Cache Valley Landscapes Displayed in Chase Fine Arts Center

Woody Shepherd, professor of drawing and painting at Utah State University, shares his most recent landscapes at his solo exhibition “New Paintings” beginning Tuesday, March 2, in Studio 102 of the Chase Fine Arts Center on the USU campus.

 

The exhibit focuses on the beauty of landscape, including canyons, in Cache Valley, and is free and open to the public.

 

The opening reception is Thursday, March 4, from 5-7 p.m. in Studio 102. The exhibition will be on display until Friday, March 26.

 

“The work itself represents a therapeutic place and simulates the cross between looking at the actual landscape and forming an internal interpretation,” Shepherd said.

 

Shepherd, who is in his fifth year teaching at USU, said he has worked on this collection of six or seven paintings over the course of the last year, and following the exhibition display in Studio 102, the art work will travel to exhibit locations in different states.

 

The artist said he enjoys representing the same thing in different ways, because perception shapes reality. For example, leaves, he said, could be painted in a variety of ways; they could be painted carefully, stamped or quickly sketched, and the combination of these individual leaves pile up. The viewer observes and interprets the painting based on individual visual perception.

 

Shepherd, originally from Alabama, received his bachelor’s degree from the Rhode Island School of Design and went on to Yale, where he received an master’s of fine art in painting and print making.

 

The Studio 102 Gallery is located in the northeast corner of the Chase Fine Arts Center, approximately at the intersection of 700 N. 1200 East. Studio 102 is open from noon-4 p.m., daily Tuesday through Friday.

 

The exhibition is part of the year-long Crossing Boundaries project presented by the Art Department of the Caine School of the Arts.

 

 

Writer: Courtney Lewis, Caine School of the Arts, 435-797-9203, courtney.lewis@usu.edu