The Illini Union Art Gallery continues the Illini Union's mission to enrich the lives of students and the campus community through the freedom of expression and the value of each individual.
smart about art
The Illini Union Art Gallery is proud to feature shows from local and national artists, as well as works from university staff, faculty, and students. All shows are intended to represent the diverse spirit of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
ABOUT THE GALLERY
The Art Gallery is located on the first floor of the Illini Union in the northwest corner of the building. It is approximately 1900 square feet. The Illini Union serves as the student center for the University of Illinois. The Union provides services daily to thousands of students, faculty, staff, alumni, and visitors to the U of I campus.
ART GALLERY EXHIBITS
-
September 2021: Pandemic Abstractions Art by Jay Daugherty
Jay Daugherty's early work utilized Buddhist iconography paired with modern architecture and saturated colors to explore collective displacement, artistic agency, and the metaphysical life cycle of Samsara, the Buddhist concept of cyclical existence. As the 2020-2021 pandemic unfolded, his work expanded upon the initial incorporation of abstract color forms inside figures meant to represent the Dzogchen notion of the 'rainbow body' in which a highly realized spiritual master is said to dissolve into light. Relying upon phenomenology and Buddhist epistemology, these color forms led to process-oriented abstractions which were occasionally coupled with experiments in spatial illusionism, as demonstrated in the Line Series. By braiding these aesthetic regimes together, he developed a lyrically abstract style that explores the ontology of painting and perception. Additional information about the artist and photographs of his work can be viewed on his website: go.illinois.edu/IUBArtistJayD
July + August 2021: Serious Silliness: the adventures of agerAnter
Click here for the Video Virtual Experience