Trifecta Exhibition highlights the work of up-and-coming Georgia artists

The work of Master of Fine Arts students from across the state is currently on display at the Mary S. Byrd Gallery as part of Augusta University’s first ever Trifecta Exhibition.

Curated by MFA students Jessamy McManus and Courtney Ryan of Georgia Southern University, the exhibition, which runs until Monday, Aug. 1, aims to highlight the artwork of exceptional graduate students from Georgia’s public institutions.

That said, Scott Thorp, chair of the Department of Art, believes the exhibition will also prove beneficial for Augusta’s undergraduate art majors.

“We don’t have a Masters of Fine Art program here, so our students don’t really know what the next level of artwork looks like,” Thorp said. “This show is great for them because they get to see the caliber of work at the MFA level.”

In addition, the exhibition is a unique opportunity for students and faculty to network with their peers at other institutions.

“The real goal is to establish a more collaborative spirit between the institutions so that we can promote Georgia as a great state for art education,” Thorp said. “Not very many people in the state of Georgia know we even have an art department, and this exhibition spread the word extremely fast.”

Featured artists include students from Georgia Southern, Georgia State University and the University of Georgia. That, Thorp said, is perhaps the most important takeaway from the event.

“Since we have students at UGA, Georgia Southern and Georgia State, their faculty now know we exist,” he said. “Now they also know we have a vibrant art community willing to work together with other institutions.”

For more information about the Trifecta Exhibition, contact Carol Cross at 706-667-4888 or Chcross@augusta.edu.