Exhibition showcases fine arts students

The first-ever group exhibition in Philadelphia by UD master of fine arts (MFA) candidates drew widespread attention—and hundreds of visitors during the opening reception alone—this spring.

The exhibition, which ran from May 12 through June 2 at the Crane Building in the city’s South Kensington neighborhood, included works of art in many different media and genres. To Kyla Luedtke, who exhibited five pieces of her combination of painting, drawing and printmaking, showing the art in Philadelphia proved to be a big advantage for the UD students.

“I’m just so grateful to have the exhibition in Philadelphia, especially when we have other shows going on in the same building,” Luedtke said of exhibitions by MFA candidates from the University of Pennsylvania, photography seniors at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and undergraduate printmaking students at Temple University’s Tyler School of Art. “The cross-pollination is really nice.”

Virginia Bradley, professor of art and chairperson of UD’s Department of Art, said the proximity of the show to the Philadelphia arts community gave the students’ work more visibility. “We hope that this is the beginning of a new tradition and that we’ll be here every year,” she said at the opening.

Tom Apple, dean of UD’s College of Arts and Sciences, says he wants to make the exhibition at the Crane Building a regular event as a way to showcase both the students’ work and the University’s MFA program. “Philadelphia is in our backyard, so we would like to have a presence here,” he says.