Tom Drakulich, Mahsan Ghazianzad, Quynh Tran, DePaul Vera, and Kelly Wallis are area students who are making their Carson City art debut tomorrow at the Courthouse Gallery on Musser Street.
Five artists from Sierra Nevada College and the University of Nevada, Reno, are debuting their work in a new exhibit going up at the Capital City Arts Initiative’s Courthouse Gallery.
New Crop 2016 features art by Tom Drakulich, Mahsan Ghazianzad, Quynh Tran, DePaul Vera, and Kelly Wallis, all five Master of Fine Arts candidates.
Tom Drakulich, a multimedia artist primarily devoted to ceramic sculpture, is displaying large ceramic sculptures. He said his work is influenced by Nevada’s landscapes. The artist is completing his Master of Fine Arts from University of Nevada, Reno, next spring.
Paintings by Mahsan Ghazianzad, who immigrated to the U.S. from Iran five years ago, will be featured in the exhibit. Ghazianzad graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno, in May.
Quynh Tran’s colorful and bold prints, reflecting traditional scrolls, will be presented in the display as sculptural forms. The artist, born in Hanoi, Vietnam, is pursuing a degree in studio arts at the University of Nevada, Reno.
DePaul Vera is contributing comic like pop art illustrations to the show. His work includes hyper-saturated pop art portraits of the five artists in the show. Vera is a graphic artist and designer.
Kelly Wallis of Sierra Nevada College is displaying paper collage “security blankets” she made by transforming security envelopes into quilt-like blankets. She disassembled and crumpled the envelopes, then glued and formed them into a blanket.
All five artists will give brief talks about their work at a free reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, June 3.
The show can be seen from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays from June 3 through Sept. 29. The Courthouse Gallery is at 885 E. Musser St. Admission is free.
CCAI commissioned Kris Vagner to write the exhibition essay. Vagner writes articles and essays for various publications and runs her own Double Scoop Art Blog while teaching journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno.
For more information, go to CCAI’s website at www.arts-initiative.org.