Reception: “Deaf Way” and “Post-Consumer”

The Anderson Center at Tower View is hosting an artist reception on Friday, August 11, 2023 from 6 to 8 p.m. for two summer exhibitions. Way: Deaf Way, All The Way by Cynthia Weitzel runs Main Gallery May 20 – November 4, 2023 in Gallery Three. Post-Consumer by Natalie Kuenzi and Erik Jon Olson runs August 12 – October 7, 2023 in Gallery One. Refreshments will be provided.

Cynthia Weitzel – Way: Deaf Way, All the Way 

Space is transformed into a “sense of place” by Deaf visual artist Cynthia Weitzel in Way: Deaf Way, All The Way, which shares Weitzel’s journey in exploring different ways to visually communicate the Deaf point of view. Through intersections at the axis of language, embodying the culture and spirit of the Deaf community, Weitzel presents several new bodies of work of different mediums that reclaim and reframe the lived experience of the people of the eye.

The Anderson Center is proud to showcase Weitzel’s artwork and shine a light on the relevance of her practice. She has been a part of the Anderson Center artist community as a year-round studio resident since 2011 and is the founder of the organization’s innovative Deaf Artist Residency program.

Natalie Kuenzi and Erik Jon Olson – Post-Consumer

Kuenzi and Olson both have a strong sense of color and graphic pattern. Kuenzi works in crochet and Olson uses quilting and sewing to transform everyday plastic by-products into large-scale artworks. The pieces in Post-Consumer raise questions about relationship to land, cycles of consumption, and what is considered “waste.”
Natalie Kuenzi is an interdisciplinary artist and educator based in Philadelphia, PA. Her work explores traditions of craft and art making that celebrate the artist and viewer as agents of change, transforming how we make and consume through reclamation, material innovation, and the liberating power of the imagination.

Erik Jon Olson grew up on a hog farm in northwestern Iowa, where he discovered his talent for resourceful creativity. With a degree in advertising design from Iowa State University, he embarked on a 25-year career as a creative in the advertising industry in Minneapolis. Alongside his professional work, he explored various multimedia approaches to artistic expression.
The Galleries at Anderson Center are free and open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Featured artwork at top by Cynthia Weitzel (left) and Natalie Kuenzi (right).

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through Operating Support and Creative Support for Individuals grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.