By Christina Munster, Student Writer
She lays her brushes and utensils out, one by one. Mixing her paint she prepares herself to work on her artwork for class. The room is full of abstract, beautiful paintings and sketches. This room, along with two others is part of the Visual Arts wing at Northwestern for senior, Princess Edenuga, an English major minoring in Visual Arts from Nigeria, to use for homework, classes and personal projects 24 hours of the day.
The Visual Arts degree is only currently offered as a minor, but with interest growing. The degree began 6 years ago. With numbers doubling from years past, the program is up to 20 students minoring, spanning from majors like Princess in English to Pre-Med.
There are a variety of courses offered within the department and not just focusing on one area of art. Examples include: Life Drawing of life models, Oil Painting, Natural History, Fundamentals of Two-Dimensional Art, Advanced Painting and Drawing Studio and more.
The program offers a artist in residence each year and the first will be Britynn Davis, who received her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in Fiber and Material Studies and BFA in Graphic Design from the University of Central Arkansas. Davis will be arriving, Friday September 30. Davis has a local connection with both her grandparents being Ranger alumni.
Kyle Larson of Sacramento, California, is in his second year at Northwestern and is the Director of the Visual Arts Department. Larson received his MFA in Painting from Boston University and holds a BA and MA in Visual Art from California State University, Sacremento.
Princess Edenuga has learned a lot with Larson and the program at the Northwestern. “I’ve learned a lot about art: Dimensions, shadows and light. I feel as though size of class helps greatly. It builds confidence.” Edenuga said.
Larson said, “ I see the program growing with as more knowledge of the program grows.”