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Art Department News

Lynne Johnson Travel Award Reflection by Yolanda Fan
During the summer of 2025, the Lynne Johnson Travel Award in the Art Department supported Art History major Yolanda (’27) in traveling to Suzhou, China to study Classical Chinese gardens firsthand. Established in honor of Dr. Lynne Johnson, the award […]
ART COURSE INFO: SUMMER / FALL 2026
Check out the new Studio Art & Art History courses offered in the Summer/Fall 2026! Summer Courses
Pro Humanitate Through Art: Jorge and Darlene Pérez on Collecting, Purpose, and Community
On Thursday, February 12, 2026 at 5pm in Farrell Hall’s Broyhill Auditorium, Wake Forest welcomes Jorge (P ’26) and Darlene Pérez as the Acquavella Distinguished Lecturers in Arts Management—Join us for a moderated conversation with Dr. Jay Curley from the […]
Dr. Nikki Moore to Give Talk Hosted by MoMA – Dr. Moore an Assistant Professor of Global Architectural History in the Department of Art
On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, Professor Nikki Moore will speak on Field Work: Tina Modotti and the Free Schools of Agriculture, México, 1926–32, sponsored by the Museum of Modern Art. Click here to learn more and to join the […]
Studio Honors Candidate Jane Alexander (’25) mommy whats brainrot Exhibition
Exhibition runs May 12 – 16 at stArt Gallery Reynolda Village. Reception Thursday, May 15, 5pm. See more.

Department Events

Relax & Craft Event

April 7 / 3-7PM / Visual Resource Center / Scales 110

Exhibitions

stArt Gallery Exhibition: Conditions of Layering
Jan 20- Feb 6 / stArt Gallery Reynolda Village Opening Reception: Thursday, January 22
Hanes Gallery Exhibition: Timely Conversations
Jan 29 – Mar 21 / Hanes Gallery Opening Reception: Thursday, January 29th, 5-7 pm Timely Conversations features a selection of works from the Wake Forest University Art Collection and highlights contemporary artists who explore the interconnected themes of history and time. The exhibition presents artworks in dynamic pairings that are intended to spark unexpected connections […]
BRC Gallery Exhibition: Between Wind and Drifts Suspended . . . Heart Through the Mind, Selections from Faber’s Intermediate & Advanced Printmaking
February 9 – April 29 / Farrell Hall Suite A05 / Brockway Recruiting Center Gallery
stArt Gallery Exhibition: In Loving Memory of my Childhood
Feb 16 – Mar 7 / stArt Gallery Reynolda Village Opening Reception: Thursday, February 19, 5-6 PM
stArt Gallery Exhibition: Through Our Eyes
February 25 / 5-7 pm / stArt Gallery Downtown Opening Reception: February 25

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Ready for a little SPRINGTIME reset? 🌷💛

Join us for Relax & Craft on Tuesday, April 7, 3–7 PM for a cozy afternoon of making and mingling. We’ll have make-and-take stations for pressed flower bookmarks, painted totes, pipe cleaner flowers, and decoupaged shells, along with “tea party” refreshments and spring-themed snacks to enjoy while you create. 🍵✨

Bring a friend, stop by, and celebrate the season with us.

ALL Wake Forest students are invited!

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Deacs Day of Giving is here! 🎉

This 24-hour fundraising event supports Wake Forest University by creating opportunities for student organizations, scholarships, and campus initiatives, with across 175+ funding areas. With over 1,500 gifts already made today, every contribution counts.

Support what you love and help your corner of Wake win the day! 💛🖤

Learn more and make donations here: https://deacsgive.wfu.edu/pages/home-page-11

#campuslife #wakeforest

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Ready to step into the art industry this summer?

Shan from the Office of Personal and Career Development will be joining us to help art and art history majors and minors navigate summer internships and the application process. Learn how to search strategically, strengthen your materials, and approach opportunities with confidence!!!

February 24 | 5:30-6:30 pm | Scales 102

All are welcome. Snacks will be provided. Bring a friend and come with your questions!
#wakethearts

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The Reece Collection Acquisition Committee Art Buying Trip for Spring Break 2027 is starting soon!

Kickoff meeting
Wednesday, February 25 | 7-8 pm | Benson 401A

Open to any student not graduating in 2026, all majors and years welcome. Two trip alumni will share their experiences buying art for Wake Forest, and advisors will explain the requirements and application process and answer questions.

