Northcutt Steele Gallery
Montana State University Billings Department of Art Showcases the Work of its Faculty
MSUB Faculty Exhibition
December 8, 2016 through February 9, 2017
Artist Reception: Thursday, February 9, 5:00pm–7:00pm
(Free and Open to the Public)
MSUB Department of Art’s Faculty Exhibition at the Northcutt Steele Gallery will remain on view through February 9. This large group exhibition showcases the rich and diverse talents of the MSUB Department of Art faculty who work across a broad range of media. The exhibition also offers an opportunity for the public to view the artwork of recently-hired faculty, Randi O’Brien (Ceramics) and Dr. Mara Pierce (Art Education), and welcome them to the community.
The exhibition features the work of 10 past and current Department of Art faculty. In addition to O'Brien and Pierce, there is work from Renee Audette, Mark Earnhart, J.J. Higgins, Jodi Lightner, Neil Jussila, John Pollock, Marcia Selsor and Ben Steele.
Professor Randi O’Brien is a ceramic artist, historian, writer, presenter, and educator from the Rocky Mountains. She received an MFA in Ceramics and a MA in Art History from The University of Montana. In addition to exhibiting her artwork nationally and internationally, O’Brien has curated numerous exhibitions, and widely presented and published her research on ceramics.
O’Brien’s has two sculptures in the exhibition titled "Overwintering," crafted of ducks inlaid into clear, icy blocks.
"The sculptural characters do not act out the full story line of a fable," she says of the pieces. "Rather, they are frozen in reflection, searching for the moral of their story."
Dr. Mara K. Pierce has been creating and exhibiting art for nearly twenty years. She began teaching studio art on the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation in 2005. She received her PhD in Art History and Education from the University of Arizona, concentrating in Art and Visual Culture Education, and minoring in American Indian Studies in 2015.
One of Pierce’s four artworks included in the exhibition, "New Leaf," is comprised of delicate, color prints woven into each other, creating a vertical flow from one season into the next.
An artist reception will be held on Thursday February 9 beginning at 5pm. The reception and exhibition are free and open to the public.
The Northcutt Steele Gallery is located on the 1st floor of the Liberal Arts Building on MSUB campus and is open Monday–Friday from 8am–4pm, and by appointment. The gallery will be closed the week of December 26–December 30 for the holidays.
Jodi Lightner, Invisible Cities – Trope, 2015. Acrylic and Ink on hand cut Mylar, 37” x 43.”
Randi O’Brien, Overwintering #1 and Overwintering #2, 2016. Stoneware, underglaze, newspaper, oil, resin, 10.5” x 6.5” x 19” and 16” x 6.5” x 12.5”.
