UWM Union Art Gallery
Virtual Exhibitions
On Display Now (Please Scroll)
First Year Experience 2023
October 5 – November 3
The Crossing Over exhibition showcases work created by undergraduate students of the UWM Peck School of the Arts, Department of Art and Design, who have received a scholarship and/or fellowship award in 2023. This exciting annual exhibition highlights the exceptional artwork produced by these promising emerging artists in a wide range of mediums and themes.
Join the Union Art Gallery in celebrating these outstanding UWM artists!
Additional Programming:
Opening Reception:
Thursday, October 5th from 5 pm to 7 pm
Artist Talks:
Thursday, October 19th, 7 pm via Zoom
First Year Experience 2023
April 14th-April 28th
The First Year Program in Art and Design at UWM’s Peck School of the Arts prepares students to be creative, engaged and ready to advance in their chosen areas of study. The first year is a time of artistic and personal development during which students choose their areas of concentration and begin to see themselves becoming practitioners in their field. The Union Art Gallery’s First Year Exhibition is an opportunity for these students to showcase the work they have created during this process. Join us in celebrating the work of these talented artists!
BLICK Art AWARDS at First Year Experience Exhibition:
Each year Blick Art Materials Milwaukee selects Blick Awards at the First Year Experience exhibition. We thank Blick Milwaukee and their staff for supporting this annual event. Five works in the exhibition will be selected before the opening reception and announced on Friday, April 14th at 6 pm during the opening reception. Award recipients will receive Blick Gift Cards.
Additional Programming:
Opening Reception:
Friday, April 14th from 5 pm to 7 pm, with remarks at 6 pm
50th Annual Juried Show
March 3rd-March 31st
The Union Art Gallery presents the 50th Annual Juried Exhibition, a showcase of artwork in a variety of mediums by college student artists from around the Greater Milwaukee area. Juried by a panel of three Milwaukee arts professionals, the top exhibiting artists will be announced and awarded cash prizes during the opening reception. This is a great opportunity to see and support the incredible talent of emerging contemporary artists right in our local area!
Additional Programming:
Opening Reception:
Friday, March 3rd from 5 pm to 7 pm, with remarks at 6 pm
Artist Talks:
Thursday, March 16th at 7 pm over Zoom
Crossing Over 2022
November 11 – December 14, 2022 at the Union Art Gallery
The Crossing Over exhibition showcases work created by undergraduate students of the UWM Peck School of the Arts department of Art and Design who have received a scholarship and/or fellowship award in 2022. This exciting annual exhibition highlights the exceptional artwork produced by these promising emerging artists in a wide range of mediums and themes. Please join the Union Art Gallery in celebrating these outstanding UWM artists!
First Year Experience 2022
April 14-May 6, 2022 at the Union Art Gallery
The First Year Program in Art and Design at UWM’s Peck School of the Arts prepares students to be creative, engaged and ready to advance in their chosen areas of study. The first year is a time of artistic and personal development during which students choose their areas of concentration and begin to see themselves becoming practitioners in their field. The Union Art Gallery’s First Year Exhibition is an opportunity for these students to showcase the work they have created during this process. Join us in celebrating the work of these talented artists!
This is also OFFICIALLY the last exhibition to go up in the current gallery space we have resided in since 1972. Join us for pop-up exhibitions and events in Fall 2022 and check out our new space coming to the Student Union in Spring 2023!
49th Annual Juried Show
February 21-March 18, 2022 at the Union Art Gallery
The Union Art Gallery presents the 49th Annual Juried Exhibition, a showcase of artwork in a variety of mediums by college student artists from around the Greater Milwaukee area. Juried by a panel of three Milwaukee arts professionals (Evelyn Patricia Terry, Brad Bernard, and Lois Bielefeld), the top exhibiting artists will be announced and awarded cash prizes during the opening reception. This is a great opportunity to see and support the incredible talent of emerging contemporary artists right in our local area!
