UWL Art Professor Karen Terpstra and UWL Chemistry Professor Adrienne Loh kicked off a new art gallery showing on Friday, Nov. 3. The gallery was a combination of ceramics and photography all revolving around horses.

According to Loh, the two of them have known each other for about 21 years and have participated in many committees and other things together. Loh is the Chair of the Department of Education Studies as well as the Interim Associate Dean of the School of Education while Terpstra specializes in Ceramics and 3-D Design.

When Terpstra brought the idea of hosting a gallery showing together, Loh initially thought Terpstra was joking. However, after some persistence, Loh came to realize that the idea might actually be pretty neat.

“As a chemist, we are used to thinking of things on an atomic molecular scale, things that are too small to see,” Loh stated. “Yet we can see in our mind’s eye and we learn to sort of take data as something very different from what we are actually looking at and imagine it on a very small scale.”

This chemist style of thinking was portrayed in the photos presented by Loh, where the focus of the photographs was pointed more towards the things we don’t normally pay attention to.

“When I attend galleries and people are taking pictures of the main piece, you’ll find me taking pictures of the wallpaper or the floor or some tiny zoom in photo,” Loh commented. “I try to capture the essence of the space that makes it feel the way it does. I don’t get attracted by the large pieces, but rather the small ones that not many pay attention to.

The gallery consisted mostly of pieces revolving around horses, which are a specialty of Terpstra’s. “I was practically born on a horse. I grew up on a farm in Iowa and I’ve always ridden horses.”

Terpstra started out as an interior designer but soon grew tired of the work. After some consideration, Terpstra went back to school to earn a degree in Art Education.

“This was in the 80s, and everybody loved jewelry and all that, so I considered getting into metals to make such jewelry. I couldn’t get into that so the only thing I could get into was ceramics and I was terrified,” Terpstra said.

After a little time with ceramics, Terpstra soon developed a love for the art and continued with it until it turned into a career. “…when I wanted to work on horses, I was told that it was too cliché,” Terpstra retold. “I did it anyway and apparently, they didn’t have a problem with it and I it was because I showed my experience on horses through my work.”

If you are interested in seeing this gallery, head over to the CFA and check out their work. It’ll be available until Nov. 18. Catch it before it’s gone!