WAUKESHA – The University of Wisconsin-Waukesha will kick off its 40th anniversary year with an art exhibit featuring the work of the first art faculty member, Ron Penkoff, and several of his former students. An artists’ reception will be held Tuesday, September 5, from 4:00-7:00 p.m. in the lobby of the Fine Arts Center, located in Southview Hall on campus at 1500 N. University Dr., Waukesha.
The public is welcome, and the art will remain on exhibit through September 29. Admission to the gallery is free. It will be open during special events. For additional hours, contact the University Relations department at (262) 521-5445.
Returning from a sabbatical experience at a Paris artist’s atelier, Penkoff began teaching at the new UW-Waukesha in 1967. He had taken leave from Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, and spent the summer of 1966, when UW-Waukesha was preparing to open, teaching at Bath Academy of Art in Corsham, England. In 1987, he transferred to UW-Richland and retired in 1998, more than 40 years after he began teaching.
Penkoff earned a BFA from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, in 1954 and a Master’s Degree from Ohio State University in 1955. He incorporated his interest in Oriental art and architecture in his work and was commissioned to create the Zen-inspired banners that have hung in the lobby of the UW-Waukesha Fine Arts Center since 1990. During his career he taught art history as well as studio art, including design, drawing, and printmaking.
His artwork is represented in both public and private collections, but his inspiration is dispersed even more widely.
Exhibiting “friends,” who also had been students of his – Fran Cheney, Wendy Lee Cooper, Andrea Rich, Debby Rollo, Daniel Rondeau, Ami Rupnow, and Curt Schroeder – have applied their artistic talent in a range of media.
A student in the early ‘70’s, Fran Cheney, Milwaukee, wife of retired UW-Waukesha philosophy professor, Jim, found her muse at the Field Station. “I have learned many things at the Field Station that feed my art work. The content . . . evolved into connections with the environment. . . My work takes the form of sculptures and installations using natural materials.”
Wendy Lee Cooper, who lives in Milwaukee and maintains a studio in Grafton, specializes in wearable art. She was a UW-Waukesha student in 1972-76 but went on for both BFA and MFA from UW-Milwaukee. In addition, she gained teaching certification and works as an art specialist in Milwaukee Public Schools. Cooper makes one-of-a kind purses, scarves, and shoes and sells them at shops in Southeastern Wisconsin, Door County, Chicago, and St. Louis. For this exhibit, she will show a painting, “Magnolia Tree.” Touched by flowering trees, she finds solace in sitting by Lake Michigan and drawing the ever-changing images nature presents there.
A Racine native, Andrea Rich finished her BS in art at UW-Whitewater and moved to Santa Cruz, CA, where she has earned renown for her wildlife woodcuts. Her interest stems from the 1970’s at UW-Waukesha when Penkoff introduced her to Japanese Ukiyo-e prints. She selects and sculpts woods for each color layer and prints images of animals, who receive their strength from their natural habitat settings. For each she starts with a drawing, and if she finds the animal’s pose particularly striking, it will override the setting. She shows her work globally and has pieces in collections around the country as well as in England.
Artists Debby Rollo, Waukesha; Daniel Rondeau, Pewaukee; and Ami Rupnow, Madison, also took art classes at UW-Waukesha in the early ‘70’s and continue to work. Curt Schroeder, Milwaukee, who attended UW-Waukesha in 1971-73, completed his BFA at UW-Milwaukee in 1975 but still counts Penkoff as his main influence in his painting and drawings and even in the way he decorates his home.
UW-Waukesha has the largest enrollment among the 13 freshman-sophomore University of Wisconsin Colleges campuses. For information about programs, admission, or financial aid, contact the Student Services office at (262) 521-5040, or visit the Web at waukesha.uwc.edu.
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