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Graphic Design Students
Students featured include Erica Chaney from New Bremen, Ohio; Adam Jackman from Warren, Pa.; Beth Pettit from Greenwich, Ohio; Jason Woltja from Kettering, Ohio; Natalie Adkins from South Solon, Ohio; Tim Grubb from Bedford, Ohio; Mary Riordan from Mount Vernon, Ohio; Tom Cline from Mount Vernon, Ohio; Jonathon White from Pleasantville, Ohio.

Every senior graphic design portfolio will highlight individual style and technique and will include a variety of designs. Students must include such things as logos, page layouts, packaging, brochures, and branding. A variety of colors and structural styles are also required. Working in different styles and creating many pieces allows students to support a bigger market and show a wider degree of skills and talents to potential employers/clients.

Erika Chaney describes the inspirations of the design portfolios as, “Everything and anything we come across—commercials on TV, colors of a sunset, gum package designs. We look at Communication Arts, Prints, other magazines—anything with a design.”

Andrew Hendrixson - OIL
MVNU’s fine arts seniors will begin their shows with Andrew Hendrixson, from Mount Vernon, Ohio, April 13-18, with an opening reception on Sunday, April 13, from 2-4 p.m. He will present pieces done primarily with oil paint. His accomplishments are evident in the studio and have been recognized inside and outside of MVNU. He has recently been accepted into an extremely selective master’s program for fine arts in Florida.

Benjamin Boquist - FILM
Benjamin Boquist, from Bedford, Ohio, will exhibit April 20-25, with an opening reception on Sunday, April 20, from 2-4 p.m. He will be showing a narrative film inspired by Tim Burton’s style. Boquist says his film, “Paradigm Shift,” deals with “the conflict a vampire faces when he converts to Christianity and wrestles with the urge to bite people.”

Describing the process of creating his film, Boquist said it was “very intense” because it required a script, actors, locations, schedules, shooting the footage and editing it using computer software. It’s such an arduous task in fact that Ben has had to enlist, in addition to the cast, the help of fellow students Lauren Hysell, Aaron Windmar and Kristen VanValkenburg.

Maggie Elyse Richardson - MIXED MEDIA
Maggie Elyse Richardson, from McConnelsville, Ohio, will exhibit from May 4-9, with an opening reception on Sunday, May 4, from 2-4 p.m. Richardson used mixed media to create her pieces.

"My inspiration comes from my process and the creation itself. God is a thoughtful being who created everything around us and created us in his image,” she said. “I think that means that, like God, we should strive for creation in all things.”

Kristin Van Valkenburg - FILM
Kristin Van Valkenburg, from Mount Vernon, Ohio, will have the last exhibit from May 11-16, with an opening reception on Sunday, May 11, from 2-4 p.m. Her medium will be video, and came as a recent decision as she started the year sculpting in sandstone. Her inspiration came upon realizing that none of her video work would actually be tangible.

"The theme of my show has become a commentary on the idea of an empty gallery,” explained Van Valkenburg. “There will be nothing in the gallery during my show except the video projectors, camera and images created from light. The video will also feature other artists’ work and the viewers themselves.”

Gallery Hours/Info
Regular gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., weekends by appointment only. For more information, visit www.mvnu.edu or contact (740) 392-6868, ext. 4341.

Mount Vernon Nazarene University is a private, four-year, intentionally Christian teaching university for traditional age students, graduate students and working adults. U.S. News & World Report ranks MVNU as a Best in the Midwest (Bachelor’s) institution for the third year in a row. With a 401-acre main campus in Mount Vernon, Ohio, and nine satellite Adult and Graduate Studies campuses throughout the state, MVNU emphasizes academic excellence, spiritual growth and service to community and church. MVNU offers an affordable education to more than 2,600 students from 27 states and six countries/U.S. territories.