NE Atlanta News

Artwork from some 50 Brenau students is featured in a special exhibition at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta that continues through Jan. 29.

More than 130 pieces created during 2022, ranging from physical works like paintings, drawings, prints and garments to digital art and photography, will be included in the show. The artwork selected represents the wide range of visual arts programs offered at Brenau.

Partnership ongoing since 2010

The partnership between the museum and Brenau, which is the only college or university with an academic affiliation with the museum, dates back 12 years.Through the partnership, the High has hosted a similar show featuring Brenau student artwork annually since 2013, except during 2021 and 2022.“Due to COVID restrictions, we haven’t been able to do the exhibition for the past two years,” Claudia Wilburn, department chair for Art & Design, said. “This marks the return in 2023, and we are very excited about it.”A closing reception for the show will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 15, and members of the Brenau community who attend will gain free admission to the entire museum after the reception.A bus is reserved for Brenau students who want to attend.We have enjoyed a generative, mutually beneficial partnership with Brenau since we began working together in 2010. … We look forward to seeing what they have created for the show and to more wonderful projects in the future.Andrew Westover, the High’s Eleanor McDonald Storza director of education

Experience is helpful for students

While the students are not required to create gallery frames for their work, they do have to prepare it for professional exhibition. The reward is well-worth the challenge of the process, Wilburn said.

“Each of our students creates a resume in their professional development class, and they are collecting data for that resume,” she said. “Exhibitions, such as this one, are something that graduate schools or employers with art-based job openings would look for. It also gives them the chance to show off. They can bring their families and friends to the reception, and anytime visitors go to the High they will see the exhibition.”

Brenau’s partnership with the High, which was renewed in mid-2022, reaps benefits for Brenau and students.

“In terms of us being connected to the art world, this partnership is invaluable,” Wilburn said. “Brenau gets show catalogs of all the major shows at the High, which are kept in the library. In terms of research, that’s a really great resource.”

Museum officials agree the partnership is beneficial

“We have enjoyed a generative, mutually beneficial partnership with Brenau since we began working together in 2010,” Andrew Westover, the High’s Eleanor McDonald Storza director of education, said. “Our staff members collaborate with a new generation of creatives and thinkers, and the university’s students can extend their curriculum through on-site projects at the museum, including this exhibition. We look forward to seeing what they have created for the show and to more wonderful projects in the future.”

Brenau previously hosted an exhibition from the High collection in the Sellars Gallery on the Historic Gainesville Campus, and Wilburn said there are hopes to host another. The university also has access to hold special events and curatorial tours of exhibitions at the High reserved for the Brenau community.

Original source can be found here.