Art Faculty Member to Exhibit Nebraska Now: Marlene Mueller, Drawings

WAYNE, Neb. (Sept. 26, 2008) -- Wayne State College Professor of Art Marlene Mueller will have her first solo exhibition at the Museum of Nebraska Art (MONA) from Oct. 18 to Jan. 4. The exhibit is the first full-scale showing of her complete fire drawing series.

As a volunteer for the Wayne Fire Department, Mueller has been investigating minute detail within fire and the sense of order that it holds even in the midst of its destructive nature. The black and white drawings are realist in approach yet, through their careful dissection of form, they can, in part, carry a sense of abstraction through the artist's use of line, composition and value.

MONA has been home of the state’s official art collection since 1979. The museum has 11 galleries, the Cliff Hillegass Sculpture Garden, and the Hitchcock Education Gallery. MONA features art representing the work of artist-explorers like George Catlin; early Nebraskans Robert Henri and J. Laurie Wallace; modern era artists Grant Reynard and John Falter, and artists of today. MONA also displays a collection of works by John James Audubon focusing on indigenous Nebraska wildlife. The permanent collection contains more than 5,000 works by artists of regional, national, and international importance. MONA is housed in a 1911 Renaissance revival building listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The museum is at 2401 Central Ave. in Kearney, Neb. The hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. The museum is closed Mondays and major holidays. Admission is free.