Sam Spiczka's most recent sculpture series "Reliquiae" (Latin for "sacred relics") is a visual and visceral leap into the fissure that separates life from death, the sacred from the profane, and the past from the present. These monumental vertebrae forms, each measuring about five feet in length, look to have been recently exhumed from the earth and nailed to a wall with massive steel spikes. These innovative wall sculptures draw upon and allude to the artist's own religious upbringing and associations with rural Minnesota. For the artist, each relic is "like a hunter's trophy or a crucifixion, the honor and care of its display is countered by the tension and violence of their forms."

In less than a decade Spiczka has launched a career that has won him local, regional, and national attention. The artist's award-winning sculptures can be found in private and public collections around the U.S.

The reception for this show will be in conjunction with "Art Attack," a multi-campus college art gallery crawl on Saturday, October 7 from 4 to 8 p.m. Special buses will shuttle visitors to Bethel's 9th Street Entry Gallery, the College of St. Catherine, the College of Visual Arts, Concordia University, Macalester College, and the University of St. Thomas.

All events at Augsburg are free and open to the public.

The Gage Family Art Gallery
Augsburg College
22nd Avenue South at 7th Street

Gallery Hours:
Monday-Friday 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday 1 p.m. - 5 p.m.

For more gallery information call 612-330-1524