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The mission of the O’Connor Art Gallery is to present the Dominican University academic community with timely, relevant and focused contemporary art exhibitions that foster critical and thoughtful dialogue across disciplines. Located in Lewis Hall, steps away from many of the art department’s studios and classrooms, the gallery is particularly accessible to art students as a space for intimate engagement and reflection. In addition to curated exhibitions, the gallery is the site of an annual juried student show and senior thesis exhibitions.

The gallery is open to the public during the academic year.  

  • Monday–Friday, 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, 11:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.*

Free and all are welcome.

For information, please contact Jennifer Mannebach, director, at galleryinfo@dom.edu.

Location:  Lewis Hall, Fourth Floor. 
*Please note that guests may have to access Lewis Hall through the side entry of the library on Saturdays.

Student Juried Exhibition

March 20–April 3
Reception and Awards Ceremony: Wednesday, March 20, 4:00–6:00 p.m.

The Annual Student Juried Exhibition is open to all currently enrolled Dominican University students. Sponsored by the O’Connor Gallery and the Department of Art and Design, awards will be given in multiple categories, showcasing a variety of media.

Come celebrate and support the dynamic art and creativity of our students!

Senior Capstone Exhibition

April 10–27
Reception: Friday, April 12, 6:00–8:00 p.m.

PAST EXHIBITS

The Slowfire Art Foundation

January 21–February 24
Slowfire
Reception: Sunday, January 21, 3:00–5:00 p.m.

This exhibition seeks to celebrate senior citizens' rich and diverse experiences through the lens of art. In a world that often glorifies youth and innovation, this collection aims to recognize and amplify seniors' unique stories, wisdom, and creativity to the cultural tapestry. Through the artistic growth of our scholarship artists, we see that art has no age, and we all should have the opportunity to create at no cost. We believe creating art can foster growth and healing, ultimately representing a therapeutic process. With this, the Slowfire Arts Foundation is passionate about helping others create art at any stage of life. –Josslyn Baron, guest curator
 
The Slowfire Arts Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit arts education service established in 2022 in Oak Park, IL. In the first quarter of 2023, the Slowfire Arts Foundation awarded 27 scholarships to students in need of free or reduced art education. In addition, we are currently running free weekly classes at Oak Park and River Forest Township. We aim to provide a comprehensive arts education to scholarship students and underfunded communities. Immediate goals of the Slowfire Arts Foundation include providing free art classes to senior citizens and providing more scholarships for art classes

Jeffery Cote de Luna

September 27 – October 25
Drawings
Reception: Wednesday, September 27, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Gallery Q&A at 4:30 p.m.

Jeffery Cote de Luna will be exhibiting a large group of figure drawings and portraits going back thirty years to when he first began teaching at Dominican University. He states that, “The first ten years, at what was then Rosary College, was a highly inspirational and creative period.” This exhibit will include sustained drawings from life, figure studies for paintings, and gesture drawings from the Open Drawing Sessions that he ran from 1994–2000.

Jackie Kazarian

November 8 – December 15
Heatless Light
Reception: Wednesday, November 8, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Gallery Talk at 4:30 p.m.

“Heatless Light” engages two distinct bodies of work by Chicago painter Jackie Kazarian and alludes to the clarity of looking back at something without the 'heat' or turbulence of a specific moment. 

During the pandemic, Kazarian embraced her own isolation in the studio and the impossible social upheaval outside it by inviting doubt and uncertainty to permeate her studio practice. The result was a body of small paintings and works on paper mapping ambiguous spaces and exploring the textured blues of night and the cool, heatless, fluorescent streetlights. Gathered together, these fits and starts trace a tumultuous moment in time and ricochet with the vibrant, colorful paintings that followed. The newer paintings are sweeping panoramic gestures projecting onto infinite space, and those passages stacked with nuance suggest renewed vitality and engagement.

Pandemic Wall Detail
Jackie Kazarian