Minnesota printmaker features new works in SMU art show March 13-April 6

'For Want of the Inferno' by Emily Gray Koehler

WINONA, Minn. — White Bear Lake printmaker Emily Gray Koehler will present 27 new works in “Burning the Old Growth” March 13 through April 6 at Saint Mary’s University.

Gray Koehler’s reduction woodblock prints are nature scenes informed by a childhood split between the farm and the forest. In this particular series, her work depicts the beauty of nature, depleted by man’s influence.

“Since its earliest beginnings, humanity has manipulated nature in the pursuit of prosperity,” she writes. “Without these alterations to the environment, our existence in this world would certainly be dubious. However, after millennia of digging, burning, harvesting, and draining we now find ourselves at a crossroads where all possible routes forward have significant obstacles and potent repercussions.”

The Lillian Davis Hogan Galleries, located in the Toner Student Center, are open 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. All gallery shows are free and open to the public.

An opening reception is scheduled for 4:30 to 6 p.m. Thursday, March 13.

For more information about Gray Kohler’s work, go to www.studioegk.com.