The De Pree Art Center and Gallery at Hope College will be hosting the exhibition “On Bare Foot,” featuring work by new faculty members Leekyung Kang, Emily Mayo and Jason Contangelo, from Thursday, March 3, through Wednesday, March 30.
There will be an opening reception at the gallery on Thursday, March 3, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The three artists, who each joined the faculty in the fall of 2021, will deliver talks at 7 p.m.
The public is invited to the exhibition and the reception. Admission is free.
Attendance to the exhibition is by appointment, and guests may register on the gallery’s website at hope.edu/depree
Leekyung Kang, an assistant professor of art, earned her MFA from Rhode Island School of Design and BFA from Seoul National University. She has taught at Rhode Island School of Design, Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar and Idaho State University.
Born in Flint, Emily Mayo, an adjunct member of the faculty, has had work showcased in exhibitions around the U.S. including in Indiana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, and at the Grand Rapids Art Museum and the Manifest Gallery in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Jason Contangelo, a visiting assistant professor of art, completed his MFA from the University at Buffalo in 2021, with previous studies at the University of Michigan and the North American Lutheran Seminary. His work has been exhibited at CEPA Gallery and the University at Buffalo Art Galleries, both in his hometown of Buffalo, New York.
“On Bare Foot” has been curated by Maddie Reyna, a Chicago-based curator and artist, and the interim director of academic programs for Ox-Bow School of Art in Saugatuck.
The De Pree Art Center and Gallery is located at 275 Columbia Ave., between 10th and 13th streets. The gallery is open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., although it will be closed on Friday, March 18, through Sunday, March 27, because of the college’s spring break.