUMA to showcase the artistic journey of its favorite-son master painter.

 Leviathan: Elegy for Ice

In Leviathan: Elegy for Ice, artist Pete Froslie continues to transform the museum’s newest exhibit space into an experimental extension of his studio. Previously, visitors encountered Froslie’s computer-generated seascape in real time, which was accompanied by hydrophone recordings of glacial ice. As he expands his Leviathan series, Froslie returns to using chemical processes to extract rare earth metals from electronic waste as he continues to answer the question: “How best can we see capital?” Past visitors of the exhibition should return to the museum to experience Froslie’s second iteration that further examines themes of climate change, moral and political philosophy, philosophical aesthetics, and demonology.

Q&A with Pete Froslie

Our Natural World

March 14 — August 29, 2020

SUU's Jumpstart program allows incoming freshmen to complete their general education credits in one year through highly integrated curriculum. Within this program, the "Our National Parks" section uses photography and other subjects to explore the natural world. Through inspiration from a collection of photographs by Brett Weston, a recent gift to SUMA's permanent collection, these students crafted their own photography project reflecting on National Parks in the area. The students' photographs will be on display along with the Weston photos that inspired their project.

Gallery

Sun Print Instructions

2020 Senior BFA Exhibition

March 14 — April 24, 2020

Thirty-one graduating students from the SUU Art & Design program will have their capstone projects on display. This is the culmination of their undergraduate experience in the studio art program and demonstrates their ability to visualize, develop, and create a cohesive body of work to kick start their careers in the professional art world. This exhibition will include work from a variety of artistic disciplines: graphic design, photography, drawing/painting/printmaking, illustration, sculpture/ceramics, and art education.

Gallery

Square One: Southwest Regional High School Exhibition

January 6, 2020 — February 15, 2020

Students from Iron, Washington, Kane, Garfield, Beaver, and Millard counties will participate in SUMA's first juried high school art exhibition. This exhibition will provide these talented students with a unique and professional experience at Southern Utah Museum of Art.

Press Release: Southern Utah Museum of Art Showcases Regional High School Artists This Winter

A World Transformed: The Transcontinental Railroad and Utah

October 14 — December 28, 2019

This traveling exhibition shares the story of Utah’s contribution to the completion of the transcontinental railroad and examines the railway’s transformational effects on Utah. A partnership between Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library and the Utah State Division of History, A World Transformed will travel the state of Utah from January 2019 through March 2020. The exhibition draws upon the many rich historical resources held by different institutions across not only Utah but the Western United States, including photographs, maps, artifacts, and lithographs.

Compendium

October 14 — December 28, 2019

Todd Stewart and Robert Bailey initiated Fieldworks in 2015 as a mobile residency for artists, scholars, and students interested in thinking about how people relate to nature. Traversing arid regions of the western United States, they visit sites where people have marked the land in any number of ways, study these places as traces of people’s varied modes of artistry, and accrue an archive of objects, images, texts, sound, and more that testifies to both the banality and the strangeness of all that people do to transform the environments that they inhabit. As its title implies, Compendium is a collection or anthology of Fieldworks’ manifold practice as an artistic, scholarly, and pedagogical initiative. Both the exhibition itself and an accompanying publication draw from the Fieldworks archive to bring together selections of items that invite viewers and readers to deepen their understanding of the always complex, often troubling, and at times surprising ways that people find their place within the rest of nature.

This project is funded in part by the Kirkpatrick Foundation of Oklahoma City and the Charles Redd Center for Western Studies of Brigham Young University.

A Very Big Tiny Art Show at Southern Utah Museum of |Miniature| Art

September 27 - October 19, 2019

A Very Big Tiny Art Show is a two-week long pop-up exhibition put on by SUMA and Tiny Art Show, based in Provo, UT. The show will feature 26 artists from across Utah, showcasing various styles and media including painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, letterpress, and more. All artwork featured in the show is 3-by-3 inches or smaller, encouraging visitors to immerse themselves in a more intimate exploration of art.

