“Artist Spotlight: Nishiki Sugawara-Beda”
The Tusen Takk Foundation and the Dennos Museum Center are pleased to announce the opening of Artist Spotlight: Nishiki Sugawara-Beda. The first collaboration of its kind between the two organizations, the exhibition will feature works by Tusen Takk’s July artist-in-residence Nishiki Sugawara-Beda and will be open at the Dennos Museum from July 25 through August 29, 2021.
Artist Bio
Nishiki Sugawara-Beda is a Japanese-American visual artist based in painting and installation, and holds an MFA from Indiana University and a BA from Portland State University. She has exhibited her work in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally to promote cultural diversity and exchange. Exhibition venues include: Spartanburg Art Museum (SC), Morris Graves Museum of Art (CA), and Amos Eno Gallery (NY). Publications include: New American Paintings, Expose Art Magazine, AEQAI, and London Post. Awards include:Seed Grant, Diversity Fellow Program, International Enhancement Grant, Idaho Art Fellow, and Sam Taylor Fellowship. She is an Assistant Professor of Painting and Drawing at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX.
On her artistic practice, Nishiki Sugawara-Beda writes, “I was born and raised in Japan, where all schoolchildren learn calligraphy. Calligraphy has become an entrance point to understanding my own culture as it allows me to recognize the existence of underlying meanings in all forms—language, images, even the mundane interactions of being. This craft provides the foundation and inspiration for my practice. To speak to the core of humanity, I seek connections among cultures both from the past and present and ground myself with the origins of various matters from my native and adopted cultures. My recent works attempt to highlight an oft-forgotten engagement in contemporary society—a deeper connection with one’s own spirit. While the paintings present a moment of this spiritual engagement, I hope viewers enjoy traveling through their own inner landscapes.
More about her work can be found online: nishikibeda.com
Artist Spotlight: Nishiki Sugawara-Beda
Dennos Museum Center
Traverse City, MI
July 25–August 29, 2021
Artist Spotlight Series
The Artist Spotlight series is a collaboration between the Tusen Takk Foundation and the Dennos Museum Center. The initiative highlights recent work by Tusen Takk’s artists-in-residence and makes those efforts available to the general public.
Dennos Museum Center
The Dennos Museum Center seeks to engage, enlighten and entertain its audiences through the collection of art, and the presentation of exhibitions and programs in the visual arts, sciences and performing arts. Opened in 1991, the Dennos Museum Center at Northwestern Michigan College is a premier cultural facility in northern Michigan offering a dynamic array of exhibitions and programs in the visual arts, sciences, and performing arts. The Museum includes temporary exhibition and permanent collection galleries, an elegant sculpture court, and a hands-on Discovery Gallery. The permanent collection features regional, national, and international art from the 19th-21st centuries. The Milliken Auditorium hosts events and concerts with performers from around the world. Visit the Museum Store for great shopping, including a fine selection of Inuit art for collectors.
In 2021, the Dennos joined a network of more than 200 other Smithsonian Affiliates in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Panama. Established in 1996, the affiliations program is designed to facilitate a two-way relationship among Smithsonian Affiliates and the Smithsonian to increase discovery and inspire lifelong learning in communities across America. Smithsonian Affiliates are collaborators on many of the Smithsonian’s strategic priorities, adding local content, context, and expertise to national initiatives to help tell a fuller story.
Support provided by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and National Endowment for the Arts.
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