New Mexico State University’s William B. Conroy Honors College will host its third annual Honors Art Exhibition: The Collective Awareness. The exhibition’s opening night will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, and will be on display until February 2025 at the Conroy Honors College.
The Fall Honors Art Exhibition Curator, Jennell Juarez, established the theme “What Do You Value?” to encourage students to create artwork that connects to what they value. She said this theme will foster authentic connections and meaningful conversations through the lens of personal art. It is a broad theme everyone can connect to.
“My primary motivation is to make students feel celebrated and recognized for their talents,” Juarez said. “I aim to encourage students who have never showcased their artworks before.
“I really want opening night to exude an overarching significance of sharing and collaboration,” Juarez said. “Sharing artwork, sharing ideas and values, sharing an evening with family and friends, sharing food and gifts; all of these factors contribute to my own primary motivation as an art maker: giving and sharing.”
“I think after a very challenging semester, I started to learn to value myself and to treat myself with value afterwards,” said Kassandra Vasquez, NMSU art student and exhibition participant. “My self-portraits portray the meaning I’m putting to myself now after going through challenges. And I think everybody should be putting value to themselves, because we’re all humans and we are valuable.”
Vasquez said her self-portraits are based in different mediums and show the importance of whatever you’re going through and whatever changes you want to make in your life, you are still valuable.
“I think it’s also important for NMSU, because it emphasizes and encourages all majors to participate in such a creative way and know that your artwork or any type of work is valued here,” Vasquez said.
The event provides all NMSU students the opportunity to display their work professionally.
The deadline for students to submit art is Friday, Oct. 25. To apply, visit https://form.jotform.com/242559219648165.
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CUTLINE: New Mexico State University’s William B. Conroy Honors College will host its third annual Honors Art Exhibition: The Collective Awareness Friday, Nov. 22. Amber Martinez’s artwork, “Terrain,” was showcased in last year’s exhibition. (NMSU photo by Elizabeth McCall)