Aquinas art students will be putting forth their best work in the annual juried art show. The reception for the show will take place Sunday, February 20 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the AMC and everyone is invited to attend.

Any work that was created in an Aquinas art class over the past year was allowed to be submitted to a panel of art professors. The art that makes it through the rigorous jury process will be displayed at the AMC. You can expect to see all types of art on exhibit from printmaking and photography to painting and sculpture.

“You get to see the amazing work your friends are doing,” Dana Freeman, AMC Gallery Director, says. “It might inspire you to take a class to draw or sculpt or paint.”

Students with a variety of majors leaped at the opportunity of having their work displayed. Bernadette Poirer, a senior double majoring in biology and art, submitted three pieces to this year’s art show. A pencil drawing of boxing gloves entitled “Boxing’s Been Good to Me” is dedicated to a friend who once dreamed of becoming the next heavyweight champion of the world. Poirer’s two other pieces, “A Peach’s Tea Party” and “Hide and Gourd Seek” are still life paintings created in her first painting class.

“I like to share the work of my hands and heart, especially if the composition or interesting subject matter reflects the true, good, and beautiful,” says Poirer.

Not only do students have to submit brilliant artwork to a jury, but they also have to face the eyes of the public. Chelsea Lanning, a junior majoring in art, plans on submitting several pieces to the show, including a sculpture featuring herself as a nun “facing the reverse of itself.” For Lanning, showing her work to the community is a way to prepare for the real thing.

Both Lanning and Poirer appreciate the art classes they have taken here at Aquinas. The classes are designed to help push students to achieve their full potential. Besides creating masterpieces with their hands, students also get to interact with their peers and teachers. Professors assist in guiding projects into their finished state and students give helpful feedback on each other’s work.

“A finished piece is more than the work of the student who meticulously tickled it with pencils, charcoal, or brushes; it’s the product of late night critiques, inspiring conversations with friends and re-workings, and re-visioning with professors,” says Poirer.

The Annual, Juried, All-Media Student Show runs from Feb. 20 through April 1, 2011. Gallery hours and location are available on the Art Gallery web page.