Artist Credit: Will Manley, 2021 Best in Show
Crossing Over 2021
Opened November 15th, 2021
The Crossing Over exhibition showcases work created by undergraduate students of the UWM Peck School of the Arts department of Art and Design who have received a scholarship and/or fellowship award in 2021. This exciting annual exhibition highlights the exceptional artwork produced by these promising emerging artists in a wide range of mediums and themes. Please join the Union Art Gallery in celebrating these outstanding UWM artists!
ReCollections: A UAG Retrospective
Opened August 30, 2021
The Union Art Gallery opened its doors almost 50 years ago in 1972 as an art space dedicated to bringing outstanding contemporary art by professional and student artists to UWM and the Milwaukee community. As the gallery prepares to move from its current space during the Union renovation, we are utilizing the gallery space one last time to stage a retrospective and reminisce about the space itself and the artists who have shown work within it by revisiting past exhibitions and events. Artwork and materials culled from various artists, collections, collectives, and the gallery’s own archives and Student Art Collection will be on display, allowing for a nostalgic and illuminating look at the gallery’s history. Join us on this trip down memory lane!
Mutòpe j. johnson: In Search of a Benevolent Kind of Blue
Opened April 8th, 2021
Centering around an exploration of Milwaukee’s historic Bronzeville neighborhood, Mutòpe j. johnson: In Search of a Benevolent Kind of Blue celebrates and memorializes the rich local history of African American experiences through a contemplation of the past, the present and the future. In this solo exhibition, UWM alum Mutòpe j. johnson evokes the lively spirit of Bronzeville, inviting visitors to digest dynamic depictions and installations that also bring up issues of cultural loss and the negative impact of eminent domain policies on the neighborhood. Through vibrant, reimagined images of Bronzeville and its Jazz clubs, poets, and singers, johnson has transformed the Union Art Gallery into a charged space imploring critical thinking, open discussion, and unapologetic celebration!
First Year Experience 2021
Opened April 1, 2021
(Please note: there’s a lot of great art here so it will likely take a couple more seconds than usual to load)
The First Year Program in Art and Design at UWM’s Peck School of the Arts prepares students to be creative, engaged and ready to advance in their chosen areas of study. The first year is a time of artistic and personal development during which students choose their areas of concentration and begin to see themselves becoming practitioners in their field. The Union Art Gallery’s First Year Exhibition is an opportunity for these students to showcase the work they have created during this process. Join us in celebrating the work of these talented artists.
48th Annual Juried Show
Opened March 4, 2021
(Please note: there’s a lot of great art here so it will likely take a couple more seconds than usual to load)
The Union Art Gallery presents the 48th Annual Juried Show Exhibition showcasing student artists from around the Greater Milwaukee area working in a variety of mediums.
Migrating Gestures
Crossing Over 2020
Opened November 9, 2020
The Crossing Over exhibition showcases work created by undergraduate students of the UWM Peck School of the Arts department of Art and Design who have received a scholarship and/or fellowship award in 2020. This exciting annual event highlights the exceptional artwork produced by these promising emerging artists in a wide range of mediums and unpredictable themes. Please join the Union Art Gallery in celebrating these outstanding UWM artists!
Here to Stay: Braving Barriers Through Performance
Opened September 11, 2020
Please join the UWM Union Art Gallery for this timely virtual exhibition challenging preconceived notions of who we are as a nation and expanding our understanding of our community. Positioned immediately preceding our presidential election, in the middle of a world-wide pandemic and amidst a modern day civil rights movement, Here to Stay highlights the work of three artists working in the realm of social justice, activism and immigration.
First Year Experience 2020
Opened July 9, 2020
A student’s first year is a time of artistic and personal development during which students choose their areas of concentration and begin to see themselves becoming practitioners in their field. This exhibition is an opportunity for these students to showcase the work they have created during this process, which normally takes place at the UWM Union Art Gallery each Spring semester.
Address
UWM Student Union
Room W199, Campus Level
2200 E Kenwood Blvd
Milwaukee, WI 53211
Academic Year Gallery Hours
Sat-Sun: closed