Arts & Culture

UK Student Artist Reagan Profit Takes Top Honor at University Open

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photo of Regan Profit with painting "Raw"
photo of digital art titled "Sportmans Motel" and Thomas Doerr
photo of the painting "Uninhibited" by Madison Kelley

LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 17, 2019) University of Kentucky art studio junior Reagan Profit took first place at the 2019 University Open presented by LexArts. Two other UK students, Thomas Doerr and Madison Kelley, took honors at the show featuring the best work from students in Kentucky’s collegiate visual art programs. University Open is on display through June 29, at LexArts Gallery in downtown Lexington.

This year’s exhibition showcases 29 works of art from students at Kentucky's public universities, including seven students from UK. 

For this year's University Open, juror and Lexington artist Lennon Michalski chose a wide variety of works that implemented traditional mediums and explored contemporary concepts and compositions. Each piece in the show investigates a modern creative vocabulary through landscape and portraiture.

Reagan Profit, from Lexington, was awarded first place honors for her painting "Raw."

In addition, digital media design senior Thomas Doerr, of Louisville, Kentucky, and art history and visual studies, modern and classical languages, literatures and cultures/French and Francophone studies, and Lewis Honors College junior Madison Kelley, of Lexington, received honorable mention honors. Doerr's featured digital piece is titled "Sportmans Motel." Kelley's featured painting is "Uninhibited."

Other UK School of Art and Visual Studies students with work featured in the exhibition are: art studio sophomore Ember Canada-Kawarada, of Lexington; art studio senior Jessica Crawford, of Lexington; art studio and arts administration senior Katie Creech, of Georgetown, Kentucky; and digital media design and pre-management sophomore Evan Strasburger, of Union, Kentucky.

LexArts promotes high quality arts experiences for the benefit of all the people of Central Kentucky through funding, advocacy, technical assistance, communication and programming initiatives.

The public can view the UK students' artwork and art from other schools in the University Open through June 29, at the LexArts Gallery, located at 161 North Mill St. The free exhibition will also be part of Lexington’s next Gallery Hop from 5-8 p.m. tonight (Friday), May 17. Regular gallery hours for viewing are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and noon-5 p.m. Saturday. 

The UK School of Art and Visual Studies, part of the College of Fine Arts, is an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design and offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in the fields of art studio, art history and visual studies, art educationcuratorial studies and digital media design.