By Rebekah Chiasson | Assistant Editor
The East Wing Gallery at MWCC opened its doors to the public this semester after its temporary close due to last year’s construction. Joyce Miller, Gallery Director and art professor at MWCC, took full advantage and planned exhibitions and gallery talks for this fall semester, even if it meant doing some construction work herself.
Miller said through an e-mail interview, “All summer, May through August, with the help of the Studio Assistant, I repaired and refinished the gallery walls and all the pedestals.” This enabled Miller to start exhibitions as early as September 9, with paintings from retired art professor, John Pacheco, who had been teaching at MWCC for over 30 years. His exhibit ended October 4, but drew in “lots of gallery visitors” according to Miller.
Although Pacheco’s position still remains vacant, the Art Department has welcomed a new professor. Jesse Connor has been with MWCC since Pacheco’s retiring, and is currently exhibiting his acrylic series, Far Reaches. Students, faculty, staff and the community can meet him at his Gallery Talk, November 8.
Tracie Pouliot’s Chair City Community can also be found currently on exhibit in the glass cases of East Wing Gallery. Pouliot’s Gallery Talk will be hosted November 7, from 12:30pm -1:30pm.
When asked if Pouliot could give a prequel to what she’ll be addressing at her Gallery Talk and she explained, “I’ll be talking about the process we use to make the books in the Chair City Oral History Book Series, from start to finish. I’ll also talk about why we are making the books in this series.” She encourages students to come because she thinks her Gallery Talk “will really tie in the theme of ‘Imagining Work’ that many classes are studying this year as part of the National Endowment for the Humanities program.”
Pouliot is a former MWCC student and now teaches the very class that made her want to become an artist. Pouliot told me through e-mail, “I’m a brand new adjunct faculty teaching Printmaking, and\I took this same class when I was a student at the Mount many years ago. MWCC is where I first fell in love with printmaking, so it feels full-circle to be able to teach printmaking.”
Pouliot took her printmaking students to the Chair City Community Workshop to work on the Book Series project. Pouliot said, “It was really fun to welcome them into the space and teach class there for a day.”
The final art exhibit planned for fall comes from Isabella Bourque Dixson, another MWCC alumna. Her exhibit will be on display December 12.
Miller also was able to get approval to plan the high school art show that had to be cancelled last year due to construction. Miller is now in the midst of scheduling the exhibitions and gallery talks for the spring semester.
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