Art + Design

Winter 2026

Call for Entries: CWU Art + Design Alumni Exhibition: Crossroad and Connections III
Eligibility: Alumni who graduated between 1996 and 2010
Extended Deadline: February 8, 2026
Entry Fee: FREE for up to four entries
Alumni Jurors: Lana Robinson, Lisa Soranaka, and Jenny Walton
Exhibit on View:  April 9—May 2, 2026

The Sarah Spurgeon Gallery at Central Washington University will host Crossroads and Connections III, a juried exhibition featuring artwork by CWU Department of Art + Design alumni who graduated between 1996 and 2010. Alumni who received undergraduate and graduate degrees during that timeframe are eligible to enter. The exhibit will be on view to the public from April 9 through May 2, 2026.

Entries are free, and up to four artworks may be submitted. The deadline is February 8. We encourage submissions in all media, including, but not exclusive to, graphic design and illustration, 2-dimensional studio art, 3-dimensional studio art, and video. Artwork needs to have been completed during the past five years (since 2020). A panel of three alumni jurors, including Lana Robinson, Lisa Soranaka, and Jenny Walton, will select the artwork that is to be included in the exhibition.

To read the complete prospectus and submit an entry please visit the CaFE website at this link.

FERROUS
Exhibit on View January 15—February 7, 2026

Opening Events, Thursday, January 15:
4 to 5 p.m., Curator's Talk by Renee Adams, Randall Hall, Room 117
5 to 7 p.m., Reception in the Sarah Spurgeon Gallery (Randall Hall, Room 141)

Panel Discussion, If I Had a Hammer
Thursday, January 29: 3:30 to 5:00 p.m., Black Hall, Room 107

Including artists Emmett Armand, Bianca Dorsey, and Margaret Jacobs. Discussion led by Lisa Geertsen, artist-blacksmith and founding board member of the Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths, and Dr. M. Eliatamby-O’Brien, CWU Director of the Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies Program.

Ferrous is a group exhibit of fifteen innovative contemporary artists from across the U.S. who transform iron into sculptural works of art. Historically tied to masculine labor and mass production, iron is now in the hands of artists who utilize its potential for expression, storytelling, and transformation. The featured artists include:  Renee Adams, Leah Aripotch, Emmett Armand, Elizabeth Brim, Anne Bujold, Kim Cridler, Maria Cristalli, Bruna D’Alessandro, Bianca Dorsey, Joy Fire, Rebekah Frank, Lisa Geertsen, Leah Gerrard, Margaret Jacobs (Akwesasne Mohawk), and Nina Rastgar.

This exhibit is supported by a grant from the City of Ellensburg Arts Commission and cosponsored by the Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths, the CWU Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies Program, and Brian and Elizabeth Frederick.

    

Ryan W. Kelly, Solo Exhibition
Exhibit on View February 19—March 14, 2026

Opening Events, Thursday, February 19:
4 to 5 p.m., Artist Talk, Randall Hall, Room 117
5 to 7 p.m., Reception in the Sarah Spurgeon Gallery (Randall Hall, Room 141)

Ryan W. Kelly’s studio practice ranges from ceramic object-based installations to performance and video. He draws inspiration from American mythology, historical inaccuracies, and the curious storytelling that finds its way into our material culture and decorative arts. He celebrates the myopic strangeness often preserved in our souvenirs, monuments, and commemorations. Kelly is an Associate Professor of Art, teaching ceramics and foundations at Western Washington University.