solo exhibition

Yamanashi City’s the Best!

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Morningside University board member Mia Sudo came to pick me up at my hotel in Tokyo on the morning of May 19th, and we traveled together to Yamanashi City where we met with Mayor Takagi and a number of other officials. I gifted the city with an 14x11” print of Paper Snow (紙吹雪) in a 16x20” mat, and also gave Mayor Takagi and other attendees a variety of gifts including my handmade small dishes and chopstick rests.

The mayor and city gifted me with a 20th anniversary of incorporation celebratory chopstick rest, postcards, a tenegui which has a capybara cartoon on it amongst other illustrations, and a beautiful tapestry made out of a portion of a kimono decorated with flying plovers (an iconographically significant bird in Japan).

They also took me along with some other honored guests who spoke English well and could serve as additional company for me out to lunch, and then in the afternoon I got to visit a second-grade classroom’s art lesson and a fifth-grade’s English lesson.

The next day, Toizumi-san, our driver, and honored guest Mizuochi-san picked me up and took me on a wonderful tour observing Mt. Fuji and Oshino Hakkai, stopping for a wonderful soba lunch - it was my favorite soba I’ve eaten in Japan, and I’ve eaten it a fair amount! We even drove up to the fifth station, where hikers commence their climb of Mt. Fuji! However, the path is closed until July, as it is too cold at the top of the volcano until late summer.

We also stopped by Fuefukigawa Fruit Park, visited the Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art, and also popped into an ice cream shop and visited an art supply and framing store.

The sheer amount of time that a number of Yamanashi City staff including Toshimi Toizumi-san, Chiemi Yokoyama-san, volunteer Maki Mizuochi-san, and many others put into showing me their home and surrounding areas was incredible. I even visited an onsen with Toizumi-san one evening!

On Saturday, May 24th, the closing reception, artist talk, and ceremony was held at Nezu Memorial Museum. Many people showed up, and one lovely woman told me about how she read quite a bit of my blog and was inspired by my research into Japanese culture, arts, and ikigai. She said she even read a short book on ikigai, thanks to me!

I am so thankful and honored by the generous hospitality that Yamanashi City showed me, and we all chose to say “see you again” rather than “goodbye” when the show closed!

My Solo Show in Yamanashi City is Open!

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I’m so excited to share that my solo show in Yamanashi City’s Nezu Memorial Museum opened today!

The exhibition poster I designed for Living Bridges: Art, Ecology, and Sister City Connections.

As you may already know from previous posts, Yamanashi City is the Japanese sister city of Sioux City; I met their visiting delegation in honor of our 20th year of this sister city relationship at Morningside University in November 2023 and then visited Yamanashi City with Morningside University board member Mia Sudo in July 2024 after my Arts Itoya residency in Takeo-onsen, Japan.

Between then and now, many folks have come together to help celebrate all of these connections and the 20th year of Yamanashi City’s incorporation by having me present a solo art show in Nezu Memorial Museum! This has been a monumental undertaking that could not have been accomplished without the support of many people including Morningside University board member Mia Sudo, the Morningside University administration, Yamanashi City mayor Takagi, Ms. Yokoyama from the Yamanashi City Local Resource Development Division, numerous Yamanashi City Hall staff and Morningside University colleagues.

Living Bridges: Art, Ecology, and Sister City Connections will be on exhibit from April 26 - May 24, 2025, and I will be on site during its final exhibition week!

Returning to Japan for Two Solo Shows in May 2025!

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As you may recall, I attended a month-long residency at Arts Itoya in Takeo-onsen, Japan in June 2024. Bookending my residency, I traveled to other locations in Japan including Sioux City’s sister city, Yamanashi City. I am now very excited to share that thanks to the support of the Yamanashi City Hall and the encouragement and backing of Morningside University board member Mia Sudo, I have been invited to return and have a solo show in Yamanashi City in May 2025 in celebration of the 20th anniversary of Yamanashi City incorporation at the Nezu Memorial Museum Exhibition Building. After that exhibition’s conclusion, the show and I will continue on to Kansai Gaidai University in Hirakata (part of the Kyoto metro). Yamanashi City, Kansai Gaidai University, and Morningside University are all assisting to make these amazing opportunities possible.

I am extremely honored and grateful for the chance to exhibit with both of these institutions! 楽しみです！ベストを尽くす！

Week 4 of the Arts Itoya Residency

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In my last week, our shows and artist talks were scheduled to take place on Wednesday, June 26th from 2-6pm. I was completely studio-focused in the days leading up to the reception, and I managed to get six paintings up for display; however, the sixth one wasn’t quite finished yet so I planned to continue to work on it at home. I’m pretty pleased with this amount of production in a four-week residency, though I definitely bolstered it by coming a week in advance to get over my jet lag while purchasing art materials and gathering reference experiences and imagery!

