April 22, 1997 Museum of Art Contact Heather Brown (541) 346-0942 or John R. Crosiar 346-3135 EUGENE--Fifteen University of Oregon graduate students will present an eclectic mixture of media and artwork styles at the annual Master of Fine Arts exhibition opening Friday, May 2, at the UO Museum of Art, 1430 Johnson Lane. The opening reception for the exhibition, which continues through June 1, will be from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, May 2, in conjunction with Eugene's "First Friday" gallery openings. The artists whose works are in this exhibition will attend the free public reception. The annual debut exhibition, featuring painting, printmaking, photography, ceramics, fibers, visual design and sculpture, is in collaboration with the Department of Fine and Applied Arts. This exhibition fulfills the final requirements for the master of fine arts degree, the most advanced degree offered by the University of Oregon for studio work in the fine arts. Student exhibitors include Geoff Barnes, painting; Jill Davidson, sculpture; Scott Foldesi, painting; Maki Hajikano, sculpture; Jennifer Hawkins, fibers; Cyrus Kanga, visual design; Inge Kolar, photography; Todd McClintock, painting; Beth Mills, printmaking; Ted Okell, ceramics; Mark Rupert, photography; Stephanie Schanou, printmaking; Michael Shaw, photography; Sabrina Siegel, photography, Meredith Strawn, metalsmithing/installation; and Rachel Witt, printmaking. Exhibiting artists will give a special tour of the exhibition at 6 p.m. during the weekly MusEvening! on Wednesday, May 21. This program is free and open to the public. The family of Court Ballinger, a UO fine arts student in the 1970s from California, is sponsoring this year's exhibition in his memory. The UO Museum of Art exhibition program for 1996-97 is supported by grants from the Oregon Arts Commission, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Oregon Community Foundation and the Institute of Museum Services, a federal agency supporting the nation's museums. Accessible to people with disabilities, the UO Museum of Art is open free to the public from noon-8 p.m. Wednesday and from noon-5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. For information, call (541) 346-3027. For a 24-hour taped message of current museum exhibitions and activities, call GuardLine from a Touch-Tone phone at 485-2000, ext. 5665. -30- #P-2251/A&E