University of Wyoming Art Museum

It might sound dramatic, but we’ve all experienced a version of exile in 2020.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Wyoming in March, all classes and activities quickly ended on the University of Wyoming campus. All faculty and students – and most of the world – retreated into their own corners of self-isolation. Some were in cities, some were in rural communities, and law student Ryan Sedgeley was inside Yellowstone National Park with this wife, who is a park ranger.

A couple years earlier, Sedgeley had the idea to organize an exhibit showcasing artwork made by UW law students, and suddenly he’d found the perfect time for it. Thus, the University of Wyoming Art Museum’s first completely virtual art exhibit was born.

“I was recognizing how many of my fellow law students are really talented (artistically),” he said. “And we just went on spring break and never came back. I thought that was the right time to do it because art is a way to connect us all back together. We can express what we’re feeling and what we’re going through.”

Later in the spring, Sedgeley approached the museum and asked if it would be interested in sponsoring and facilitating this kind of show. Although he creates in his free time, Sedgeley didn’t have any experience in art exhibit curation, and he wanted to build a bridge between the university’s art and law departments.

Read the full article here.