Released: April 7, 2009

Lincoln, Neb. - The final MFA Thesis Exhibition opens April 20 at the Eisentrager-Howard Gallery in Richards Hall on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln city campus. Three Master of Fine Arts candidates in the Department of Art and Art History will show their work in the exhibition.

MFA Thesis Exhibition III will run April 20-24 and features the work of John Carrasco, Autumn Cipala and Seth Green. A closing reception will be held April 24 from 5-7 p.m. in the gallery.

Carrasco's exhibition is entitled "A View of the Void" and captures voided space by way of large-scale secular sculptures that attract viewer interaction, yet deny interactivity between the viewer and the sculpture. The pieces within "A View of the Void" are comprised largely of plywood and steel. Carrasco received his B.F.A. in 2006 from Texas Tech University and is the 2008 recipient of the HSF/McNamara Creative Research Grant. He has shown nationally and his work is showcased in the permanent collection of Rocky Mount Arts Center in North Carolina.

Cipala's exhibition was untitled at press time. She aspires to make quiet, ethereal forms that require one to slow down-to notice the subtleties of form, surface and function. With thoughtful attention to detail, she invites the viewer to linger in contemplation and reflection, developing an intimate relationship with the object. Originally from Pennsylvania, Cipala received her B.F.A. in ceramic art from Alfred University in Alfred, N.Y. She apprenticed and worked with several potters and worked as a studio potter on the coast of Maine prior to coming to UNL. While at UNL, she was awarded a 2008 Graduate Student Fellowship Grant from the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts.

Green's exhibition is entitled "Bringing Spiritual Symbolism to a Material Plane." Spiritual symbolism is embedded into his ceramic vessels. They refer to religious architecture and to the ritual metal, ceramic and glass objects that most likely resided in holy edifices like these. Green is from Utah, where he received a B.A. in Art at Southern Utah University.

Gallery hours for these three MFA Thesis Exhibitions are Monday-Friday, noon to 4 p.m.