The opening reception will be held from 5-8 p.m. on Friday, September 27 where visitors will have the opportunity to meet some of the artists, enjoy miniature refreshments from The Sugar Cookie, and create their own miniature art. This event is part of SUMA After Hours in conjunction with the Cedar City Arts Council Final Friday Art Walk and SUU Homecoming.

A Very Big Tiny Art Show will be on display beginning at 5 p.m. on September 27 and will run through October 12 in the vestibule area of the museum. While SUMA's main gallery space will be closed from October 6-12, visitors will still be able to visit the museum to view the tiny exhibition.

Featured artists for the exhibition are: Kara Aina, Brooke Bowen, Gina Dodge, Rachel Erickson, Rachel Godfrey, Audrey Hancock, Jeff Hanson, Nicholas Hemingway, Kimberly Ipson, Mary Jabens, Emily E. Jones, Hannah Mason, Carol Ogden, Nancy Olson, Valerie Orelmann, Rachel Pixton, Debbie Robb, Mallory Sanders, Meghan Sours, Whitney Staheli, Sarah Stoddard, Melissa Walkenhorst, Diane Walsh, Jessica Whittaker, Rebecca Wood, and Mona Woolsey.

Al Farrow: Wrath & Reverence

August 5 — October 5, 2019

Al Farrow’s ornate religious structures, ritual objects, and reliquaries incorporate materials such as deconstructed guns, bullets, bone, glass, and steel. Farrow’s work is inspired by a trip to Italy where he encountered a reliquary containing the remains of ancient Saint Lorenzo. He noticed the Saint’s withered finger resting inside the reliquary, bent in the shape of a “trigger finger.” It was from this experience that Farrow began crafting mysterious, mesmerizing sculptures which explore the relationships between religion, violence, peace, brutality, the sacred, and the unholy.

Press Release: The Work of Al Farrow Concludes Its National Tour at Southern Utah Museum of Art

Image Credit: Al Farrow (U.S., b. 1943)
The Spine and Tooth of Santo Guerro, 2007
Steel, brass, gold, bone, fabric, tooth
64 x 50½ x 74 in.
On loan from the de Young Museum, 2019
Collection of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Museum Purchase, gift of Dr. Thomas Jackson and Dr. Kathleen Grant, 2008

Karl Momen: Homage to William Shakespeare

May 11 — October 5, 2019

Karl Momen is a Swedish painter and sculptor who is best known as the creator of the epic 87-foot Metaphor: The Tree of Utah sculpture, located adjacent to Interstate 80 in the stark Bonneville Salt Flats region of Utah. Inspired by master of Surrealism, Max Ernst, as well as Europe’s foremost architect, Le Corbusier, Momen’s work is rooted in the visual language of formalism, emphasizing simplistic compositions, color, and symbolism. In his Homage to William Shakespeare suite, from the late 1990s, he was able to synthesize his passion for operatic and dramatic literature, with his love of the musical equivalent of these forms.

Image Credit: Richard III, 1996

Kate Starling: A Study of Scale

May 11 — July 27, 2019

Kate Starling is an oil painter who lives and works in the canyons of southern Utah. Having earned a degree in geology, she spent years working outside as a geologist and National Park ranger. After formal academic art training from 1988-1995, she devoted her work to painting the landscape. Educated in the importance of painting directly from observation, she has spent years painting outside, learning the way light plays on the land. Now she splits her time between the roadways and trails surrounding her home and studio.

Senior B.F.A. Capstone Exhibition

March 28 - May 3, 2019

The Senior B.F.A. Capstone Exhibition showcases the culmination of the undergraduate art studio experience for graduating students. It includes a written artist statement for each student and reveals the student’s ability to conceive, plan, and execute a body of work appropriate for a professional exhibition. This exhibit will include work from a variety of artistic disciplines: art education, graphic design, ceramics, sculpture, illustration, photography, painting, drawing, and printmaking.

IMPACT: An Exhibition of SUU Art & Design Faculty and Alumni

January 10 - March 15, 2019

The faculty exhibition returns to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the SUU College of Performing & Visual Arts. IMPACT: An Exhibition of SUU Art & Design Faculty and Alumni will showcase the work of current faculty members and the work of current or former students in a variety of media including painting, drawing, illustration, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, fibers, photography, and graphic design.

