M State showcases artists with college ties in two fall exhibitions

Artwork by three M State faculty and staff members, and a former M State ceramics student, will be featured

M State’s 2024-2025 Fine Arts season opens Tuesday, August 20 with two visual art exhibitions at the Fergus Falls campus galleries. Both exhibitions showcase artists with close connections to M State.

In the Waage Gallery, ceramic relief sculptures by Battle Lake artist John Shaw will be showcased in a solo exhibit titled, “Things I’ve Made.” The sculptures are part of an exploratory series Shaw has been working on recently, exploring the nature of clay. Shaw is a former student of the M State ceramics program.

“Clay can be formed, compressed, and controlled, as well as stretched, broken, and set free,” he writes in his artist statement. “I’m fascinated by the fact that when this stuff is transformed by fire from ‘dirt’ to ‘glass,’ that moment of making becomes fixed. This feels a bit like freezing time.”

In the Charles Beck Gallery, various artworks by three different M State faculty and staff members will be exhibited: Abigail Fensom, Assistant to the Dean of Extended Learning; Ryan Stigman, Graphic Design Instructor; and Eric Johnson, Art Instructor.

Fensom will be showing a collection of paintings that spotlight, “the quiet yet larger-than-life beauty found across the Minnesotan outdoors,” as explained in her artist statement. “I hope the viewer finds as much charm in my painted subjects as I do.”

Fensom has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and studio art from Concordia College in Moorhead, where she currently resides. She pursues commission opportunities and showcases her work whenever possible.

Stigman has a bachelor of science degree in technical illustration and graphic design. He has been drawing and painting since childhood and usually combines his love for art with his passion for the outdoors, making wildlife and nature scenes the subjects of his work.

“Growing up in Minnesota, I was introduced to hunting and fishing and the great outdoors by my father,” he writes in his artist statement. “I developed a deep admiration and respect for wildlife, nature and for the beauty of all of God’s creations.”

Storytelling and experimentation, meanwhile, are Johnson’s passions. Over the last 25 years, he has created well over 225 prints and exhibited extensively at regional and national art venues, yet his work continues to evolve as he experiments with his chosen mediums. 

According to Johnson’s artist statement, “His art not only reflects a profound connection to the world around him but also invites viewers to embark on a visual journey that transcends conventional boundaries.”

Both exhibitions are free and open to the public during regular M State Fergus Falls campus hours. “Things I’ve Made” will continue through December 19, while the M State Faculty and Staff Exhibit will run through October 11. 

There will be a shared reception with the artists from both exhibitions on Thursday, Sept. 26 from 4-6 p.m. in Legacy Hall. All are welcome and there is no cost to attend.

For more information on Fine Arts events at M State, visit minnesota.edu/fine-arts.