Celebrating an Artist's Legacy
SDSU's University Art Gallery will feature the work of Wendy Maruyama and her students.
On view in the University Art Gallery through Oct. 30 is "A Long Engagement: Wendy Maruyama and Her Students."
The exhibition features the work of more than 30 SDSU furniture design and woodworking students and alumni.
The show highlights the impact of Professor Emeritus Wendy Maruyama and her teaching legacy. An SDSU alumnus, Maruyama was one of the first of two women to enroll in a master of fine arts program in furniture making in the United States.
She emerged on the furniture scene in the 1980s and presented works in abstract form that used non-traditional materials and often included popular cultural references. At the time, woodworking was a traditional field in which conventional reverence for wood was expected and adhered to by all in the field.
Inclusive art
When Maruyama joined SDSU in 1989, as a member of the faculty, she brought with her a capacity to include all disciplines of the visual art world, and a work ethic second to none. She is known to her students as honest, direct, critical, but supportive. For the last 26 years, Maruyama has worked to develop rigorous curriculum, better the facilities in the school, and secure funding for the program.
Today, the SDSU Furniture Design and Woodworking Program is part of a comprehensive arts program in applied design, grounded in the interdisciplinary nature of contemporary art practice. It is a nationally recognized program with an impressive list of successful alumni well-known in studio furniture design, gallery ownership, and university faculty.
More information
The University Art Gallery is free and open to the public. It's located on the east end of the art building and is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.
