IWU Art + Design Alumnus Eric Wieringa
Eric’s painting is featured at ART Prize 2015
Eric Wieringa is an active artist that maintains a studio in the Saint Louis area. In 2002 Eric completed his undergraduate at Indiana Wesleyan University earning degrees in both Painting and Illustration. In 2011 Mr. Wieringa furthered his education by completing his MFA in Illustration at the University of Hartford (Connecticut). An award-winning painter who has exhibited at various locations around the Midwest, Eric also strives for excellence in the classroom. In 2014 Eric accepted a Full-time Foundations Professorship in Saint Louis where he shares his passion for narrative art and visual storytelling.
IWU ART alumnus Tim Petrenic
Work of Genius: IWU Art + Design Alumnus Competes on a Reality Show for Fine Artists- another example of the brilliant alumni graduating from a top art program.
“It was kind of surreal,” Tim Petrinec (’03) says of his appearance on the reality show/docu-series Work of Genius. In 2009, Petrinec responded to a casting call for visual artists, and was soon invited to New York to audition for the show. “I grabbed three pieces of art and drove up from Charlotte [NC],” Petrinec recalls. He soon received word that he had made the top 50, and that he would be flown to Miami for the filming of the show. “They told me to pack for either three days or three months,” Petrinec laughs, “so I packed for a week.” On his first day in Miami, Petrinec was told that he had made the top 12. “It was exciting news, but as time went by, I wished more and more that I had packed for more than one week.”
Work of Genius is “a 13 – episode reality show that exposes and challenges twelve of the most talented, yet previously undiscovered international artists, to live, create, and compete together for the chance of having their life and career transformed.” The top twelve artists live at a hotel in South Beach for three months, traveling around the greater Miami area to “compete in a series of mini-challenges from crayons to chalk, pencils to watercolor, sketching to sand castles.” Work of Genius operates differently from other reality shows in that no one is eliminated during the filming. Instead, viewers can evaluate the original paintings that the artists produce for each show and vote for their favorite artist online. Should Petrinec win the distinction of “Top Artist,” he will receive “a cash prize, representation in a top gallery, and a publisher for 1 year.” Work of Genius airs on Saturdays at 3 PM on NewsmaxTV. At the writing of this article, Petrinec was in second place for Top Artist.
IWU Art Alumnus - Mel Barlow
Martha Stewart Living -Selected Mel as one of the Top Ten Wedding photographers on the East Coast
Mel grew up in Indiana and as a kid, if you could find me, I was probably out trekking in the woods, adventuring. The same holds true today as I try to take every opportunity I can to explore. I came across photography by accident in college and I fell in love with the medium. After living in the Midwest and California, I now call Brooklyn my home. I shoot locally and travel all over the world on assignments, documenting events, people, stories and places. My eye has been drawn to seek the magical in the mundane -the stuff that makes our lives worth every breath- and to capture the fleeting light that fills us with awe, wonder, love and inspiration.
Josh Brunet
IWU Art Alum hired to teach illustration at the Rocky Mountain School od ART and Design!
Joshua Brunet is a practicing illustrator. He grew up in Royal Oak, MI, received his B.S. in Illustration at Indiana Wesleyan University and M.F.A. in Illustration at the Hartford Art School at the University of Hartford. He loves to draw, paint and illustrate and cites children's books as his favorite projects.
