Art History 490 students, left to right: Katherine Borden, Katherine Nelson, Whitney Gerlach, Tanja Schweintek, Caitlin Argyle, Berit Ness, Cory Budden. Photo: Julia Sapin

The Western Gallery initiates the new PROJECTS section of its website with a focus on art history and art studio students as curators. Under the leadership of Dr. Julia Sapin, the Exhibition Theory and Practice Seminar (AH490) has worked with the Al and Vera Leese Collection. In 2005 Marian Leese Boylan gave her parent's private collection to the Western Gallery. This collection, primarily American and European prints and drawings accompanied by a few paintings, enlarged individual gifts from Al and Vera Leese since 1995 and enriched the gallery's present holdings. In furthering her parent's commitment to art, Marian Leese Boylan also has made major contributions to the Leese Collection since 2005.

In support of the Leese Family's goal to introduce students to the field of prints and drawings and to the art of collecting and curatorship, donors from the Bellingham community stepped forward with funds for a catalogue. For the past three years students in the seminar have worked on three distinct exhibitions drawn from this collection. Their job as a team has been to present an exhibition theme; as individual students they have written an essay for each artist's work for the future catalogue.

This is the first term (Winter 2009) the AH490 exhibition is available electronically, including reproductions of the images, explanatory wall texts, and videos on printmaking processes.

All images included in this online exhibition are presented as part of Western Gallery's educational mission. Assume these works are protected by copyrights. Contact Western Gallery for copyright and use information.
Photo: ©Taylor Roalson