Melton Gallery
The Melton Gallery is a contemporary art gallery located in the Art and Design Building on the UCO campus. We exhibit local, regional, and national artists and designers, providing a space that emphasizes innovation and exploration for the UCO community and beyond. We look forward to a bright future of showcasing contemporary works as well as acquiring new and diverse pieces for our collection.
Meet us at the Melton for your next creative experience!
Currently in the Gallery
Symbiotic
Opening Reception: 5:30 - 7:30, Friday, Feb. 15
Exhibit Dates: February 7 - March 14
Curated by Jarica Walsh, Symbiotic is an exhibition of collaborative artworks produced by teams composed of a professional practicing artist and one or more student artists. The professional artists are charged with developing a base concept that addresses the intrinsic relationship between art and community. The selected students are assigned to their team based on their personality, background and chosen medium. Each team meets independently to further develop their concept and create their work.
Symbiotic Workshops
Saturday March 9, 10 am – 4 pm
UCO Art & Design Building
All workshops are free and open to the public (must be 18 or older). All materials are provided. Seats are limited. Reserve your spot by emailing Kyle Cohlmia at kcohlmia1@uco.edu.
These workshops run in conjunction with the Symbiotic exhibition in UCO's Melton Gallery – a collaborative exhibition that looks at the relationship between community and art. Now in its third iteration, the exhibition has grown each year to add more community interaction and increase opportunities for artists. The 2019 exhibition is sponsored by Fowler Volkswagen and UCO College of Fine Arts and Design, and received the Mid-America Arts Alliance Artistic Innovations grant.
Autumn Brown – Papier-Mâché Construction
10:00 – 12:30 & 1:30 – 4:00 pm | Painting Room, A&D 111
Participants will learn how to mix their own papier-mâché, create vessels and other shapes, and how to alter and decorate the forms using a variety of techniques.
Dan Harris – Intro to Ceramics
1:30 – 4:00 pm | Ceramics Room, A&D 120
Participants will learn how to create using clay. All experience levels are welcome, and the workshop will include the opportunity to throw on the pottery wheel or utilize hand-building techniques.
Mandy Messina – Product Design
10:00 – 12:30, Drawing Room, A&D 200
Imagining a world where African Nations were former colonizers, how would such a legacy by felt through products, advertising and design? Participants will world-build by creating their own fictional products using available containers, printed labels and ready-made fictional alphabet and number system. Each finished work has the option of being photographed/recorded in the available lightbox for sharing the best possible images of the product on social media.
Kelly Rogers – Stitching Circle & Self-Care Discussion
1:30 – 4:00 pm | Melton Gallery
Participants will receive materials to create their own stitched journal piece, and be invited to share their own creative methods for self-care. All skill levels welcome.
Jarica Walsh – Curating for the Community
10:00 – 12:30 pm | Melton Gallery
Participants will learn the steps involved in curating a grass roots art exhibition, tips on building community interaction, and the importance of fundraising to support the artists.
Meet Our Curator | Kyle Cohlmia
Kyle Cohlmia grew up in Stillwater, Oklahoma and attended the University of Kansas from 2001-06 for undergraduate school, studying art history and Italian. After college, she moved to Denver, Colorado and worked at the Denver Art Museum for two years in the Education Department before attending graduate school in English education at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
In 2010, Kyle moved back to Oklahoma to be closer to family and worked at Oklahoma State University, Oklahoma City as the director of the Student Success and Opportunity Center, a tutoring center on campus. After five years at OSU, she decided to pursue her passion for the arts and completed Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition's (OVAC) Oklahoma Art Writing and Curatorial Fellowship and served as emerging curator for OVAC’s annual art show, Momentum. She spent a year working at the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, Gaylord-Pickens Museum as manager of Museum Services before landing at UCO as curator of exhibitions for the Melton Gallery.
Kyle is thrilled to work with artists around the state and nation to bring in thought-provoking, contemporary art exhibits that inspire UCO students and the greater Oklahoma City metro.