The Shafer Art Gallery will host a virtual introduction for a pair of exhibits, “Exquisite Miniatures,” by Rachelle and Wes Siegrist and “Transmogrifications,” by Brian Hutchinson from 6:30-7 p.m., July 9 via facebook.com/shafergallery. The exhibits will run through August 22. Admission is free.

Exquisite 

Miniatures

This exhibit consists of 50 signature paintings including landscapes, portraits, still-life images, wildlife, and other subjects by Wes and Rachelle Siegrist.  The exhibition is accompanied by a book of the same title about Wes and Rachelle Siegrist and their art, with an introduction by David J. Wagner.

Gallery Director Dave Barnes said the exhibit consists of very tiny masterpieces sure to create a sense of awe in all who see them.

“Let’s work a cliché here,” he said. “Sometimes, really big things do come in small packages. The ‘Exquisite Miniatures’ Exhibit features amazingly big vistas and ideas on the smallest canvasses. I once saw an exhibit in China of monochromatic paintings done on single grains of rice. You had to use a magnifying glass to be sure something was there.  However, that was more of a parlor trick, like a flea circus. The paintings in this exhibit are fully realized and traditionally rendered watercolor paintings and need to be seen to be believed. The scale does more than signal preciousness; it asks the viewer for an intense, focused kind of looking that is fully rewarded.”

Brian Hutchinson’s 

Transmogrifications

Barnes said having the two exhibits at the same time is a deliberate move to allow patrons to experience two completely different artistic styles and stories in one fell swoop. Aesthetically, they are different, but the impact is powerful for both.

“Brian Hutchinson has been a great friend of the Shafer Gallery,” he said. “As a dynamic art instructor at Fort Hays State University, Brian admonishes his students to invest a big hunk of themselves in their work. He follows his own advice. Brian’s vision is very personal and is delivered with technical precision and grounded in a solid aesthetic. When people ask me to describe Brian’s art, my response is that his work is about creating the opportunity for the viewer to enter into his unique, sometimes dark, state of mind, while at the same time being encouraged to create a mind or emotion place of their very own. In fact, even the story he tells is not yet fully formed until the viewer reacts to the evocative images that Brian presents.”

For more information, contact Barnes by calling 620-792-9342 or email barnesd@bartonccc.edu. Gallery Summer Hours are Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is always free.