Student Annual

 I am pleased to say that a piece I made was accepted into this year's student annual exhibition. The opening was last Thursday evening, so I drove out to Kent just to see it. I have to say, I was both impressed and humbled by the pieces I saw in the show. The work of my fellow students is absolutely amazing and I'm honored to be studying amongst such talent. Best in show went to my studio mate, Liz Debellis, and I couldn't be happier for her. Her weavings are gorgeous and it was so nice to see her work in the gallery. I get so used to seeing everyone's work hanging in the studio for critique, that it's kind of shocking to see it in another environment. It gives new life to the piece. I wish I could say the same for my piece. Seeing it in the gallery made it look so small and insignificant. It made me realize that I have a lot of work to do in order to keep up with my peers. While I don't like feeling badly about my work, I do appreciate the renewed sense of drive and dedication that comes from seeing what others around me are making. Besides, I don't have time to mope. I'm too busy trying to improve my work and giving it my all. The show will be up until the 20th of this month, so if you find yourself in the Kent area, stop by the School of Art Gallery and see all the wonderful work on display.

Friday morning, I headed to school early because we had a vising artist coming for a lecture, as well as generously giving us individual critiques. The artist is Andrea Donnelly, from Richmond, Virginia. She's an incredibly gifted weaver and such a nice person. She had a lot of great things to say about my work, as well as giving me some really spot on insight about it. After her lecture, all the textile students had a potluck for Andrea back at the studio, where we stuffed our faces and asked Andrea all kinds of questions about what it's like to be a working, professional artist. It was a really valuable experience and a great way to end a busy, stressful school week.