The Gage Gallery: Reaching beyond the campus
Fall 2002

The Gage Family Art Gallery, located in Lindell Library, focuses on the work of Minnesota artists—providing both a place for them to exhibit and opportunities for them to participate in classes.

"Galleries are not just for those of us passionate about the visual arts," says Cathy Peters ’93, galleries and exhibits coordinator at the Gage Family Art Gallery. Opened in 1997 in conjunction with the Lindell Family Library, Gage Gallery has become a place that not only provides hands-on access to art and artists alike but a place where the Augsburg community can explore art. "We get to share another part of the world with people—by bringing shows to campus that people would rarely see," says Peters.

The location and accessibility of Gage Gallery in the library have made it possible for the Augsburg community to take advantage of the gallery and its artists as learning tools. By inviting artists to lecture in classes and by requiring student attendance at opening receptions, faculty members incorporate the exhibits into their curricula. In doing so, students learn how art can be integrated into their major field of study; they converse about the artwork, and make connections with the artists.

"The student's learning ranges from the practicality of how to make a living to the use of various colors in a piece of art," says Peters. "It is this interaction between student and artist that is the most stimulating."

Peters' commitment extends beyond that of the College. "I also have a commitment to the community to provide opportunities for up and coming artists," says Peters. One such example is that of artist Barbara Lea, whose "New Works" were exhibited this past February. Gage Gallery acted as a launching pad for Lea's career, resulting in her art being picked up by Circa Fine Arts Gallery in Minneapolis.

Over five years, the Gage Gallery has enjoyed opportunities to build local, national, and international collaborations with prestigious arts organizations, including the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the Smithsonian Institution. The fall art exhibit, "21st Century Tiles: From Earth to Fire," was one example of such a collaboration. In conjunction with the Tile Heritage Foundation's 10th symposium "Tiles in the Twin Cities: The Quintessence of Handicraft," the Gage Family Art Gallery and the Catherine G. Murphy Gallery at the College of St. Catherine hosted a national juried tile exhibition.

The gallery's growing presence in the art world has led to some pleasant surprises and connections for Peters. While she was in Stockholm, Sweden last summer to research Viking Age textiles, she visited the Statens Historiska Museum, where the textiles are now conserved. On the desk of the curator was the March-April 2001 issue of Hali magazine, featuring three articles and an exhibition notice for "Textiles from the Silk Road," which ran in the Gage Gallery from March to May last year. Peters marveled at the opportunity to share her exhibit and information about the gallery with this European colleague. The gallery was again featured in Hali magazine for the exhibit "Kilims: Weaving as a Tradition."

The 1997 opening exhibition in the Gage Gallery featured paintings, prints, and sculpture donated to the College by Captain Gerald L. Johnson, son of 1915 Augsburg alumnus Rev. Harold "Butch" Johnson.
Johnson's gifts of artwork to the College will also be featured this fall as the premiere exhibit in the new gallery space in Christensen Center, a gallery wall on the main floor of the College center.

Gage Gallery received funding from Barbara and Skip Gage and their families.

For information on the Gage Family Gallery and exhibits, call 612-330-1524 or visit www.augsburg.edu/galleries.