With hundreds of paintings, sculptures and photos, students are forming the LSU Union Art Gallery’s biggest show of the year.
The LSU Student Art Show will accept works at the gallery Sunday Feb. 27 and Monday Feb. 28, said Judi Stahl, Gallery director and University graduate.
The exhibit is a student competition for a total of $1,700 in prize money, Stahl said.
Most of the competitors are art majors, but all majors are encouraged to participate, Stahl said.
The LSU Union Art Gallery Committee, the Co-Op Bookstore and the LSU Union Bookstore sponsor the exhibit, Stahl said.
Stahl said from March 4 to March 6, between 4,000 and 5,000 visitors will see more than 250 student pieces in the 30-year-old exhibit.
Jurors will narrow that number down to 90 works March 7, Stahl said.
The judges will look for expression, originality and individuality said Rick Brunner, a juror, gallery owner and University graduate.
Christy Diniz Liffmann, a juror, local artist and University graduate joined the professional art world by way of the LSU Student Art Show.
“I sold my first painting for $500 out of the LSU Student Art Show,” Liffmann said.
20 years later, she is still selling art at shows all over the state. Liffmann said she has also exhibited in buildings such as the governor’s mansion.
“The whole art world is about getting your work out and letting people not only see it, but evaluate it,” said David Houston, a juror and museum curator.
Stahl said the art market is a rough, brutal market.
“This is a very gentle way to enter the competitive world of art,” Stahl said.
The better prepared a student is, the better their chances are of making art a profession, said Stuart Baron, director of the School of Art.
“95 percent of people who go to art school don’t continue in art because it’s a very difficult life,” Baron said.
The exhibit is important because it lets students experience presenting work professionally, Liffmann said.
“It gives you confidence to go on and be brave enough to experiment, to reach out and do more than you thought you could,” Liffmann said.
The competition reinforces the validity of the students’ art, Stahl said.