January 8–February 19, 2023

Fawzia Khan, a long-time member of First Universalist, exhibits an installation she worked on during the year 2020.

Titled “Persevere,” the installation was created in response to the profound grief and paralysis Fawzia felt as a result of the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd. As an attempt to revive her creative juices, she challenged herself to draw one mandala a day on her iPad and post it to Instagram. Creating a mandala is a contemplative process, and a meditative way to center and rediscover joy in art making. It was a much needed escapist practice that helped her to refocus.

The exhibit will be on view Sunday, Jan. 8 through Sunday, Feb. 19. See more of her work at: www.fawziakhanart.com.

A new exhibit by photographer John Kaul is in the Social Hall Universal Gallery. John photographed and interviewed Native American women about why they work to protect water.

John says that he participated in a Line 3 protest in Park Rapids. Jane Fonda was there, but the faces that riveted his attention were those of the indigenous grandmothers who came to peacefully protest an oil pipeline that violated the terms of a treaty signed many decades ago and ignored just like the other 409 treaties with Native Americans. That day he decided that he would create a portrait exhibit honoring these indigenous women. Each portrait is accompanied by a brief biographical sketch that explains who the water warriors are, what motivates their involvement in protecting water, and something about their lives. 

This exhibit will be on display in our Universal Gallery Oct. 23 – Nov. 27. John will be at church after both services to talk about his work on Sunday, Nov. 13. That day he will also be with one of the water protectors to provide a program sponsored by the Environmental Justice and Visual Arts teams.

Jane Bassuk’s textiles are on display in our Universal Gallery Sept. 11 through Oct. 16. She will be available to talk about her work after services on September 25.

Much of Jane Bassuk’s work explores how energy and light are integral to natural and man-made architecture. In her art quilts, she has always created surreal landscapes that use organic shapes derived from the flora and fauna of the natural world. She uses different types of textures to develop the surface and experiment with color to create different light effects. Her works continually investigate the power of nature over man-made structures. She chooses fabrics because of the feelings they evoke and for their implied glimpses of land, sea, and man-made objects. She heavily embellishes each piece with embroidery and beads to enhance the surfaces. Jane also examines feminine sexuality and her Jewish heritage, exploring loss, spirituality, human mortality, and human connection to the infinite universe.

Jane Bassuk has a BFA in painting from the University of Michigan and an MA and MFA in painting from the University of Iowa. She taught at North Hennepin Community College and is now retired. For more information visit her website: www.janebassukartist.com

Work by renowned photographer Wing Young Huie will be on view in the Social Hall gallery April 17 through May 29, 2022. Photos are from his award-winning book Chinese-ness: The Meanings of Identity and the Nature of Belonging.

Wing photographed and interviewed people in China as well as locals of Chinese descent. The perspectives you will view in his photos provide humor and irony, as well as cultural exploration. His photos give each of us an opportunity to explore our own identities. 

The multi media exhibit Visual Prayer is on display in our Social Hall Universal Gallery February 27 through April 10. It can also be viewed online.

The exhibit was created by the Interfaith Artists Circle, artists who are diverse in traditions, observance, and beliefs. An important component of the Circle is study. The artists select a theme and invite distinguished scholars to teach them, offering a foundation in spiritual learning and an opportunity to inspire them as they create their individual works. 

The artists chose Visual Prayer as the theme for this exhibit, feeling that prayer is the human connection to a higher presence, personally and communally.  As they explored prayer through art, their goal was to find commonality and connectivity among religions and to appreciate and respect our similarities and differences. 

On exhibit in the Social Hall January 9 – February 20, 2022, is a collection of quilts by long-time First Universalist member Carolyn Liebler, in celebration of her Semi-Centennial (50^th birthday). Carolyn began quilting at age 10 when she was the crafty child of a geometry-focused mathematician and a color-theorist weaver. For over 40 years, she has used quilt design and creation in her UU-life as a self-expressive meditation. She balances her quilting with her work as a sociology professor at the University of Minnesota.

Carolyn will be available to talk about her work on Sunday, Jan. 9 after both services.

“Three Generations Capturing the Moment” explores the natural world and is an ode to Preben Mosborg who had the only exhibit in his lifetime in our social hall in 2006. The current exhibit includes many of Preben’s photos and poems along with photos and artwork by son, Steven, and granddaughter, Amanda Grace.

The photos will be on exhibit in the Social Hal May 5 – July 7 and can be viewed on Sunday mornings before and after worship services.

Work by artist Robyn Beth Priestly will be on view in the social hall Feb. 17 through March 17.

The artist says: “I am concerned with our personal connections to the natural world, and often find inspiration in our national, regional and local parks. We are often so isolated from nature in our busy urban lives that parks, scientific and natural areas (SNAs), recreation areas, and wilderness areas provide various ways for us to learn, revive our spirits, or just relax and experience the natural world. Parks are not only important for us as humans, but also provide vital places for endangered and threatened animals, plants and ecosystems to survive, and hopefully, thrive. read more

¡Hola, Cuba! is an exhibit featuring 60 photographs by international photojournalist Barbara La Valleur, on view in the Social Hall at First Universalist Church Sept. 2 through Oct. 14. There will be an Artist’s Reception on Sunday, Sept. 16, from 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. in the Social Hall.

La Valleur culled her favorite photos for the exhibit from over 5,000, taken in early 2018, depicting Cuban people, places and scenes in Havana and Matanzas, a city on the north coast known for its poets, culture, and Afro-Cuban folklore.

In a colorful series of canvas prints, ubiquitous American cars from the 1950s and 1960s that serve as today’s Havana taxis are highlighted next to a grouping of clothesline photographs hung cleverly on an actual clothesline.

Fidel Castro images are featured on a billboard as well as a striking image juxtaposed with a José Martí portrait. A sampling of images of Cuban people provides a window into the daily lives of the people on this Caribbean island.

Another series spotlights Callejon de Hamel, a popular two-block alley resplendent with funky murals, playful sculptures and artfully hung bathtubs which serve as canvases as well as seating objects, the work of Salvador González Escalona, a well-known Cuban Muralist and his artist friends.

La Valleur, a native of Ashby and Battle Lake, was the first person to major in Mass Communications at Minnesota State University, Moorhead. She worked at The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, Carib Magazine in the US Virgin Islands, the Daily News of Wahpeton-Breckenridge before moving to Europe for 20 years. She lived in England for over two years before moving to Germany for 18 years where she also freelanced full-time for seven German newspapers. She currently lives in Edina with her husband.

During Religious Education classes this year, children from Preschool through 7th grade spent time creating beautiful art related to their Sunday lessons. A variety of their projects from this past year are now on display in the Social Hall, July 1 through Aug. 26. We invite you to enjoy viewing and learning about their work—and to see how much children have to teach the world about love and kindness.