The Center for Western Studies (CWS) Fantle Building will host watercolor artist Marian Henjum of Sioux Falls, and the blown glass exhibit from the Fargo, N.D. artist Jon Offutt.
"We especially like how the fluidity of two mediums complemented each other so well," Time Hoheisel, director of outreach and communications at Augustana, said.
"The CWS Art Committee selects a variety of art shows so it is not just one oil painting show after another," Hoheisel said. "The show that just ended was of photographs, this one is watercolor painting and blown glass and the next one is acrylic painting and bronzes."
The Art Committee also chooses artists that have never had exhibits in the Fantle Building. The artists must also be from the Center's mission area, the Northern Plains, according to Hoheisel.
"The CWS staff is gifted in working with people, and the gallery space complements an art exhibit very nicely," Henjum said. "Also, putting together a group of my paintings is always a growth and self-appreciation experience for me. Sharing this and being myself with the CWS staff is a delight."
Henjum, whose work was recently purchased for the South Dakota Capitol's permanent collection, is in the process of moving her whole art studio operation to the Gourley
Building downtown and will have an Open Studio/Sale sometime this year. She is famous for her watercolor paintings of landscapes, florals and figures.
When asked where she gets her inspiration, she replies: "All my surroundings. When I get up in the morning I see patterns, shapes, colors, textures - designs for paintings everywhere in my house. Then when I step outside, I am almost overwhelmed with the explosion of compositions everywhere I look, including up and down."
"I've admired Marian's work for years," Kayla Hathaway, a junior art and education major, said. "She's a very well-known local artist. She's showed at museums and galleries all across the area."
Henjum teaches beginning watercolor and drawing to adults, from high school age to the elderly in Sioux Falls. She is putting together an intermediate/advanced watercolor and drawing class, which she hopes to start next fall.
"In the future I would like to teach calligraphy and design/composition classes," Henjum said. "Also, I have given many talks on how to survive as an artist in Sioux Falls, S.D., so I would like to teach a class on that subject. I love teaching and sharing."
Henjum has an art education degree from South Dakota State University (SDSU) and was an art instructor at her alma mater after graduation. Henjum was listed as Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities, was awarded a Young-Caldwell Art Scholarship and was chosen as an Outstanding Young Woman of America.
She has also completed 37 solo shows and is a signature member of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America. The South Dakota Arts Council has awarded her three Artist Project Grants; the city of Sioux Falls voted her as their favorite artist; she was awarded the Mayor's Award of Excellence in Visual Arts; and the United States Postal Service selected Henjum to design the 1989 South Dakota centennial stamps. Sixteen million stamps were printed and distributed worldwide.
"She shows great depth in her medium of watercolor," Hathaway said. "My personal favorites are the large watercolors with the 'Norse' theme that are on display."
For the past 10 years, Offutt has owned his own art studio in his backyard. Some of his work is displayed in museums in North Dakota, Minnesota, North Carolina, Florida, Texas, Kentucky and Illinois.
Offutt is a freelance glass blower who has a master's degree from the College of Art and Design from Southern Illinois University. He has been featured on HGTV's Modern Masters and has also appeared numerous times on PBS.
Hathaway, who helped Offutt set the exhibit up, said she didn't know much about him before seeing his work. "I fell in love with his work at first sight," Hathaway said. "His vessels are beautiful."
On his Web site, Offutt says his work is "all about the surface."
"My particular favorites are his most recent series that resemble landscapes," Hathaway said. "You can tell that he's from North Dakota by looking at the large skies. The show was very fun to set up; he is a wealth of knowledge about art and the world of glass."
Hathaway thinks making the trip to the Fantle Building during the exhibition would be a great use of free time. "It's right here on campus and you don't have to make a special trip- just walk through on your way to class and enjoy some amazing artwork," she said.
The gallery will be open March 4 through May 29. A reception is scheduled for Wednesday, March 24, from 5 to 7 p.m., with a gallery talk at 6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public to meet Henjum and Offutt and hear them talk about their work. For more information, visit the Center For Western Studies Web site at www.augie.edu/cws.
"There is tremendous artistic talent in this region," Hoheisel said. "Sometimes people associate this part of the country with wildlife art or romanticized Terry Redlin imagery. Artists like Marian Henjum and Jon Offutt show us the wide range of wonderful art being created on the Northern Plains today."
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