“Wegner Then and Now," a retrospective of selected works spanning Artist James Wegner’s entire career opens Monday at the James Wegner Art Gallery at Riverland’s EastBuilding on the Austin Campus.

The show includes dramatic sculptures created during the early 1960s, two-dimensional work from every decade since and the artist’s most recent efforts. The exhibit illustrates the influence of several historical artistic styles, all adapted to Wegner’s personal interests and inspirations. Visitors witness a visual chronicle of an artistic life of ceaseless exploration and joyful creation, expressed thorugh a diverse range of media including paintings, prints and collage. Throughout both representational and abstract styles, an interest in strong shape and sensitive attention to color and texture are evident.

Wegner has established himself as the artist most associated with Austin Minnesota. Through countless exhibitions and a long teaching career (giving art instruction at Riverland Community College for 28 years and before that for 10 years at Austin Jr. and Sr. High Schools), Wegner is very well known and highly respected within the local community and beyond. Riverland’s art gallery is named in his honor.

Wegner’s formal education included study with legendary masters including Richard Diebenkorn, Max Weber and Dong Kingman. Wegner’s artwork is part of the permanent collections at the Walker Art Center, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Tweed Gallery in Duluth, as well as the McNeider Museum in Mason City.

“Wegner Then and Now” is open July 22- August 22, 2013. An artist’s reception will be held on August 8 from 6:30 p.m.- 9:30 p.m. The gallery is open Monday-Friday 8 a.m. -4 p.m. and during Summerset Theatre performances of Monty Python’s SPAMALOT.