Collins Art Gallery to exchange student artwork with Delta College

By Jennifer Lugo – College Staff

About 20 art students have been chosen from Grand Rapids Community College to exchange works of art with students from Delta College as part of the upcoming Paul Collins Gallery exhibition.

GRCC art students will review and provide feedback on other works at Delta College. Led by Scott Garrard, Curator and Art Professor at GRCC, the exhibition will give students the opportunity to showcase their work.

Delta College announced the program in 2011, opening minds to new works by Michigan-based artists. The exhibitions are free and open to students and the general public. Garrard was invited to put art on campus when it opened. During this time, he was introduced to Assistant Professor Ben Clore.

“Artists have the hardest time getting their work out there,” said Garrard, who then decided to work with Clore to give art students the opportunity to showcase their work in other venues.

“In the art world, it’s kind of like east meets west in Michigan,” Garrard said.

Delta College Art will be here for about a month, and vice versa.

“I am delighted to have some of my pieces on display at Delta College,” said Crystal Gail Cunningham, a GRCC art student who will be exhibiting two sculptures at Delta College during the exchange. “It’s a great opportunity for students from both colleges to see what others are doing. I have an organic flow clay sculpture and a set of plates in the show. I intend to see the works of my peers and appreciate what others are doing and maybe be inspired.

Garrard explained how he thought the coin swap could benefit them.

“What I would like is for all the students to produce and exhibit their work, enter the exhibition, give them confidence,” said Garrard. “It helps build self-awareness when they receive positive feedback from their peers, knowing that they have artistic value in the community.

The three-dimensional artists of the GRCC’s Visual Arts Department now proudly display works at Delta College. These exhibitions represent student artists in the fields of ceramics, sculpture and 3D design. Garrard said “the best of the best” have been chosen, so the GRCC will be well represented.

The art exchange started on February 2 and continues March 20th. Works by GRCC students will be on display at Delta College from February 2 to February 27, and works by Delta College students will be available at GRCC in February.. 16 to March 20 in the Collins Art Gallery, located on the 4th floor of the main building.