This special exhibition is an opportunity for the community to view and celebrate the work of SUU's distinguished faculty members, who have earned regional, national, and international recognition for excellence in their areas. The variety found in this exhibition displays many different perspectives and features work from the functional to the abstract to the whimsical. There is something for everyone in IMPACT: An Exhibition of SUU Art & Design Faculty and Alumni.

Encounter Korea

October 13 - December 29, 2018

• Kyungmin Kim
• Whi Boo Kim
• Sung Jae Lee
• Kwang-Seop Oh
• Yong Sin
• Jung-Uk Yang
• Kyung Youl Yoon

Jung Uk Yang (South Korea, b. 1982)
Turtle Do Not Know Our Weekend, 2014
Wood, motor, thread, LED, 290x160x290 cm
Loan from artist, 2018

The Day of the Dead

October 23 - November 10, 2018

The Day of the Dead (Spanish: El Dia de los Muertos) is a multi-day holiday celebrated to remember friends and family members who have died. This exhibition celebrates Day of the Dead through the colorful mythical art sculptures, Alebrijes.

James Surls: Across the Universe Divide

July 7 – September 29, 2018

Born in East Texas in 1943, James Surls graduated from Sam Houston State Teachers College (now Sam Houston State University) in 1966 and received his MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1968. He taught at Southern Methodist University in Dallas from 1969 to 1976 before moving to Splendora, Texas. There he lived with his wife, Charmaine Locke, for over twenty years. They relocated to the Roaring Fork Valley of Colorado in 1997.

Surls is a distinguished sculptor working with bronze, steel, and wood. The artist turns to his mind’s eye to visualize the universe. Straddling the physicality of the landscape around him in which he inhabits with the spirituality of the space within him, Surls is an artist across the universe divide creating the world around us in a manner that expresses his freedom from the physical.

His first exhibition in Utah, SUMA will feature more than 50 works of art created after 2006, with some work as recent as 2018.

James Surls (U.S., b. 1943)
White Raw Wall Flower, 2014
Wood and steel, 69 x 96 x 18 in.
Loan from artist, 2018

Othello in Black and White

July 7 – October 13, 2018

On display at the Gerald R. Sherratt Library from October 1 - 13.

Race and class. Ambition and commitment. Justice and mercy. Perception and deception. Loyalty and betrayal.

Othello was most likely written in 1603, the same year as Hamlet, and was performed on 1 November 1604, which places it within the early career of William Shakespeare (c. 1564-1616). The characters, setting, and action in the play are not original. Like many writers of the time, Shakespeare borrowed heavily from existing work. This play is based directly on Un Capitano Moro, “A Moorish Captain,” published in 1565 by Italian writer, Cinthio Garaldi. Shakespeare created his title character as an honorable man, rather than Garaldi’s angry, abusive gure and directly counter to common sentiments. Shakespeare’s play was first published as a Quarto in 1622, several years after his death. It appeared in slightly longer form in the
First Folio of 1623 and has since appeared in every collection of the Works.

William Shakespeare wrote plays more popular with theater goers, but few of them ask harder questions of modern readers. Should family and society impose their external values on the individuals in a marriage? What is the place of trust and loyalty in a working relationship?

The volumes exhibited at SUMA are borrowed from the SUU Matheson Special Collections and the University of Utah to show how Othello has appeared before the public over three of the past four centuries. Collectively, they invite us to still consider those hard questions the play’s story poses to its audience.

George Smith Dibble: A Revolutionist for Modern Art in Utah

May 12 – June 30, 2018

George Dibble was a painter, teacher, and art critic who, throughout his career, greatly influenced numerous artists and students. He took his first art class through the mail from a Cleveland cartoonist and caricaturist. In 1926, he received his teaching certificate from the University of Utah and taught elementary school for two years. Dibble then returned to the University for additional classes in 1928.

Dibble continued his education at Columbia University by receiving his Bachelor of Arts in 1938, and, in 1940, his Master of Arts. While at Columbia, Dibble was influenced by several artists and styles including Cézanne and the Cubism movement.