See the poster for more information. If you cannot attend, email Prof. Curley at curleyjj@wfu.edu
#wakethearts

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Fall Semester Launch Party
March 3 | 6–8 pm | Scales Lobby

Join us as we kick off the new fall semester together. Stop by to pick up the art department T-shirt you ordered at last semester’s Community Night, enjoy free food, and be the first to hear course reveals for the upcoming term.

Stay to listen to Vinyl and connect with friends, faculty, and fellow artists.

Bring a friend! All are welcome.

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We’re excited to feature our art alum Riley Phillips

Her exhibition “in loving memory of my childhood” is on view February 16 – March 7 at Start Gallery.

Stop by and celebrate the excellent work of our student.
All is welcome!

#startgallery #wakethearts

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Celebrate the power of printmaking and join us for an exhibition of student work from an upper-level Intaglio and Relief class.

Between Wind and Drifts Suspended … Heart Through the Mind
On view February 9 – April 29, 2026

Reception: February 20 | 3-5 pm
Farrell Hall Suite A05 | Brockway Recruiting Center

“Within the atmosphere of an upper-level Intaglio and Relief printmaking class, there is conceptual vibration — as with the humming of stringed instruments in response to other sounds nearby, these four students, while working together, experienced sympathetic reverberation through their intellects, their impulses, and their skill sets, an interweaving of creative will and yearning. And so it is that between the winds of intellect and the drifts of impulse, their hearts and minds became one creative force of printmaking skill.”
— David Faber

All are welcome.
#wakethearts

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Looking for a CUTE plan for your Valentine or your Galentine? 💖💐

Join us for Relax & Craft on February 10, 3–7 PM in Scales 110. We’ll have everything you need to make handmade cards, glass bead bracelets, and paper flower bouquets PLUS a chocolate fondue station and mocktails to keep the vibes up while you create. 🍫🍹

We’ll also have a record player going, so bring your favorite vinyl and help set the mood.

ALL Wake Forest students are invited!

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The Acquavella Distinguished Lecture in Arts Management, Pro Humanitate Through Art, with Darlene and Jorge Pérez will take place on Thursday, 2/12 at 5 PM (and reception at 6 PM) in Broyhill Auditorium, Farrell Hall!

Darlene and Jorge Pérez (P ‘26) have built one of the most significant Latin American and African diaspora art collections in the United States and donated major works to institutions from the Tate to Miami’s Pérez Art Museum. Darlene is a member of the Wake Forest Board of Trustees.

This conversation explores how they’ve transformed collecting into an act of service — creating museums, endowing curatorial positions, and using art to build more equitable communities. It’s an exceptional opportunity to be inspired by their perspectives and experiences as admired figures and philanthropists in the dynamic intersection of art, artists and commerce.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to hear from collectors who demonstrate what Pro Humanitate looks like in practice!

https://art.wfu.edu/2026/02/pro-humanitate-through-art-jorge-and-darlene-perez-on-collecting-purpose-and-community/

#wakethearts #artcommunity #wakeforest

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Cozy season calls for craft!! 🍂🧶

Take a brain break from the end-of-semester chaos and join us for Relax & Craft! We’ll have everything you need to make friendship bracelets, handmade cards, and decoupage shells, plus plenty of cozy snacks to enjoy while you create. (Swipe for a peek at what you can make!)

We’ll also have a record player going, so bring your favorite vinyl to share 🎶

ALL Wake Forest students are invited to join!
We will see you TOMORROW, November 18th from 4–7 PM in Scales 110.

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Join us for the Art Department Talkback Session on November 12th 6-7 PM at Scales 9!

The Art Department Talkback Session is a chance for students to meet with faculty, share opinions and feedback about the department, and suggest classes or events you would like to see in the future. Pizza and snacks will be provided!

If you’re interested, please scan the QR code to register. Your voice matters to us! We look forward to seeing you at the Talkback Session!

#artcommunity #wakethearts #studentlife

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See how our Intermediate/Advanced Drawing class collaborated with dance 👀

Professor Chelsea Hilding from the Department of Dance recently collaborated for the “movement” unit in Professor Lydia Smith’s Intermediate/Advanced Drawing class. They received Wake the Arts Funding to sponsor this collaboration!

