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Nationally Acclaimed Artist Arturo Rodriguez Showcases Artwork at Owens Findlay-area Campus, Oct. 27 – Nov. 19

FINDLAY, OH – Owens Community College Findlay-area Campus invites area residents to visit the brilliantly artistic world of nationally acclaimed artist Arturo Rodriguez through his emotionally vivid paintings, prints and mixed media works as the Library Gallery presents a new exhibit titled “Marielito”, Oct. 27 – Nov. 19.

In addition, the College will host a reception and gallery talk for Rodriguez on Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 5 p.m. The reception, which is free and open to the public, will take place in the Findlay-area Campus Library. Owens is located on Bright Road in Findlay.

“Owens Findlay-area Campus Library Gallery is honored to exhibit the works of such a widely accomplished artist as Arturo Rodriguez,” said Gail McCain, Owens Library Manager for the Findlay-area Campus. “Rodriguez’s paintings, prints and mixed media works combine images from paintings that one might find on the walls of an average American home and images from some of his earliest visual memories as a young Cuban immigrant to the United States in the 1980s – cartoons. By uniting these seemingly disparate images Rodriguez’s work constitutes an accurate metaphor for Cuban aesthetics and culture, which historically has undergone a process of appropriation. Exhibit attendees will truly enjoy the vivid, colorful artistic expressions, which have captivated audiences nationwide.”

Rodriguez was born in Cuba. He left the island at a very young age with his mother during the Mariel boatlift in 1980. Rodriguez has since lived in the United States for over 20 years, however, he has not forgotten about his native country, which is often intertwined within his artistic expressions.

His works have been widely exhibited nationwide to include appearances in the University of Missouri-Kansas City National Print Exhibition at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, the Bradley International Print and Drawing Exhibition at Bradley University, the Prints U.S.A 2005 National Juried Group Exhibition at the Springfield Art Museum and the Sense of Place National Juried Group Exhibition at the Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art, among others. Rodriguez also has received several accolades throughout his career highlighted by the Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Excellence Award Grant and the Thomas Hart Benton Merit Scholarship.

Rodriguez received a bachelor’s degree in painting/printmaking from the Kansas City Art Institute and a master’s degree in printmaking from Indiana University. He has served as an Associate Professor of Art/Printmaking at the University of Toledo for the past nine years. Rodriguez previously was a Professor of Foundations/Printmaking at Savannah College of Art and Design from 1997-2001.

Admission to the Findlay-area Campus Library Gallery is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday-Thursday from 8 a.m. – 7 p.m., Fridays from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. For more information, contact the Library at (567) 429-3088 or 1-800-GO-OWENS, Ext. 3088.

Owens Community College is a fully accredited two-year, state-assisted institution of higher education that has served Northwest Ohio since 1965. With a commitment to providing small classes, personal attention and unmatched affordability, the College serves the diverse academic needs of credit and non-credit students on the Toledo-area and Findlay-area campuses. Owens offers associate degrees that transfer to baccalaureate degrees in the Arts and Sciences and over 130 technical program areas in Agriculture, Business, Health Sciences, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Skilled Trades, and Engineering and Transportation Technologies. Owens students also can earn the first two years of a bachelor’s degree with a smooth transfer to any area four-year college or university. For more information, visit www.owens.edu.

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