The first signs of spring bring with them an annual art experience courtesy of the students at St. Peter’s College. The 15th Annual St. Peter’s College Student Art Show is now on at the Humboldt and District Gallery. 

The show highlights the work and learning of visual art students from the U of S affiliated college, capably overseen by the College’s instructors Grant McConnell and Clint Hunker. Both are critical acclaimed artists, and as importantly, gifted teachers who have helped launch the careers of countless visual artists. 

The students have excelled in a year that was anything but conventional. St. Peter’s location and small class sizes afforded some face to face instruction and studio time, along with distance learning in a blended model. Show coordinator Grant McConnell confesses that the hybrid delivery mode left students, in some ways, with one hand tied behind their back.

“In terms of the visceral experience of working with gestural drawing and more expressive face to face work, they haven’t had the opportunity to do that as much,” explains McConnel. “But on the other side of it, they’ve done very well. When I work through elements of art, principles of design and composition, perspective systems, they’ve really got that stuff down.”

That dedication to the remote portion of their studies is evident in the show this year which includes some of the best student work to grace the Gallery’s walls.

The composition studies and the mastery of the accompanying principles shows up in the student’s work, says McConnell. As always, the work itself is varied, from portraits to sweeping landscapes and natural studies. Some of the work emphasizes collage this year. 

While many consider art or writing a solitary exercise, both rely on connections with people and exchanges of ideas. Even in a pandemic environment, students found a way to share those experiences, notes McConnell.

“Students are curious individuals and for anyone who has taken a fine arts class, they’ll find a way. Because we have smaller class sizes at the College, you get to know people better. At a time like this, that has really served us well.”

While McConnell looks forward to a time when face to face teaching will again be a standard, he marvels at the ways students have adapted to online critiques and distance discussions. 

The show is composed of work that students have selected from their portfolios produced during the term. The St. Peter’s College Fine Arts Department Exhibit is on now at the Humboldt and District Gallery until March 24.