We had already packed up everything in the studio aside from the displayed artwork in order to host the reception on the 26th. I was departing on the morning of the 29th for Kyoto, and needed to ship my luggage to Tokyo before that. It seemed silly to me to revive my studio practice given all those details, so after the show ended, I deinstalled my artwork and took it and all my studio materials back to the house.

Then on the 27th, Emily and I visited Arita! Takeo-onsen, the town which hosts the Arts Itoya residency, is located in Saga prefecture in Kyushu (the southwestern Japanese main island). Saga prefecture has three particularly famous porcelain towns: Arita, Imari, and Karatsu, and I wanted to visit at least one of them! In terms of the porcelain produced, I like both Arita and Karatsu in terms of aesthetics (Imari porcelain is a little too ostentatious for my taste). Arita is much closer to Takeo than Karatsu, so it was the better choice for a day trip in terms of both time and cost. We first stopped at their ceramic museum, and then walked to a famous studio called Kouraku Kiln. After that, we walked to the major porcelain shop center Arita Sera and ate lunch. We then visited a LOT of porcelain stores (we probably visited about 50, but I think there might’ve been 100 there). I’ve never seen such a large, single-subject shopping district before and I am pretty confident it’s impossible to take in all at once; there’s too much to look at and our feet were also voicing complaints. There was so much to see that we barely bought anything due to the mental overload, the very real luggage size/weight limitations, difficulties in transporting fragile ceramics, and the fact that we’d already bought some ceramics from a store in Takeo; we stuck to small items only. I bought a gift and four pieces, and Emily bought two gifts and two pieces.

On the 28th, we visited Nagasaki. My former colleague Masa Watanabe had urged me to do so, and Hiro seconded the recommendation. We made our first stop at their prefectural art museum, and then went to lunch before checking out their very small Chinatown and then wrapping up at a Buddhist temple, Fukusaiji. That evening, Hiro helped me ship my two large pieces of luggage to my Tokyo hotel with Yamato Transport. And with that, my last week at the Arts Itoya residency came to a close!

Photos of My Solo Show "Materiality"

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Whew, it’s a busy fall! My solo show Materiality has closed, and I’ve been hard at work with the aim of getting all the sold pieces from it into the hands of the buyers. Here are some photos of the exhibition and reception! I was very pleased with the show installation and flow, which was due to our amazing preparator Shannon Sargent. There was great community turnout for the reception - it was a fantastic event.

My Phoenix Athens Solo Show: Athenian Habitat

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The below gallery of images is from my Phoenix Athens Gallery solo show!

Athenian Habitat by Shelby Prindaville
Exhibition dates: 15 – 22 July 2023 at Phoenix Athens Gallery, Asklipiou 89, Athens, Greece
Reception: Thursday 20 July 2023 19:00-22:00

I am really happy with this body of work; everything installed on the walls was created in five weeks, and I even managed to complete the piece displayed on a small easel in the front window before the reception.

Materiality Solo Show in Morningside's Eppley Art Gallery!

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I’ve been fortunate enough to receive Morningside University Ver Steeg and Morningside Experience Grant funding to support my research through my summer artist residencies at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine and Phoenix Athens these past couple of years - and now, I am exhibiting that artwork (as well as artwork from my Whiterock Conservancy residency, raku workshops, and general studio practice) in a solo show on campus in Eppley Art Gallery!

I titled this show Materiality because of the wide variety of media on exhibit; for artwork in this show, I dug my own wild clays, made my own ash glazes and saggar-fired plant vines onto pottery, built substrates out of recycled wood and concrete, worked atop unusual surfaces including antique ceramic tiles and papyrus, incorporated a wide range of veterinary materials, harvested natural cave pigment, and made use of scientific processes including chromatography and frontal polymerization.

Materiality is on display August 23-October 7, 2023. It’s open to the public on weekdays during business hours, which will be 8am-5pm once we have student workers begin their shifts, but until then it’ll be 8am-4pm. The show reception will be Wednesday, September 26th from 3-4pm - I’ll give a short artist talk, we’ll serve refreshments, and the event is free and open to the public!

Shelby Prindaville's Eppley Art Gallery Fall 2023 "Materiality" show poster.

My Solo Show at Phoenix Athens!

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As you can probably surmise, I tend to post a week or so after whatever it is I’m doing. It takes time to process photos, write up posts, title and measure artwork, and so forth. It’s also nice to space out new artwork posts, so that online viewers have time to appreciate each one! This means that though I’ve only published three finished pieces and covered three weeks here in blog entries so far, I’m actually part of the way through my fifth week and have finished six pieces of artwork with two more in progress… and my solo show is rapidly approaching.

