Alumni artists returning to their roots

Two alumni are returning home for a special art exhibit. Tandem: Going Places Together is a two-person show by Terry Hildebrand [BFA(Hons)/2007] and Miriam Rudolph [BFA(Hons)/2007, BEd/2010] opening on Friday, September 11 at the Mennonite Heritage Centre Gallery (600 Shaftesbury Blvd. in Winnipeg).

Tea Set (2014) by Terry Hildebrand

The exhibit runs until October 27 and is an opportunity for the couple to showcase their very different works in the same space. “We are showing our work together, but we work very differently and in different mediums. Terry is a ceramic artist, I am a printmaker,” says Rudolph.

Terry and Miriam met 11 years ago during their first year at the U of M School of Art. Their journey together has brought them to Minneapolis for three years where Hildebrand completed his Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics at the University of Minnesota. The couple currently lives in Edmonton where Rudolph is working on her Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Alberta.

Rudolph has shown her work nationally and internationally in Asunción-Paraguay, at Global Print 2013 in Portugal, at the International Print Center New York, at the Highpoint Center for Printmaking – Minneapolis, in Washington D.C., at Martha Street Studio – Winnipeg, in Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa. Hildebrand currently works in a private studio and teaches a community workshop in Edmonton. His work is on display at the Alberta Craft Council Gallery and the Winnipeg Art Gallery Shop. Recently he has been part of several group shows including the NASH Gallery (Minneapolis), the Quarter Gallery (Minneapolis), the Winnipeg Art Gallery Shop, and the Manitoba Crafts Museum. He took part in a residency at the Banff Center for the Arts earlier this year and he has several group and solo exhibitions coming up at the Albert Craft Council Gallery in Edmonton.

At the exhibit Hildebrand will show functional ceramics on wooden structures, which invite the user to consider the conscious action of drinking and using a vessel. There will also be a table with smaller pots (mugs, bowls, teapots) available for purchase and immediate pick up.

“The main purpose of my utilitarian ceramic work is undeniably its function. The ritual of its use becomes a central experience,” says Hildebrand. “I create playful sets that entice the users to interact with each other and the tray. The sharing of food, drink, fellowship, and play lie at the heart of our existence and the conscious ritual and enjoyment of these are greatly enhanced by the experience of the visual and tactile senses that the ceramic wares address.”

Rudolph will exhibit a selection of thematically diverse suites of prints on display that reflect on life and the engagement with our surroundings.

Born and raised in Paraguay, Rudolph’s printmaking allows her to connect to her roots as well as adapt to her new home. “My map making was inspired by my move from Paraguay to Winnipeg and helped me to get to know and make sense of my new surroundings as well as store memories of places from home,” says Rudolph.

Assiniboine River Trail II (2015) by Miriam Rudolph

“My autobiographical work is a kind of visual diary through which I process experiences in my life,” says Rudolph. “My most recent work from graduate school combines my interest of the map-making with a more political issue that is close to my home and my heart in Paraguay, namely the changing landscapes of the Chaco region due to the rapid expansion of pastureland, economic growth, but also the destruction of the dry forests.”

The printmaking process is highly technical. The print begins as an idea that must be etched onto a copper plate (and more than one plate for additional colours). Once the plate is created it is inked and finally run through a manually operated printing press. “The moment when I lift the paper is magical every time,” says Rudolph.

Eric Postma