On Saturday, Sept. 23, the Seven State Biennial Exhibition debuted for its 11th year in the Nesbitt Gallery, located in Davis Hall. The juried art show, hosted by USAO, draws artists from Oklahoma and the six states surrounding it every two years. This year’s juror, Don Holladay, an artist from Norman, selected 55 pieces out of about 150 total submissions. The show is a bit eclectic, containing a range of mediums and subject matter, with examples of both traditional and divergent forms. With work from 43 different artists, this show is a demonstration of the variability within art.
Entrants could submit up to three pieces for a $35 fee, and two of the artists have all three of their submissions featured. Awards were five honourable mentions, third, second, first place, and new to the exhibition, the President’s Choice award; President Hale went through the show prior to the opening and chose a piece that USAO will purchase and put in their permanent collection.
The exhibition was started by Cecil Lee in 2001, who came to USAO in 1991 and designed the Nesbitt Gallery space, serving as its first director. The show is an opportunity for artists who may not have the opportunity or portfolio for a solo show to have their work displayed in a gallery setting. The show also travels, moving from the Nesbitt Gallery after about five weeks to the Goddard Center in Ardmore. Then its final destination is the Museum of the Red River in Idabel.
Layne Thrift, professor of art and current director of the Nesbitt Gallery, has been overseeing the exhibition for some time, and said he enjoys it especially out of the many shows that are exhibited in the gallery.
“Juried shows are the hardest to put together by far, but they’re the most rewarding, I think. There’s a lot of happy stuff behind a juried show,” Thrift said. “Solo shows are great, don’t get me wrong, I’ll put a solo show together in a second, but they just don’t have that excitement that this juried show has.”
The gallery’s responsibilities include gathering and passing on the entries to the juror, laying the show out and hanging the work, setting up the reception, and scheduling the show’s rotation. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes effort that goes into putting on a successful exhibition.
“When they bring in outside artists, it gives more exposure to what the field is like,” said Danny Morales, a senior art major. “Going in there as an expanded media artist, and seeing the sculptural works, and seeing how people who are no longer students are doing art, is just phenomenal.”
One USAO student had a submission make it into the show, junior art major Meli Salcido. This wasn’t Salcito’s first show, but he said he was excited to be a part of the Seven State Biennial Exhibition.
“The main thing with being an artist is playing the waiting game on getting your name out, and I’m hoping that this show helps with my journey with that,” Salcido said.
The exhibition will continue in the Nesbitt Gallery until Friday, Oct. 27.
Thomas Buchanan is a second-year art major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
