The Hillstrom Museum of Art has been a part of the Gustavus community since its debut exhibit in April of the year 2000.

Located in the lower level of the Jackson Campus Center, The Hillstrom Museum of Art has put many exhibits on display that cover a variety of subjects.

Donald Myers, the Director and Chief Curator of the Museum, has been working at Gustavus since 2000.

“I’ve been working on a permanent basis at Gustavus since the beginning of 2000, when I was hired to teach art history classes, although there was a thought that there would be a museum and given my background that I might be a candidate for running it,” Myers said.

Previously, Myers worked at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. and feels as though his work at Gustavus carries more rewards to it.

“My work here at the Museum is very different from at the Museum where I worked before returning to St. Peter…but it’s in many ways more rewarding,” Myers said.

The Hillstrom Museum of Art exhibitions has a few consistent factors that play a role in which pieces are chosen to be viewed.

“We always cap our academic year of exhibits with the annual senior show, featuring works by the graduating studio art majors that have been selected by a jury from the art department.

“A second constant is that we frequently feature works by the College’s studio art faculty,” Myers said.

The Museum also tries to choose a wide array of works. “We do numerous exhibits of works completely unrelated to what we have in our collection, showing quality artwork from a wide variety of periods, styles, and media, and including artists from the past as well as contemporary artists still at work,” Myers said.

The most current exhibition right now is about a pop surrealist named Kenny Scharf. This exhibition is showing until April 22, 2018.

“These works are all from the collection of Mats Sexton, who has become a friend of the artist (and the artist earlier in his career was close friends with other well-known artists such as Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Andy Warhol),” Myers said.

Students have already enjoyed this exciting and creative exhibition.

“‘The Far-Out World of Kenny Scharf’ exhibit contains some of the most exciting pieces of art I’ve ever seen,” First-year Jordyn Olson-Merrick said.

Olson-Merrick also thought the talent in the Hillstrom Museum of Art was very apparent.

“I don’t know much about art, but taking a couple of minutes to walk through [the Hillstrom Museum of Art] is still something I enjoy because the creativity showcased there is unbelievable,” Olson-Merrick said.

The other exhibition is centered around a French artist. “Our other current exhibit is Georges Rouault: Cirque de l’Etoile Filante, which features works by the French artist that explore that psychology of performers in the circus (specifically, the Parisian Circus of the Shooting Star).

“Rouault is an artist represented in our own collection by two works, one a gift from Museum namesake Richard L. Hillstrom and the other a gift from Paul and Edna Granlund, both of which are also being shown,” Myers said.

Myers is a strong advocate for visiting and viewing art pieces. “The visual arts have always been a strong component of the liberal arts experience that is such a fundamental part of the experience here at Gustavus,” Myers said.

He also enjoys relating how viewing art pieces can be similar to music.

“Art can bedazzle, charm, comfort, and teach viewers, but only if it’s viewed. There are many parallels between viewing art and hearing music, and many of the reasons one might go to a concert can be transferred to viewing an exhibition,” Myers said.