The University of Illinois Springfield Visual Arts Gallery is pleased to present “The Magnificently Mundane,” a group exhibition that presents works selected from the field of graphic design. The exhibit is curated by Brytton Bjorngaard, UIS assistant professor of digital media, and features designers from around the country.

The exhibition will open on Thursday, February 28, and run through Thursday, April 11. An opening reception for the exhibit will take place on Thursday, February 28, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. in the Visual Arts Gallery.

According to Bjorngaard, “Design is part of our everyday. It’s the cereal box opened at breakfast to the junk mail when home from work. It’s the mundane. It’s also the invite for a friend’s wedding -- to the art adorning the living room wall. It’s the magnificent. Whether created for a client, part of a research project, or created for pleasure, ‘The Magnificently Mundane’ showcases what it means to be graphic design.”

“The Magnificently Mundane” features works from Thom Caraway (Spokane, Washington), James Ewald (Edmond, Oklahoma), Lisa Hammershaimb (Chicago, Illinois), Jessica Hawkins (Shreveport, Louisiana), Alma Hoffman (Mobile, Alabama), Laura Huisinga (Fresno, California), Taekyeom Kim (Boone, North Carolina), Jeanne Komp (Royersford, Pennsylvania), Renee Meyer Ernst (Davenport, Iowa), Shannon McCarthy (Richmond, Kentucky), Ed Outhouse (Joplin, Missouri), Chris Sickels (Greenfield, Indiana), Becky Simpson (Nashville, Tennessee), RJ Thompson (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), Kim Topp (College Station, Texas), Teruko Tsubaki (Omaha, Nebraska), Natalie Tyree (Bowling Green, Kentucky) and Neil Ward (Des Moines, Iowa).

At UIS, Bjorngaard teaches courses in graphic design and digital media, including technology, print, typography, web, animation, digital and film photography and professional skills. In addition to teaching, she is a freelance graphic designer, exhibiting artist, a Springfield Art Association board member and was a member of DEMO Project (a former artist-run contemporary and alternative project gallery space in Springfield).

The Visual Arts Gallery is centrally located on the UIS campus in the Health and Science Building, Room 201, and is open Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information, visit the UIS Visual Arts Gallery website or contact the gallery by phone at 217/206-6506 or by email at alach@uis.edu.