Northwest Arts Center presents mezzotint exhibition by printmaker Whitney
MINOT, N.D. – The Northwest Arts Center presents ‘Grand Entry,’ by artist and printmaker Linda Whitney, INT’L Paperworks 2022 Best of Show award winner. On view from April 2 to April 25, Whitney’s solo exhibition presents mezzotint prints that explore a love and celebration of indigenous culture and traditional dance.
Whitney’s mezzotints were born out of childhood love of Native American culture, an introduction to printmaking at a very young age and her experiences as a very shy dyslexic girl. Her late husband was a traditional powwow dancer and powwow announcer, and they spent many years among his people.
“The celebration of the Powwow is a declaration of the strength and tenacity of the indigenous cultures of this continent,” Whitney states. “The beautiful regalia is a testament to the history and creativity of the people. The drumbeat accompanies the dancers and is felt in one's chest is also considered the heartbeat of mother earth. The songs are the oral history of the people.”
Whitney’s intricate images are printed from hand-rocked copper plates and painted with pigments gathered from the earth. The mezzotint process itself is time-consuming and elaborate.
“It gives me time for reflection. Each part of the process is hopefully honoring and respecting the long history of the indigenous culture,” she says.
Whitney does not consider her images portraits of people, but endeavors to embody the movement of the dancers and the texture, beauty, and detail of the regalia they wear while reflecting the strength and tenacity of their history. She creates this body of work as a tribute to her late powwow dancing husband, her adopted grandmother, and their people.
Whitney is professor emeritus who in her own words "lives in her studio," which may seem like hyperbole except for the time and dedication needed to craft each print. “Basically, I’m a crabby, old rocker," she remarked.
Her mezzotints have traveled to over 400 exhibitions throughout North America and Europe; and to Australia, New Zealand, Serbia, Bulgaria, Nicaragua, Russia, India, and China. Her work was given one of four international awards at the last full International Mezzotint Festival. She is currently working on a body of work for four solo shows scheduled for 2024-2025 and a two-woman exhibition in 2025. Her passion is making mezzotints, observing powwow dancers, and working with her three-legged rescue pit bull.
A closing reception and online viewing will be held on Thursday, April 25 from 6:30-8 p.m. Whitney will be giving a virtual artist’s talk at 7 p.m. from her Valley City studio. The reception can be attended either in person or online from the Northwest Arts Center’s Facebook Live.
Accompanying Whitney’s mezzotints in the gallery will be selections of lithograph prints by Fritz Scholder from the Minot State University Permanent Collection. The exhibitions are available for viewing Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday 1-5 p.m. It is closed holidays. The Walter Piehl Gallery is located on the lower level of the Gordon B. Olson Library at Minot State University, with its own entrance on the south side of the library. The exhibition and related events are free and open to the public.
The Northwest Arts Center and programming is supported in part by a grant from the North Dakota Council on the Arts, which receives funding from the state legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.
ON VIEW
Grand Entry: Mezzotints by Linda Whitney April 2-26, 2024
Grand Entry: Linda Whitney April 2-26, 2024
EXHIBITION CREDIT
These projects are funded in part by a grant from the North Dakota Council on the Arts, which receives funding from the state legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.
RELATED PROGRAMS
Grand Entry Reception & Online Viewing
Thursday, April 25, 2024, 6:30-8 p.m.
Northwest Arts Center, Minot State University
www.facebook.com/NorthwestArtsCenter/live
NORTHWEST ARTS CENTER
The Northwest Arts Center is a non-profit arts center operating on the campus of Minot State University. The Center houses the Walter Piehl Gallery, a public reception area, and climate-controlled collections storage and display for Minot State University’s Permanent Art Collection and Native American Collections. Over the years the Center has enriched the artistic life of northwest North Dakota with year-round art exhibitions, a performing arts series, a public lecture series, and numerous workshops and artists-in-residence activities.
GENERAL INFORMATION
The Northwest Arts Center is located at Minot State University, 500 University Ave. W, Minot, ND, 58707. The Walter Piehl Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday 1-5 p.m. and by appointment. Gallery entrance and parking are on the south side of the Gordon B. Olson Library. A visitor parking permit is available on request at the gallery office. Exhibitions, receptions and other programming are free and open to the public.
PRESS CONTACTS
Greg Vettel, Director, Northwest Arts Center, 701.858.3264 | gregory.vettel@minotstateu.edu
Nengi Dominabo, Marketing Assistant, Northwest Arts Center, 701.858.3264 | nac@minotstateu.edu
About Minot State University
Minot State University is a public university dedicated to excellence in education, scholarship, and community engagement achieved through
rigorous academic experiences, active learning environments, commitment to public service, and a vibrant campus life.
Published: 04/19/24
