People view student work at the Faculty of Architecture's Year End Exhibition in 2023.
Student creativity, ingenuity and determination on display at two exhibitions this week
The BFA Honours Graduating Exhibition and the Faculty of Architecture's Year End Exhibition open on April 26
Friday is a big night for art, design and planning students at UM. On April 26, the School of Art and the Faculty of Architecture will be transformed into galleries where students will be sharing their works with the public.
More than 530 students will be exhibiting their works in the BFA Honours Graduating Exhibition and the Faculty of Architecture’s Year End Exhibition.
The shows are inspiring examples of what the next generation of artists, designers and planners have been working on this past year.
2024 BFA Honours Graduating Exhibition
A School of Art tradition, the 2024 BFA Honours Graduating Exhibition is the result of four years of creative energy, growth and passion from 30 emerging artists.
“The BFA Honours Exhibition is aways exciting because it is a celebration of the work and accomplishments of the graduating class,” says Alana MacDougall, sessional instructor and coordinator of the show. “It also represents an infusion of emerging artists, making fresh and innovative work, into the vibrant art ecosystem in Winnipeg and beyond.”
Opening Friday, April 26, the School of Art’s award-winning ARTlab will be transformed into an exhibition venue for two weeks, where the hallways, studios and classrooms will showcase a wide range of media and styles, including photography, sculpture, ceramics, painting, drawing, printmaking, installation, video and design.
“Visitors may be particularly excited to take in immersive installations and works that invite interaction. In this year’s exhibition, there are a number of students presenting works that are particularly reflective and personal,” she says.
MacDougall notes that the works on display include small-scale paintings encouraging thoughtful contemplation, large immersive installations and works that fall into the “exciting spaces that exist between defined disciplines”.
“The atmosphere is very joyful and celebratory,” says MacDougall. “It represents huge accomplishments academically and artistically.”
“The opening night offers the chance to talk with artists about their works, take in live music, and come together as a community to support and celebrate the exhibiting students,” she says.
BFA Honours Exhibition
April 26–May 10, 2024
School of Art – ARTlab
180 Dafoe Road, University of Manitoba
Opening Reception:
Friday, April 26, 5:00–8:00 pm
Faculty of Architecture Year End Exhibition
The Year End Exhibition annually showcases the work of over 500 undergraduate and graduate students from the Faculty of Architecture and is an opportunity for both celebration and reflection.
It is the largest and most exciting student celebration in the Faculty of Architecture, says Mimi Locher, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture.
“In the days leading up to the event, students and faculty members come together to transform our learning spaces into displays of student work and you can feel the energy in our buildings grow,” says Locher.
“On the night of April 26, when the DJs start the music and the popcorn machine hums, the Architecture 2 and Russell buildings will buzz with excitement.”
Student work is displayed in classrooms, studio spaces, hallways, entrance foyers and lounges. Descriptions of assignments are posted, and both students and professors are on hand to meet and discuss the work.
Students from environmental design, architecture, city planning, interior design and landscape architecture will be displaying their work. Some of the studios on display include:
- The Indigenous Planning Studio (Master City Planning) works with First Nations on planning projects identified by the partner First Nation. This year they continued work with the National Indigenous Residential School Museum of Canada at Long Plain First Nation presenting precedent studies of museum healing programs, creating a map of the museum site and researching new governance policies grounded in traditional knowledges.
Working with Opaskwayak Educational Services at Opaskwayak Cree Nation, they met with Elders and Knowledge Keepers to finalize the design of a giant floor map that highlights the Cree placenames in OCN’s territory, and also began developing on online StoryMap that will enable stories and photos of places on the map to be shared virtually. - The Fluvial Imprint Studio (ED3 Landscape and Urbanism) aims to develop an appropriate program for the sensitive riverbank forest of Creek Bend Park in St. Vital, making it accessible to citizens for recreation and leisure activities while enhancing the ecological qualities of the place, responding to existing site conditions and taking advantage of what is already there.
- The Praxis + Projection Studio (ED3 Architecture) explored the fundamentals of architecture design through proposals for small live/work buildings at the former Southwood Golf and Country Club. Designed for a researcher or artist “in residence” at the university, the structures include living quarters, a workspace for the residents to hone their métier, and a feature that allows the visiting public to engage with the outcomes of the residents’ endeavours.
- The Housing First Studio (Master Interior Design) proposed designing permanent supportive housing for people with high needs related to physical or mental health, developmental disabilities or substance use. The design proposals consider a four-floor location on Osborne Avenue and must provide services and communal resources on the main floor with housing and living areas on the remaining floors.
“This event is an important venue for our students to showcase projects that have consumed many hours of hard work and also provides an opportunity for students, faculty, and the public to engage with the whole range of research and creative work that is undertaken in the faculty,” says Locher.
“As the dean of the Faculty of Architecture, it is my absolute pleasure to hear the pride in student voices as they discuss their projects with family and friends.”
2023-2024 Year End Exhibition
Friday, April 26, 2024
6:00 – 10:00 p.m.
John A. Russell Building & Architecture 2 Building
University of Manitoba
The Year End Exhibition is also open Monday, April 29 and Tuesday April 30, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Both the BFA Honours Exhibition and the Architecture Year End Exhibition are free and open to the public.
Stay tuned for more information about the MFA Thesis Exhibition, which opens on May 17.