In 1949, he was promoted to associate professor at the University of Utah, and, in 1950, became a visiting professor for summer sessions at the College of Southern Utah (now Southern Utah University). Dibble was a member of the first Modern Artists of Utah and participated in an exhibition and helped write a formal statement to the public, both intended to increase the understanding and acceptance of modern art in Utah.

Art Insights: David Emitt Adams

March 20 – May 5, 2018

Grace Adams Tanner Gallery at SUMA

David Emitt Adamsis an emerging photographer based in Tempe, Arizona. Born in Yuma, Arizona, he pursued a Bachelors of Fine Art degree from Bowling Green State University in Ohio and returned to Arizona for his Master of Fine Arts degree from Arizona State University. David is gaining attention as an artist, whose current practice engages historical media and uses them in an informed contemporary dialogue about photography’s past and present. His work has been exhibited throughout the United States and abroad, including established institutions such as the SOHO Photo Gallery in New York City and The Studio in London, England.

Image Credit:
David Emitt Adams (U.S., b. 1980)
Navajo Refinery, Artesia, New Mexico, 2015
Wet plate collodion tintype on 55-gallon steel drum lid, 23.5 in.
On loan from the artist, 2018

Our National Parks

March 20 – May 5, 2018

Jimmie Jones Gallery at SUMA

Jumpstart is a general education program at SUU that helps freshman complete thirteen general education courses in their first year of classes. English, Geology, Biology, Anthropology, Political Science, and Visual Art courses are integrated into learning environments that encourage the students to practically apply the education they are receiving.

Jumpstart students go on field trips, develop digital travel essays, perform on-site labs, and create engaging works of art to provide practical application of what the students lean in the classroom.

Our National Parks is a collection of individual photographs taken by Southern Utah University Freshman Jumpstart students.

Image Credit: Beautiful Moments by Anna Hopkins

Senior B.F.A. Capstone Exhibition

March 20 – May 5, 2018

Braithwaite Gallery and the Austin and Magda Jones Gallery at SUMA

Image Credit:
Jamie Louthan
Ritual
Mixed Media

Evidence: SUU Department of Art & Design Curriculum Exhibition

February 27 – March 15, 2018

Southern Utah University must undergo a reaccreditation process through the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. As part of the University’s application, SUMA will host a SUU Department of Art & Design curriculum exhibition to display the evidence for the strengths of the program. The exhibition will be unlike any other show at SUMA and will provide an opportunity for the campus and community to see the high caliber work being created through the SUU Department of Art & Design.

Image Credit: 2D Design project from Trevor Miles, 1st Semester Junior, Fall 2017

Art Insights: Ron and Vanessa Lemen

February 27 – March 15, 2018

Grace Adams Tanner Gallery at SUMA

Vanessa Lemen is a painter and educator based in Carlsbad, CA, and her work has shown in galleries and exhibitions nationwide. She has an extensive background in both online and in-studio instruction teaching drawing, painting, illustration and design in traditional and digital media. An illustrator, Ron Lemen has been a concept designer and art director in the videogame industry for 10 years. Now freelancing full-time, his clients include Time Warner, Image Comics, Disney, and more. Together they run an online program instructing art and mentoring artists, as well as instructing at workshops in various locations in Southern CA and across the country.

Image Credit:
Vanessa Lemen
Fiery Mind
Loan from the artist, 2018

Art Insights Lecture
Thursday, March 8, 7 p.m.

Join Ron and Vanessa Lemen for a lecture about their work and process. The Art Insights lecture series is free and open to the public.

Art & Design Faculty Exhibition

January 16 – February 24, 2018

The Art & Design Faculty Exhibition returns to SUMA and will feature the work of nearly 20 artists. The SUU Department of Art & Design will present the work of thirteen full-time faculty members, who practice in a variety of media including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, fibers, digital, and graphic design. The exhibition will also showcase work by part-time adjunct faculty of the department. This year's exhibition will also highlight the work of Susan Harris, professor of ceramics, who will be retiring from the university in May 2018.

