Junior fashion design major Rachael Edmiston looks at artwork in the Verder Hall gallery opening yesterday evening. Students from Verder Hall submitted their work for the gallery, and the work could be juried into an exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary

Credit: Steve Schirra

An abstract Norma Jean, photographs of Scottish performers and paintings of breakfast foods can all be seen in Verder Hall.

The residence hall celebrated its annual student show last night during an open house in the Verder Gallery located on the first floor. Art of all mediums created by students that reside in the hall are being displayed this week and could possibly be shown in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland.

The show has been a part of Verder for the past five years and has a way of bringing people together.

“It helps build the art community. Having a studio where students live gets them excited,” said Cody Thomaselli, senior art major and artist-in-residence of the hall. “It is a great experience for students who are going into an art-related profession.”

The use of deadlines and the chance to get art shown on a studio wall is also a good way to get students acquainted with what it will be like in the professional art world, Thomaselli said.

As one of three artists-in-residence, he helps students who live in the building and gives advice on everything from classes to which canvases to buy. The studio in Verder is also part of his responsibility and the student show is one of the most important openings, he said.

“I think it’s important that students have this opportunity to share their work. In professional galleries it is hard to get your work in unless you have a name,” he said. “Here, everyone has a chance to get their work on the wall.”

All artwork that was submitted made its way to the studio walls and could go farther.

Thomaselli and Charles Malone, Verder residence hall director, are working toward having some of the art make it to the walls of MOCA, a museum that shows community works as well as well-known artists.

“It’s a great way to get their names out into the professional world,” Malone said.

After this week’s show, a review team from the university will view the work and decide which pieces will be submitted to the MOCA review board.

And the future looks bright.

“I’ve been speaking with the people from MOCA, and they are excited about possibly showing our work,” Thomaselli said. “We had a lot of nice pieces this year.”

Carolyn Kelly is one of 20 students who is proud to have her work in the Verder studio and is excited about the possibility of getting into MOCA.

“I hope a lot of people get in,” she said. “It is a great opportunity to make contacts, and it’s good to expose everyone to art.”

The senior visual communications design major worked with Thomaselli in curating the show. She said the two worked hard to organize the flow of the gallery around color and mediums so the viewer could get a better understanding of the art pieces.

Anyone is welcome to visit the gallery, Thomaselli said. It will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. this week.

Contact College of Architecture and Environmental Design and School of Art reporter Jackie Mantey at [email protected].