Below are the show details and statement, for anyone who happens to be in Athens!

“Athenian Habitat” by Shelby Prindaville

Exhibition dates: 15 – 22 July 2023 at Phoenix Athens Gallery, Asklipiou 89, Athens, Greece

Reception: Thursday 20 July 2023 19:00-22:00

Shelby Prindaville is interested in the human role in shaping an ecological balance and creates art pieces centered on the beautiful fragility and resilience of the natural world. Her interdisciplinary art practice demonstrates the joy of contemplative engagement with nature as well as provides a taste of the sorrow a disconnect with nature can bring. 

Shelby encountered each of the animal and plant species depicted in her paintings on Mount Lycabettus during a sequence of hikes undertaken throughout her residency, and drew additional inspiration from ancient Greek ruins; the Greek history of conquest, influence, and cultural fusion; urban construction materials; Athenian museums’ broken artifact presentations; a spotting scope’s field of view; the etymology and mythological background of the Eurasian sparrowhawk’s scientific name; and the law of conservation of energy. 

While in residence at Phoenix Athens, Shelby has been working with new-to-her materials that have been locally or regionally sourced – concrete, broken segments of marble and paving stones – and in some cases, historically meaningful: papyrus and 19th century antique tiles.  These materiality explorations and her desire to give her finished pieces their best chance of long-term archival stability have necessarily involved experimentation and occasional failure or redirection.  She has visited two sandblasting facilities, used an angle grinder for the first and several subsequent times with a variety of different heads and attachments, tried out crackle paste, and limited herself to a color palette inspired by archaic natural pigments.

Shelby Prindaville is the Art Department Chair, Gallery Director, and Associate Professor of Art at Morningside University in Sioux City, Iowa, USA.  Her studio practice combines her interests in the sciences and art.  She has been selected as a World Wildlife Fund tour artist, was invited to be the first-ever artist in residence at a veterinary school in the United States, and has previously completed twelve other artist residencies.  Her website artbyshelby.com displays her work across a wide variety of art disciplines including painting, mixed media, relief, sculpture, ceramics, and interactive installations.

NCK Today Coverage of Solo Show and Guest Speaker Event

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Screenshot of the NCK Today press coverage.

I grew up in Concordia, Kansas, and attended high school at Concordia High School (CHS). Recently, CHS Career and Community Coordinator Brandt Hutchinson reached out and invited me to join their notable alumni speaker series called Pause PAWS.

I agreed as long as we arranged for an exhibition of my artwork at the same time; if I’m going to be speaking about my career as a professional artist, it is important to me that the audience has a chance to see my artwork firsthand. Brandt immediately coordinated with the Frank Carlson Library to host a solo show in the Frank Carlson Design Room.

The show installation, opening reception, and lecture are all coming up this week! Here’s the first piece of press about it, via NCK Today. As the article shares, “Shelby will be speaking to current Concordia High School students from 9 am to 9:30 am on Thursday, February 16th in the historic CHS Auditorium.  The presentation will be live-streamed for the general public by Chris Stiles' high school video production team on their YouTube channel, USD 333 Media Productions.

The Frank Carlson Library will be hosting Shelby's art exhibit from February 17th to March 3rd.  The public is welcome to meet the artist by attending the opening reception for the exhibit from 5 pm to 6 pm on Thursday, February 16th at the Frank Carlson Library.”

Longview Farm House Art Gallery Solo Show Photos!

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My Longview Farm House Art Gallery solo show in Town and Country, MO (a St. Louis suburb), is still up through November 17th! It is viewable during gallery hours, which are weekdays from 9am-4pm, and the address is 13525 Clayton Road, Town & Country, MO 63141. For those of you who can’t visit in person, here are some photos!

I also took a few photos while checking out the Gateway Arch (both from outside as well as from the inside at the top through the small windows) and the Missouri Botanical Garden with my good friend Susan Nelson!

Upcoming: Longview Farm House Art Gallery Solo Show

I’m excited to share I have yet another solo show coming up very soon! Later this week, I will drive down to the St. Louis suburbs to install at Longview Farm House Art Gallery in Town & Country, MO. This show will run from October 6 - November 17, 2022. It will be viewable during gallery hours, which are weekdays from 9am-4pm.

The opening reception will be held at Longview Farm House Art Gallery on Thursday, October 6th from 4:30-7:30pm. The address is 13525 Clayton Road, Town & Country, MO 63141.

After I return, I’ll share some photos with you!

My Lauritzen Gardens Show!