The faculty exhibition is an opportunity for the community to view and celebrate the work of SUU's distinguished faculty members, who have earned regional, national, and international recognition for excellence in their areas. The variety of this exhibition displays many different perspectives and features work from the functional to the abstract to the whimsical. There is something for everyone in the Art & Design Faculty Exhibition.

2017

Native American Art from the Permanent Collection

November 14, 2017 - January 6, 2018

Braithwaite Gallery

November is Native American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the rich tradition and history as well as the important contributions of Native people.

​To participate in this national event, the Southern Utah Museum of Art is exhibiting Native art from the permanent collection. The installation highlights significant artists such as Allan Houser, Harrison Begay, and R.C. Gorman.

Winter Wonderland: Staff Picks from the Permanent Collection

November 14, 2017 - January 6, 2018

Austin and Magda Jones Gallery

This holiday season, the staff at the Southern Utah Museum of Art have organized a winter-themed exhibition with works from the permanent collection. Several works have never been seen by the public or have not been displayed in decades. The installation highlights artists such as Grant Wood, Jimmie Jones, and a series of prints inspired by the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Art Insights: Sally Strand

October 31, 2017 - January 6, 2018

Public Talk: Thursday, November 2, 7:00 p.m.

A native of Colorado now residing in California, Sally Strand has been exhibiting professionally as an artist for over 35 years. Strand was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007, the highest commendation of the Pastel Society of America, New York. She is the recipient of numerous top awards, including the PSA Master Pastelist distinction and the IAPS Master Circle Honor. Her solo exhibitions in galleries and museums include a one-person retrospective of pastel and oil paintings at the Bakersfield Museum of Art in California.

Strand's current body of work, painted with oil and pastels on canvas and paper, depicts moments in everyday life as experienced by the people she finds most significant. Her paintings have subtle, suggestive narratives: singular moments of life in the world, slices of daily life, the implied passage of time.

A Legacy of Love: The Thread that Binds Us

September 19 - November 11, 2017

This exhibit features the fashion designs of Eletra Casadei and her impact on the theatrical design and costumes of SUU Department of Theatre Arts & Dance. Casadei was an innovative and favored designer generating buzz with her TD4 (To Die For) prom dress designs created with teenage girls' desires in mind, "prom parties" to kick off the fashion season, first-of- its-kind fashion videos showcasing her elegant gowns and original beaded and lace fabric designs. Her Casadei line embodied Eletra's true fashion philosophy; to create a sense of Hollywood Glamour that was affordable and made every woman feel beautiful.

Eletra passed away from brain cancer in 2008 leaving behind her fashion label and a studio stocked full of exquisite items. Eletra's sister, Andrea, has donated these items that include yards and yards of stunning fabric and trim, bins of Eletra's originally designed beaded fabrics and appliques, industrial sewing machines and equipment, a vast collection of fashion history books, and boxes of sewing notions to the SUU Department of Theatre Arts & Dance. Over the last five years, students have been able to design and construct costumes beyond what would have been possible on a typical university production budget. Their designs from these donations are also on display to honor the contributions and legacy of Eletra and Andrea Casadei.

Art Insights: Lynn Gaines

September 19 - October 28, 2017

Ohio artist Lynn Gaines is best known for kid oriented art and illustrations. Her commercial designs are inspired by vintage children's books along with the colors and shapes of nature. She has recently finished illustrating A Child's Introduction to African-American History by Jabari Asim which will be released in January 2018. On display are her vintage-inspired illustrations and handmade children's toys.

Summer of Love

August 24 - September 16, 2017

During the summer of 1967, thousands of people descended on San Francisco to play, party and protest. This event became known as The Summer of Love, and was a gathering eclipsed by Woodstock in 1969.

This exhibition pays tribute to the happenings on the 50^th anniversary of the summer. The posters that will be on display capture the spirit of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Originally collected by Scott Jones, and bequeathed to SUMA by Jimmie Jones, this collection of posters celebrates the music of the era as performed at Bill Graham's Fillmore West. A mile from the original San Francisco Fillmore Auditorium, Fillmore West opened in July, 1968 and closed three years later. During that time, it was home to a wide variety of music often advertised by custom designed posters.

