On Friday, Feb. 4, 2022, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Center for the Arts (CFA) opened its doors to campus and the community for the All Student Juried Art Exhibit. The exhibit featured an array of student artists and featured a variety of different art forms. Student artists used a variety of mediums ranging from clay to scrap wood, screws, and paint, with each piece displaying the utter uniqueness of each artist. Many students from across campus and the community came together to celebrate their masterpieces and celebrate their hard work with award dedications. The 2022 UWL All Student Juried Art Exhibition will be open from Friday, Feb. 4 p.m., to Sunday, Feb. 20, at 5 p.m.  

A variety of awards were given out. Student artist Sidney Scherwinski won the “Milton and Margaret Koshah Art Award” as well as the “Ray Sherin Art Award” for her pieces titled “Zoom Noodles” and “Mansplain, Manipulate, Manifest,”.  

When discussing the importance of supporting student artists, Scherwinski said, “All jokes aside, young artists just want to create what they wish without boundaries. A piece could be hard to grasp but give the creator a minute of your time and you’d make their day.” She then went on to say, “[Artists] do not expect to be 100% accepted or understood. And some of the concepts student artists portray in their works can have profound impacts for viewers. Making some consider a situation from a different perspective.”  

Student artist and photographer Sara Hafften also discussed her contributions, she said her pieces, “A Different Light,” “Digital Soul,” and “Vitreous Visions” all derived from different inspirations. As for “A Different Light,” Hafften said, “I wanted to explore how different kinds of light reacted with a model composited within the same photo. Photographer Jeremy Cowart’s most recent work definitely inspired this piece!”  

Hafften also discussed where her inspiration came from for “Digital Soul”, and “Vitreous Vision”. She said, “I wanted to express the disconnect I have been feeling between my “digital” self and “real” self and explore what that means to me.” When speaking about “Vitreous Visions,” she said, “Through overlaying photographs of what life looks like through my eyes, along with how I am perceived to be holding it together on the outside, I wanted the viewer to experience what it looks and feels like to have chronic vitreous eye floaters as a student.”  

Though the buildings on campus all hold different values to individuals, artist Scherwinski discussed why the CFA is so important to her. Scherwinski said, “There is such an immense invigorated community [at the CFA]. Even strangers seem to become more lax (no pun intended) while inside the CFA walls. Fellow students are willing to give criticism of your work if you ask, give directions to navigate the maze that is the halls, etc. I cannot express how deeply the CFA has affected me; no moment has been dull. Professors allow so much creative freedom and tools to help visions become physical, something I have never had elsewhere.”  

For Hafften, she says simply being around the CFA brings her inspiration, she said, “Recently, my fellow classmate photographers have been such a source of inspiration. I am always blown away by how they view the world and can capture it in such unique ways.”  

For future events and exhibits, the university gallery and the upcoming events posts past and present galleries and exhibits. All awards that were given out can be found on the UWL Calendar site.  

Gallery • 7 Photos

Photo of artwork from the All Student Juried Art Show. Taken by Liberti Jonas-Jongebloed.