Senior art students showcase final pieces

The final senior art reception was held on Thursday, April 21 at 5:30 p.m. in the William G. Squires Library Art Gallery. The showcase highlighted specific pieces seniors have spent the semester creating, as well as the student's artistic development while at Lee.  

The first senior art reception of the semester took place on March 31 and showcased artwork by Ryan DeHooge, Jasmine Feliciano, Olivia Potts, Shelby Rogers, Evan Diaz and Sydney Pressley.

The final senior art show featured the work of Erin Ashe, Bekah Bland, Reed Bolton, Andrew Land, Kassidi Loos and Brayden Simmons.

The artists are required to display at least three pieces of the artistic medium of their choosing.

Rondall Reynoso, assistant professor of art, explains the senior art show as the completion of the students’ college experience and the representation of their time within the programs.

“Every student participates in the exhibition to highlight what they have learned and the artistic voice they have developed while at Lee,” said Reynoso. “For many students, the art they show in this exhibition represents months of work. The students have been working toward this point at least all semester and for some, much longer.”

Andrew Land, a senior visual arts major with a graphic design emphasis, hopes that in viewing his work, the audience takes away a new perspective of the world around them. 

“Maybe it makes someone stop a couple more times each day to look at random sources of light, or stop at a stoplight and look at the buildings around them versus just staring straight,” said Land.

Erin Ashe, a senior art education major, explains the challenges of creating her final pieces and the connection she has with her work.

“With the artwork itself, I would say a really big challenge is, aside from trying to find the time to paint, is just sitting there and coming face to face with that emotion that I'm trying to draw out,” said Ashe. “It's very personal, honestly, and it's a little bit difficult to work through because I'm bringing to light all these internal feelings and then I have to sit with them and paint them.” 

Olivia Potts, a senior graphic design major, chose a variety of styles for her audience.

“I just thought for my show that I would do all different mediums just because I know that kind of plays to different people's eyes differently,” said Potts. “I also explored the statement of the voice of God and hearing the voice of God in so many different ways.” 

Evan Diaz, a senior graphic design major, composed her pieces focusing on communicating life experiences through the materials she used. 

“I decided to go with the elements because the deeper that I read into the elements, I realized that a lot of these pieces are not only like simplicity and abstract, but they also have to do with life,” said Diaz. 

Visit the Squires Art Gallery through May 6 to view the final art pieces of the semester.