The selected twenty posters are to provide insight into the variety of performers who graced the stage of Fillmore West as well as the delightful artistry of the poster designs.

Paths Linked & Lived: A Community Quilt Project

August 1-21, 2017

There are infinite dimensions to each of us. How we define ourselves is built by both our personal identity and our relations to others in our community, whether that is a family, a school, a workplace, or the place where we live. This project celebrates how our paths weave together to form vibrant communities.

The SUMA Pathfinders: New Territories exhibit displayed works by artists who blaze their own trails; this lesson encouraged visitors of all ages to consider where they've come from, where they're going, and who has helped them at every turn. The quilt squares completed as part of the project will be displayed together, paths visually connecting, to create an inspiring Community Quilt. This project was designed by Jamie Louthan, a current SUU Art & Design student.

Chasing Light: Plein Air Festival and Sale

July 7 - August 19, 2017

Presented by SUMA and Cedar Breaks National Monument

Fifteen of the region's top plein air painters painted at Cedar Breaks, as well as other favorite southern Utah locations, from July 2 to July 6, 2017. The work each artist created during that week was displayed and for sale in SUMA July 8 - August 19.

The selected artists for this festival included:

• Arlene Braithwaite
• Doug Braithwaite
• Royden Card
• Michelle Condrat
• Cody DeLong
• Bruce Gomez
• George Handrahan
• Brad Holt
• Susie Hyer
• Mary Jabens
• Roland Lee
• Valerie Orlemann
• Rachel Pettit
• Bonnie Posselli
• Ellie Wilson

Pathfinders: New Territories

June 30 – August 26, 2017

Everything In Between: Arts Quilts, Fabric Collage and Embroidery is a national, juried art quilt exhibition. This year's theme is Pathfinder: New Territories. The art quilts, fabric collages and embroideries in this exhibit were selected from over 122 artist applications from all over the United States. These pieces show amazing creativity and use a variety of design techniques and material. Visit the Pathfinders: New Territories webpage for more information about this exhibit.

The selected artists for Pathfinders: New Territories include the following individuals:

• Betsy Abbott
• Margaret Abramshe
• B.J. Adams
• Linda Anderson
• Pat Budge
• Erica Carter
• Shannon M. Conley
• Vicki Conley
• Gabriele DiTota
• Marian Eason
• Kristine Eberhard
• Aileyn Ecob
• Deborah Fell
• Paula Giovanini-Morris
• Debra Goley
• Barbara Oliver Hartman
• Yunhwa Jang
• Nancy Lemke
• Niraja Lorenz
• Salley Mavor
• Susan McBride Gilgen
• Lea McComas
• Anne Munoz
• Margaret Noah
• Linda Oszajca
• Karen Post
• Kathleen Russu
• Maya Schonenberger
• Bonnie Smith
• Paula Straw
• Vivien Wise

SUMA Education Exhibition

May 9 - September 1, 2017

The SUMA Education Exhibit celebrated the numerous educational programs offered in SUMA's first year of operation. In partnership with the Garth and Jerri Frehner Museum of Natural History, artsFUSION, and the Beverley Center for the Arts, thousands of area students participated in creative activities within our new space. Displayed in the gallery were examples of student artworks created through these activities, as well as information about how to become involved in the future.

Michael Plyler: Highland Maya of Guatemala

May 4 - July 1, 2017

Experience the traditions of the Guatemalan people when you visit the Highland Maya of Guatemala. This exhibit incorporates 56 images of people and cultural icons in the Guatemalan region and is arranged by the language that is spoken in each area. Each image transports you to a village that brings to light the daily life of these people. The images were taken in the early 1980's through the 2000's.

Abstract

April 3 - April 29, 2017

Abstract is a special exhibit featuring new artwork from SUU's Department of Art & Design ART-4500 student studio artists.

Andrew Marvick's ART-4500 Special Projects course encourages students to explore special areas of art and design studio practices. This semester's course was designed to follow a chronological path from western painting's first abstract experiments to the art world's current trends through a style called "process painting." Moving through the years from 1900 to 2010, each section of the special projects course moved the students through different artistic styles such as fauvism, nonobjective expressionism, cubism, orphism, minimalism, and abstract expressionism. This approach to art led students to realize that a display of skill would not be particularly beneficial for them in this course and allowed them to explore their own artistic voice.