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If you haven’t checked my solo show at Lauritzen Gardens (Omaha’s Botanical Center) out yet, you have a bit more than a week left to do so as it closes at the end of the business day on September 24th! If you plan to check it out, make sure to pick up an image list from the entry kiosk to reference while looking at the artwork as well as a rack card - both for my own artwork on the face, as well as the show info and future exhibition information on the back.

Here are some photos of the installation for those of you who aren’t able to see it in person!

Lauritzen Gardens Solo Show

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Just a reminder that I will be installing my solo show at Lauritzen Gardens (Omaha’s botanical center) today, and you can see the show in person from August 17-September 24, 2022! I’ll publish some photos from my installation and of the exhibition itself in a subsequent post for those of you unable to visit in person.

Screenshot of Shelby Prindaville's exhibition listing on Lauritzen's website

My LSU Vet Med Exhibition and Opening Reception!

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Here are photos from my solo exhibition and opening reception at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, co-sponsored by the LSU School of Art! The reception was amazing; over 80 people attended and they were all very engaged throughout the evening. We began with a welcome speech delivered by LSU School of Veterinary Medicine Dean Oliver Garden, followed by speeches from LSU College of Art + Design Dean Alkis Tsolakis and LSU School of Art Director Rod Parker, and then my artist lecture!

By the end of the evening, 6 of the 8 paintings/relief/sculpture were sold (only Hosts and Singularity remain available), and 3 of the 13 ceramics were purchased in addition to countless prints and greeting cards. Through the course of the rest of the exhibition, 3 more ceramics sold along with additional prints and greeting cards. I was a little surprised at how popular the mosquito reproductions were as they sold out quite quickly, but I’ve since learned there’s a well-known joke that mosquitoes are the state bird of Louisiana!

In the slideshow, you’ll see that in addition to the artwork walls and reproduction sales table, I also had a display table of some of the veterinary materials - medicines, chemicals, stains, tools, bones - I used in each of the pieces of artwork!

My Upcoming LSU Vet Med Artist in Residence Exhibition Details!

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The show poster and details have been released for my LSU School of Veterinary Medicine Artist in Residence exhibition, co-sponsored by the LSU School of Art! Here’s the LSU College of Art & Design’s event page for it, and below is a copy of the image and text.

Artist-in-Residence, LSU School of Veterinary Medicine
July 25, 2022 5:30-7:30 p.m.
LSU Vet Med Library
LSU School of Veterinary Medicine presents the art of Shelby Prindaville, and invites you to a lecture and reception featuring our inaugural Artist-in Residence. The lecture, exhibition opening, and artist’s reception will be at LSU Vet Med Library and is co-sponsored by LSU School of Art.

Upcoming: Lauritzen Gardens Solo Show!

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I’ll be exhibiting a solo show titled Conservation Conversations at Omaha’s Lauritzen Gardens botanical center from August 17 through September 24, 2022. Mark your calendars!

If you can believe it, this exhibition has been in the works since 2020 (I’ll give you one guess as to why it took a couple more years). Below are the front and back of a rack card from Lauritzen Gardens advertising their 2022 exhibition calendar (you can click in for more detail) - I was honored that they selected one of my paintings for the large facing image!

My Artist For the Earth Opening Reception!

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Well, Earth Day 2021 was quite eventful! I’ll do a separate post on the ART 225 Painting I project we took on earlier in the day, but this post is all about how my opening reception went for my Artist for the Earth solo show at The Block Gallery in downtown Sioux City.

First of all, I want to say a big thank you to the Morningside Art Department federal work study studio art assistants Devyn Reilly and Rachel Steinkamp for helping me to install the show. While I’ve installed many a show alone, it is so much nicer to have skilled help working alongside you! I also had Rachel take some nice shots of the show after we installed it, so I might add more to the blog later, but here are a few photos I took tonight.

The last photo in the grid is thanks to some of my lovely friends, who not only came out to support me at the reception but also gifted me with a bouquet of flowers and purchased artwork and reproductions. A bunch of wonderful colleagues, students, and community members also came through and many left with various pieces of artwork as well. It was a lovely evening!

Upcoming Solo Exhibition: Artist for the Earth Shelby Prindaville at The Block Gallery

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I was invited to have a solo exhibition at The Block Gallery in downtown Sioux City, and since my work is ecologically-focused, gallery director Gia Emory and I agreed that opening the show on Earth Day 2021 seemed appropriate! I also went ahead and registered it with the Earth Day Network, which coordinates Artists for the Earth and thus gave me an easy show title to boot!

This show will not only display some of my 2D work, but will also include pieces of my ceramics! I’m quite excited about that, as this will be the first time ever that I’ll be exhibiting ceramic artwork.

The exhibition poster for my Artist for the Earth show at The Block Gallery!

The exhibition poster for my Artist for the Earth show at The Block Gallery!