The Northern State University art department will be holding their 2026 Juried Exhibition, now known as the McQuillen Creative Group Juried Student Exhibition, on March 6th from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. An awards ceremony will be held at 6:30 PM.
“It’s the biggest accumulation of art exhibits that Northern does,” Art Galleries Director Tim Rickett said. The show is set up and torn down on the same day. “It’s a quick show, but it’s a good one.”
This year’s show features over 10 awards that will be presented to students. Liz Heeren, an artist and educator based out of Sioux Falls, will be this year’s judge.
The juried show accepts submissions from all NSU students, even if they are not part of the art program.
Rickett became involved with the juried shows in 2021 and has since brought significant changes to the event. In 2022, Gallery X opened in the Johnson Fine Arts Center, creating greater potential for displaying artwork.
Previous student shows were held in the Avera Student Center and Lincoln Hall, with most entries restricted to 2D artwork.
“Some pieces could be out in the open, but there wasn’t much room for those pieces to breathe,” Rickett said. “When we got Gallery X, there was just a ton of potential in that room, and I was given free reign to handle that however I wanted.”
The show was moved to Gallery X, which allowed for two significant changes. Studentswere able to submit larger sculptures, and the number of entries each student could enter increased from two entries to five. Rickett said that allowing students to enter more pieces encouraged them to show more variety along with a little more competition.
Rickett said that the changes got students excited about what they could submit to the show. He said that he made a push to get more sculptures, ceramics, and other 3D projects.
“There was a big lack of 3D representation in the show, and part of this was that students were apprehensive to show artwork in a restricted space,” Rickett said. “Now they can make really, really big sculpture work.”
Last year’s show was juried by Amber Hansen, an associate professor at the University of South Dakota
The art department partnered with the NSU Foundation and discussed other ways they could elevate the show.
“We thought that this student show is our big event, the one time of year where all of our students get to compete and have someone outside the art department review their artwork,” Rickett said. “We thought we could celebrate what we’ve made in a welcoming environment.”
Another change was coordinating the closing reception for the visiting artist shows with the juried show.
“We thought we could celebrate what we’ve made in a welcoming environment.” – Tim Rickett, Art Galleries Director
“There’s more artwork on display, and more artists in the community come to celebrate our students and each other,” Rickett said.
The addition of the Salon des Refusés, a show of rejected artwork from the juried show, further pushed community involvement. The People’s Choice Award is tied to that show, with members of the community being able to vote for their favorite entry.
In previous years, prizes were awarded to first, second, and third-place winners as well as some runner-ups. More awards have since been added along with other NSU departments becoming involved with the show.
“We wanted to create more opportunity, and more awards encourages students so they don’t feel restricted in medium or concept,” Rickett said.
Midwest Nice, an art collective founded by Rickett and Epiphany Knedler, was one of the first establishments to create a new award. Additionally, the Presidential Purchase award was brought back, along with the Provost Purchase, Faculty Merit Award, McQuillen Creative Group Award, and the NSU Foundation Award.
Each award has a specific prize tied to it. The NSU Foundation Award winner is displayed inside their building, the Presidential Purchase winner is displayed in the president’s office, and the Midwest Nice winner is featured on their Instagram page.
The juried show does not have a set theme, as Rickett said that he would like students to take an open approach with their submissions.
“Some seniors are gearing up for their senior show, and they have kind of developed their style or motif for their work,” he said. Most students have their own individual styles that they focus on for the show.
Prior to the show, Rickett discusses the judging process with entrants. Pieces are evaluated online first, and students are taught how to properly document and submit their work.
Traditionally, juried shows have one judge. Rickett said that when considering judges for the show, he looks for individuals who have a connection to the region and experience judging for other institutions and galleries.
“I look for people I know will be fair and not biased that evaluate in a thorough manner,” he said. “Some judges might go in with a slight theme in mind, or some judges like to pick the absolute best work no matter what, or one from each student. I encourage them to pick the best of the best.”
Rickett said that nearly 200 people attended last year’s show.
Heeren is originally from Aberdeen and studied at Saint Olaf College before earning a master’s in Art Theory and Art Education from the University of Arizona and an MFA in Painting from the University of South Dakota. Heeran teaches painting and design at the University of South Dakota and is the director of Ipso Gallery at Fresh Produce in downtown Sioux Falls.
While the juried show is the largest show for the department, art is always displayed on NSU’s campus.
“We wanted to create more opportunity, and more awards encourages students so they don’t feel restricted in medium or concept.” – Tim Rickett, Art Galleries Director
“All of the senior show exhibitions are good to highlight students progressing through the program, and those are at the end of each semester,” Rickett said.
Visiting artist receptions happen twice a year, once during the fall semester and again in the spring, and Gallery X holds a number of student exhibitions throughout the year. Other collaborations with the Art Guild and Build a Better Birdhouse also occur, and the Midwest Nice in-person exhibition is held in JFAC over the summer months.
“It’s turned into a really big deal for students,” Rickett said. “The first show I attended, half the students in the show showed up, and some faculty. When I took over, about 50 or 60 people showed up. Last year, there were nearly 200 people in attendance.”
With such success having grown over the years, NSU hopes for even more engagement going forward. //
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