SUU Senior Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibit

March 23 - April 29, 2017

This senior capstone exhibition showcases the culmination of the undergraduate art studio experience for 27 students. It includes a written artist's statement for each student and reveals each student's ability to conceive, plan and execute a body of work appropriate to a professional exhibition. This exhibit will include work from the different artistic disciplines: art education, graphic design, ceramics/sculpture, illustration, photography, and painting/drawing/printmaking.

As part of an artist's learning, they study the human figure to learn how to best represent the human form in two- and three-dimensional art. A few pieces of student art on display in this exhibit offer a presentation of the nude human figure in their work. We encourage concerned patrons to view the exhibit before bringing children into the museum.

Changing Seasons From Winter To Spring: College of Performing and Visual Arts Sale

March 7 - March 11, 2017

Courtesy of the SUU College of Performing and Visual Arts Advisory Board

Work from sixteen renowned artists around the United States were on display and available for purchase. Proceeds from the art sold during the benefit went toward the SUU College of Performing and Visual Arts student scholarship fund.

Artists included:

• Joseph Brickey
• Ryan S. Brown
• Todd Casey
• Casey Childs
• Josh Clare
• Nicholas Coleman
• Thomas Kegler
• Erik Koeppel
• Katie Liddiard
• Bryce Cameron Liston
• Gregory Mortenson
• James Rees
• J. Kirk Richards
• Elizabeth Robbins
• Lauren Sansaricq
• Bryan Taylor

An Active America: SUU Jumpstart Student Exhibit

February 2 - March 3, 2017

An Active America is a collage of individual photographs taken by Southern Utah University Freshmen Jumpstart students and reflects what America means to each them.

Jumpstart is a general education program at SUU that helps freshmen students complete thirteen GE courses (34 credit hours) in their first year of classes. English, Chemistry, Biology, Technology, and Visual Art courses are integrated into a learning environment that encourages the students to practically apply the education they are receiving. Jumpstart students go on field trips, make movies, develop personal websites, give speeches, and create beautiful works of art to provide practical application of what the students learn in the classroom.

The Color of Daily Life: Majolica Pottery by Linda Arbuckle

February 2 - February 28, 2017

Ceramic artist Linda Arbuckle describes her work as functional pottery that is made to engage the user in a fun, playful way in everyday life. She often uses an indulgent amount of decoration and color due to her belief that daily life is the ground zero of values and meaning. All of her pieces in this exhibit are majolica glaze on terracotta clay.

SUU Art & Design Faculty Exhibition

January 19 - March 11, 2017

The Annual SUU Art & Design Faculty Exhibition features over 20 local artists and educators. The department is excited to present the work of thirteen full-time Art & Design faculty who practice in a variety of media, including painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, fibers, digital, and graphic design. Works by part-time faculty are also exhibited. It is an opportunity for the community to view and celebrate the work of SUU's distinguished faculty who have earned regional, national, and international recognition for excellence in their art making. The variety of this exhibit expresses many different perspectives and features work from the functional to the abstract to the whimsical - there is something for everyone in this show.

The Art of Travel

January 12 - February 1, 2017

This exhibit included tourism posters and postcards created by SUU students in the ART 4320 Letterpress class taught by Associate Professor of Graphic Design, Jeff Hanson, who believes that students do their best work when they have a personal connection to it and forget their perfectionist tendencies.

Each tourism poster represents a place the student has traveled to or wishes to visit someday. The challenge was to create an aesthetic reflecting how the place made them feel, with the intent of sharing that feeling with others.

Jim Jones' Studio

January 4 - March 11, 2017

This exhibit features items from Jimmie Jones' home studio, along with newly displayed artwork from SUMA's collection. The artwork was donated to the museum by the late Rita Fordham.

2016

Senior Bachelor of Fine Arts Exhibit

November 17 - December 15, 2016

This senior capstone exhibition showcases the culmination of the undergraduate art studio experience. It includes a written artist's statement for each student and reveals each student's ability to conceive, plan and execute a body of work appropriate to a professional exhibition.

