Art Show - Nicole Ehlert

I have to say that, going into the art show, I was not expecting to enjoy the art as much as I did. Perhaps I underestimated the level of talent that Butler students have, or perhaps I was just stressed – but either way, I truly enjoyed looking at the different works that people created. I was very impressed with the creativity that the students demonstrated and was amazed that some of the works were even being sold. I loved looking at the different ways that students in the same class conceptualized the same assignment yet their work turned out looking so different. My favorite piece of artwork was a photograph by Maria Porter of a girl with aboriginal paintings on her face. The girl’s eyes showed a great deal of emotion and the angle at which the photo was taken revealed just part of her face, leaving some to the imagination. I thought the piece was very imaginative. I would be willing to pay $10 for that piece, as well as for some of the faded photographs that were along the back windows of a girl in a dress posing among nature and old buildings – they were beautiful as well. When I got through the aisles to the board that had my own work displayed on it, I was slightly surprised. Mine seemed to fit in well with the rest of the show, and I don’t typically consider myself to be an overtly artistic person. I felt proud of my work and began to look at it from an outsider’s perspective and enjoy it in a new way. I also enjoyed seeing it posted up next to the work of others in our class because it was easy to see how each piece was the same yet different from each other piece. Viewing the art show made me realize just how valuable the student art show is to Butler. Without it I would never have known how talented some other Butler students are in their various artistic endeavors, and I think it is always important to share with each other those things which we are passionate about. I also thought it was valuable to have my own work displayed there because it shows me that art is not something that only “certain people” can create. The show opened up discussion among the viewers and caused me to think about things in new ways, which I believe is a critical part of a liberal arts education that Butler offers us. Overall, I really enjoyed the show and I was glad that I was able to attend it.