Professor Hilding invited two dance students, Kenley McClure and Whitney Donohue, to dance during one of the class sessions, while drawing students captured their improvisational movements through gesture drawings and experiments with mark-making.

Professor Hilding also shared a short presentation on Laban Movement Analysis (LMA), a framework used in dance to observe, describe, and interpret human movement. Students then used the drawings created during this session to inform the direction of their projects for this unit. Professor Hilding and Kenley later joined them for the critique of the final drawings of this unit.

Stay tuned for more studio art class updates!

#wakethearts #studentlife #artcommunity

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Turning up the heat in Sculpture Studio 🔥🧯

In Professor Rudy Shepherd’s class, students are using torches to shape, join, and refine their metal sculptures. By experimenting with material, heat, and form, they’re exploring how process transforms various materials into expressive works of art!

Follow us for more glimpses into our students’ creative journeys. 👀

#wakethearts #studentlife #artcommunity

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Thank you to everyone who stopped by our table at the Majors and Minors Fair!

We loved meeting you all and chatting about art at Wake!
Looking forward to seeing you around Scales 🎨

#wakethearts

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Endia Beal, our studio art faculty member who teaches photography, will be part of Soul Spark 2025 this Thursday!

Soul Spark 2025 is an evening of storytelling, spirit, and inspiration that kicks off Wake Forest’s Homecoming Weekend. Professor Beal will be speaking alongside others from across our community, as they share stories of hope, truth, and faith in everyday life. Learn more here: https://divinity.wfu.edu/soulspark/

The event will take place on Thursday, October 23, at 6 PM in Wait Chapel (Doors open at 5:30 PM). If you’re interested, please register for free to ensure a smooth and welcoming check-in: https://web.cvent.com/event/82f42935-6091-4585-8fa4-a95a55077305/regProcessStep1

We hope to see you there and enjoy the wisdom and inspiration from Professor Beal and the other speakers!

#wakethearts #artcommunity

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Join us for the Art Community Night TOMORROW (Tuesday, October 21) from 6–8 PM in Scales Lobby!

It’s the best time to get to know Spring 2026 classes! Come to connect with the art department professors and student mentors for Q&A, enjoy pizza, desert, vinyl listening, and stickers, and make an order of our new art department T-shirt!

It is mandatory for all art majors and minors, and all students interested in art are welcome!

Come and see how you can grow, create, and get involved in our vibrant art community.

#wakethearts #artcommunity

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Last night we had dinner at Theodore’s in Reynolda Village with all of our Presidential Scholars. It was great to hear from our students about new classes, upcoming events and their experience in the department!

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Check out these fun behind-the-scenes moments from The Darkness exhibition in Hanes Gallery!

The exhibition features recent works by Wake Forest University studio art faculty Rudy Shepherd and Molly Kaderka, presenting two distinct yet resonant approaches to making sense of the world around us.

Kaderka’s large-scale paintings and installations reimagine the language of landscape by collapsing ground and sky into circular compositions, inviting viewers to reflect on awe, mystery, and our place within vast natural systems. Shepherd’s fourty-six watercolor portraits depicted famous figures – world leaders, artists, perpetrators, and victims – presented alongside his sculptures (Black Rock Negative Energy Absorbers) and ceramic works (Healing Devices). Together, their works explore darkness and invite viewers into profound explorations of the world around us, offering moments of reflection, connection, and transformation.

For more information about the exhibition and the Opening Reception on October 16, please visit: https://hanesgallery.wfu.edu/the-darkness/.

#wakethearts #artcommunity

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Come visit us at the Majors and Minors Fair on Wednesday, October 22, from 3–5 PM in the Tribble Courtyard!

Discover what you can create and achieve as an Art student at Wake Forest. Or just stop by to hang out with us! We’ll have stickers, merch, and fun hands-on creative activities waiting for you. 🤩

All art interested students are welcome! Looking forward to seeing you out there!

#wakethearts #artcommunity

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Join us for Art Community Night on Tuesday, October 22, from 6–8 PM in Scales Lobby for the Spring 2026 class reveal!

Come connect with the fellow art community & enjoy pizza, vinyl listening, student mentor Q&A w/dessert, and make an order of our NEW Art Department T-shirt!!!

All students interested in art are welcome!
Mandatory for art majors and minors

Come see how you can grow, create, and get involved in our vibrant art community.

#wakethearts #artcommunitynight