Jerry Uelsmann

November 3 - December 15, 2016

Uelsmann is known for his almost magical ability of creating visually stunning prints in a darkroom. At the age of 82, even after many years of practicing his craft, Uelsmann continues working in the darkroom to explore the options and possibilities of developing prints from film negatives. He creates his composites from analog images, using photo manipulation to create his masterpieces. Despite technological advances in digital photography, Uelsmann is still committed to working in a darkroom and loves watching his prints appear in the developer.

When asked about his artistic work, Uelsmann said, "Ultimately, my hope is to amaze myself."

Down the Rabbit Hole

November 2 - December 15, 2016

"Down the Rabbit Hole" was a pinhole photography exhibit featuring SUU's Art & Design Art 2500: Intermediate Photography students. Each student created his or her own pinhole camera to create each photograph.

Finding Solace: The Dark Side of SUMA

October 28 - December 15, 2016

Finding Solace was curated by students at Southern Utah University, many of whom work at SUMA, gaining hands-on museum experience while obtaining their undergraduate or graduate degrees. This exhibit featured a collection of art taken from SUMA's collection that centered around the curators' desire for the viewer to examine the depth of his or her personal emotions.

Young Sil Rho

October 13, 2016 - January 14, 2017

Korean artist Young Sil Rho began studying art in 1954. In 1970 she held her first of many solo exhibitions in New York City. During one of her trips abroad the United States, she visited Zion National Park where she met Sunny Lee (a fellow Korean and resident of Springdale outside Zion) who encouraged the artist to donate 40 of her paintings to SUMA. This exhibit was from that collection.

Nathan Florence

October 6 - November 12, 2016

Courtesy of Modern West Fine Art in Salt Lake City

When asked about his current work, Florence said, "My definition of what it means to be an artist has expanded from traditional drawing and painting to include community activism and education and is still expanding. My current projects include painting commissions, directing a documentary and being an artist in residence at a charter school that has an art and project learning emphasis."

For more information, visit Modern West Fine Art's website.

Andy Nasisse: Badlands

September 23 - October 31, 2016

World renowned ceramics artist Andy Nasisse presents an exhibit of landscape photography and ceramics sculptures which mirror the images found in the rock formations. For more information about this artist, please visit Andy Nasisse's website.

Arts Afire Plein Air Art Invitational Exhibit and Sale

July 16 - September 15, 2016

Ten of the best plein air painters throughout the southwest painted and conducted demonstrations at Cedar Breaks National Monument, Cedar Canyon and at SUMA.

The Grand Circle Tour - National Park Historic Photography Exhibit

July 7 - September 1, 2016

A black and white photographic tour of the route tourists took from Cedar City, Utah, to Zion, Grand Canyon - North Rim, Bryce Canyon, and Cedar Breaks National Parks from 1920 through 1960. The exhibit contains photographs from SUU Library's Special Collection; artifacts from the Utah Parks Company collection, Ryan Paul's private collection, and SUMA; and Gilbert Stanley Underwood's architectural drawings for the Zion Lodge from the University of Las Vegas.

Kevin Kehoe: Western Therapy

June 25 - October 1, 2016

Courtesy of Modern West Fine Art in Salt Lake City

"Western Therapy was born out of the realization that we all need to be reminded that the big picture is indeed big, and we are indeed small. Feeling significantly insignificant is the west's wonderful way of renewing our sense of wow and wonder, while simultaneously making life's trials and tribulations conveniently vanish from our consciousness....Long story short, each of the magical western places I've chosen to paint have worked their western magic on me. My aim and my hope is that my Western Therapy paintings will have a similar effect on you." For more information about Kevin Kehoe, visit Modern West Fine Art's website.

Find Your Park

June 25 - August 27, 2016

Juried SUU student exhibition that celebrated the National Park Service's 100th Anniversary.

First Peek

June 25 - July 14, 2016

First Peek is the opening exhibition for the Southern Utah Museum of Art, featuring multiple artists and various art forms.