Museum to highlight thesis work

The IU Art Museum and the SoFA Gallery will present an exhibition entitled "Masters of Fine Arts: Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibitions." From March 27 to May 6, all the MFA students graduating in May will present their work to the public. The exhibits are presented to benefit the community and the artists by giving the work exposure.\nStudents are divided into three groups of three. Work by group one will be presented from March 28 through April 8. The students in group two will exhibit their work from April 11 through April 22, and group three will be showcased from April 25 through May 6.\nThe SoFA gallery will simultaneously display thesis work by 18 other MFA students starting March 27. Here the students will also be divided into three groups, this time consisting of six students each. The work here will be presented as part of the "Art Bites" series the SoFA gallery has introduced this semester. Each exhibition runs for two weeks and will feature a reception. The MFA exhibits at the SoFA Gallery will be on display until the end of the semester. Each of the students will speak about his or her work in an attempt to further educate the public about the creative process. \n"These exhibitions are required for MFA students to graduate," said Betsy Stirratt, director of the SoFA Gallery. "It is a professional exercise where students have to think about how they are going to present their work and work out the logistics of everything involved." \nBut the exhibitions serve more than just to fulfill educational and academic requirements. \n"There are a lot of community members who pay close attention to student artists," Amy Horst, manager of the SoFA Gallery, said. "It's really important for these students to expose their work to the public in order to get a wider response."\nThe exhibitions will feature work from various fine arts specializations. The exhibits will include work from the areas of printmaking, metalsmithing, jewelry design, digital art, painting, ceramics, sculpture, photography and textiles. For the students involved these exhibits represent the end of their intensive study and serve to transport them into the professional art world.\n"These exhibits highlight their development as artists over the past three years," Ben Pond, associate director of the SoFA Gallery, said. "These exhibits give the viewer a good idea about contemporary art. This is a microcosm of the contemporary art world. These students are on the verge of their professional career." \nPond also said seeing these exhibits will serve an educational purpose for aspiring undergraduate art students.