The (Art) Show Must Go On

The SISAL exhibition was canceled, due to the coronavirus outbreak, but the Page Waterman show has gone ahead—albeit virtually. Instead of being mounted in the gallery, the entire show can be viewed online at the Page Waterman website.

Following last year’s spring art shows, Rivers art department chair David Saul explained that the Page Waterman show is the brainchild of alumnus Sturdy Waterman ’74, who owns the gallery. “Back in 2017, he decided to celebrate the gallery’s centennial with the first Next Up! exhibition. It was very successful and now has turned into an annual event.”

Like so much else, this year’s event comes with a twist. Saul explains that, because of the current situation, there were fewer works submitted and fewer schools participating. Seven Rivers students submitted a total of 12 artworks. Unlike in years past, Saul believes, all submitted works were included in the show. But the exhibition still includes an element of competition, and of the 12 artworks by Rivers students, one was awarded a third-place award in its category and two earned honorable mentions.

Saul is pleased that the gallery made the decision to move ahead with the show, despite the difficulties. “This event has become an annual springtime tradition, and we’re grateful to the Page Waterman Gallery for creating this virtual exhibit to celebrate student creativity during these challenging times,” says Saul. “I am glad that Rivers is represented in this show with a broad range of 2D and 3D media, including drawings, prints, photographs, and ceramic artwork reflecting the diverse offerings of our visual arts program.”

The students represented in the Page Waterman show are Aliesha Campbell ’20 (stoneware and porcelain); Nicholas Hardy ’20 (photography, three works, including an honorable mention award); Dylan Mentis ’20 (stoneware); George Reinhardt ’20 (photography, three works, including a third-place award); Adebiyi Oyaronbi ’21 (drawing); Marin Broderick ’22 (printmaking and stoneware, two works); Keira Harder ’22 (drypoint print, honorable mention award).