Terry Wright, dean of the University of Central Arkansas College of Fine Arts and Communication, is one of the 46 Arkansas artists chosen for the 57th annual Delta Exhibition of Painting and Sculpture, scheduled for July 10-Sept. 20 at the Arkansas Arts Center in Little Rock.
Wright’s piece, “Trapeze Anxiety,” is the only tie to UCA selected for the exhibition.
“The Delta is widely considered to be among the most prestigious of regional juried art exhibitions,” Wright said. “I am very pleased to have been selected and honored to be in the company of so many superb regional artists.”
According to arkansasartscenter.org/delta, the Delta began in 1958 “to feature contemporary work by artists from Arkansas and bordering states.” It has expanded and now includes works in all media “as showcase for the dynamic vision of the artists of the Mississippi Delta region.” The 2015 exhibit adds “innovative use of materials and an experimental approach to subject matter” to the Delta region’s “strong traditions of craftsmanship and observation.”
George Dombek, an acclaimed watercolorist and previous Delta exhibitor and award winner, is juror. He selected the artworks to be exhibited among 882 pieces submitted by 380 artists and will choose the $2,500 Grand Award and two $750 Delta Awards. The Contemporaries, an auxiliary membership group of the AAC, will choose a $250 Contemporaries Delta Award winner.
Wright, who came to UCA in 1983 and was hired full-time in 1985, earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Drama from Morningside College, his Master of Arts in English and American Literature from the University of Arkansas and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Bowling Green. He is a professor of Writing with teaching specialties in poetry, science fiction, horror fiction and illustrated narrative.
“Although I have a well-established career as a writer, I am probably better known online as a visual artist,” Wright said. “I suspect most people think of me as a dean, but I am also a practicing/professional poet and artist.”
His visual artwork has been exhibited both nationally (Museum of Computer Art in New York) and locally (Small Works on Paper exhibitions from the Arkansas Arts Council) and has also been featured in numerous print and online art/literary journals, including “Citron Review,” “Foliate Oak,” “New Verse News,” “Potion,” “Pure Francis,” “Queen Mob’s Teahouse,” “Sliver of Stone,” “Switchback,” “Third Wednesday,” “USA Today,” and others. In 2005, his work was a cover/feature story in “IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications” magazine. His work has also been featured on many book and CD covers, including one for the Official Grateful Dead Bootleg Series.
For more information, contact Wright at (501) 450-3293 or terryw@uca.edu.
-30-
