Despite the hardships presented for artists throughout the year, the Fine Arts Gallery on the second floor of the Student Union Building (SUB) has still been presenting exhibitions, including the work of both students and local artists.
“We try to mix students, locals and people who don’t have access to traditional galleries,” said Fonda Portales, Boise State’s art curator and collections manager. “Although, this year has proven to be more difficult as we have had many artists remove their names from the list of exhibitioners due to the current year.”
Even though many artists have removed their artwork from the list of planned showings, there are still many exhibits that are going to take place during the spring semester, both in person and virtual. At least one upcoming gallery will be putting out a call to all artists for submissions to be displayed in the Fine Arts Gallery.
Photo by Abbey Nimegeers | The Arbiter
All of the current galleries and past galleries since August of 2020 have been photographed and turned into virtual experiences as a way to view the art without having to see them in person. Manuel Gomez-Navarro is an adjunct instructor of Spanish and the university’s gallery photographer, and has been responsible for turning the galleries virtual and making them more accessible.
“Each gallery requires around 20 pictures, all taken on a 360 camera in panoramic style. This allows the images to be zoomed in online, as well as providing information, and a more close up perspective,” Gomez-Navarro said. “Each gallery being put online takes about 40 hours of work, including shooting and editing.”
The mail art exhibition “Postal Outliers” was up in the Student Union Fine Arts Gallery until Feb. 24. From March 5 to April 1, the gallery hosted a Red Cross blood drive while featuring the university’s highlights from the permanent art installations.
Currently being displayed in the gallery is the work of students who attend the College of Western Idaho, which will be on display from April 9 to May 9. Many of these students are either interested in transferring to Boise State or are already planning to do so. After spring semester ends, the annual Watercolor Society of Idaho exhibition will be present in the SUB through the month of June.
In the Trueblood Pop-Up Gallery, the hallway next to the Trueblood room upstairs in the SUB, beginning on March 17 through May 16, Trisha Florence, a northern Idaho artist, will have her Drive to Town exhibition up.
