WWU Western Gallery

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WWU Western Gallery Curator of WWU's visual art collections, unique international, faculty, and student exhibitions.

In additional to year-round free public exhibitions of art, the Western Gallery Director acts as curator of the university's visual art collections. Primary areas are 19th and 20th century prints and drawings, including the Helen Loggie Archives and the Leese Collection. In 2010 the gallery received over 175 works in various media by Northwest artists, a gift of Safeco Insurance, a member of the Liberty Mutual Group, and the Washington Art Consortium. Selections from these works will be placed on public view in the main lobbies of the Performing Arts Center. The Chair Collection focuses on this type of 20th century furniture created by international designers. The Outdoor Sculpture Collection is a nationally famous, public art collection displayed throughout the entire campus.

Thank you to everyone who joined us at last week's opening reception and celebration for Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands C...
10/15/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us at last week's opening reception and celebration for Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clean? 🎉

We want to extend a special thank you to the singers of WWU's Advance Trebel Chorale for pulling off a "surprise" performance. Ali Sandweiss Hodges, Director of Choral Activities, selected "Refugee" by Moira Smiley and "On Children" by Sweet Honey in the Rock. The pieces were a powerful compliment to the themes presented in the exhibition.

Singers:
Cloud Anderson, Ella Ansbacher, Rowan Dell, Audrey Hendrickson, Skyler McCormick, Nadia Meyer, Niko F.C. Pen, Alice Putnam-Kaminski, Lex Shiley, Jazz Zanger, with Kindle Johnson (bass) and Tehvon Fowler-Chapman (percussion).

Are My Hands Clean is on view at the Western Gallery through January 23rd. Gallery hours M-F 10-4, Saturday 12-4. Admission is always free.

Photography by Ian Bray, Western Gallery intern.

Wednesday: Rajkamal Kahlon in conversation with curator Trisha Lagaso-Goldberg - https://mailchi.mp/wwu/art-4937046 - M...
10/12/2026

Wednesday: Rajkamal Kahlon in conversation with curator Trisha Lagaso-Goldberg - https://mailchi.mp/wwu/art-4937046 - Miller Hall 152 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Visit the Western Gallery for a reception from 4:30-5:30 PM beforehand. Complimentary parking in Lot 17G available.

Join us this Wednesday October 14th at 5:30 PM for an artist talk with Rajkamal Kahlon moderated by curator Trisha Lagas...
10/12/2026

Join us this Wednesday October 14th at 5:30 PM for an artist talk with Rajkamal Kahlon moderated by curator Trisha Lagaso-Goldberg.

The event will be held in Miller Hall 152. Attendees are invited to visit the Western Gallery from 4:30-5:30 PM before the talk to explore the exhibition Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clean?

Open to the public and free to attend. Full details at the🔗 link in our bio!

Behind the scenes 🎬: An artist at work! As part of the exhibition Are My Hands Clean? Rajkamal Kahlon created an in situ...
10/07/2026

Behind the scenes 🎬: An artist at work! As part of the exhibition Are My Hands Clean? Rajkamal Kahlon created an in situ (on site) hand painted mural in the Western Gallery. Here, the artist utilizes projection to map out one of two larger-than-life-size figures. In conversation with Kahlon's other portraits in the exhibition, the mural raises further questions about scale and representation of otherwise anonymous subjects.

Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clean? opens to the public Thursday, October 8 at 10:00 am. Opening reception to follow from 5:00-7:00 PM. Admission is always free.

Photography by Ian Bray, Western Gallery Intern.

Over the last week Western Gallery preparators Scott Kolbo and Logan Evans installed Rajkamal Kahlon's massive Die Völke...
10/02/2026

Over the last week Western Gallery preparators Scott Kolbo and Logan Evans installed Rajkamal Kahlon's massive Die Völker der Erde (People of the Earth).

The installation is comprised of over three hundred individual pages cut from Kurt Lampert's anthropological text of the same title. Kahlon hand paints over the pages adding bandaged heads and body parts, protest signs, American flags, and other motifs used to upend the colonial gaze and disrupt the Eurocentric authority of the original publication.

Die Völker der Erde is arranged differently with every installation, hung intuitively by curatorial and preparatory staff.

Visit the work October 8 with the opening of the exhibition Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clean?. Gallery hours M-F 10-4, Saturday 12-4. Admission is always free.

Join us Thursday October 8, 5:00-7:00 PM for the opening reception and celebration of Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clea...
09/30/2026

Join us Thursday October 8, 5:00-7:00 PM for the opening reception and celebration of Rajkamal Kahlon: Are My Hands Clean?

Special performance and welcome at 5:30.

Free to attend. Complimentary parking provided in Lot 17G.

Image details: Rajkamal Kahlon, Which Side Are You On? (2024). Mixed media on archival photo-rag paper. Photo courtesy of P•P•O•W Gallery, New York.

RAJKAMAL KAHLON: ARE MY HANDS CLEAN? October 8, 2026 - January 23, 2027 Welcome back Vikings! The Western Gallery is ple...
09/21/2026

RAJKAMAL KAHLON: ARE MY HANDS CLEAN?
October 8, 2026 - January 23, 2027

Welcome back Vikings! The Western Gallery is pleased to announce our upcoming exhibition "Are My Hands Clean?" featuring recent paintings by South Asian American artist Rajkamal Kahlon.

Enlarging and overpainting images of women from anthropological and scientific books, Kahlon recovers the humanity of these anonymous subjects. She addresses how trauma and the body are at the center of political violence and "talks back" to the original authors.

Join us for an opening reception Thursday, October 8 5-7PM. Free and open to the public.

Image: Detail of "You Can't Kill Us, We're Already Dead" (2024). Rajkamal Kahlon. Mixed media on canvas.

Our Artist Talks for Perishable Goods have concluded, and tomorrow is the last day to view the exhibition. With a divers...
06/12/2026

Our Artist Talks for Perishable Goods have concluded, and tomorrow is the last day to view the exhibition. With a diverse array of mediums and perspectives in their work, WWU’s Bachelor of Fine Arts student artists have created the unique experience that is Perishable Goods. Don’t miss out before it’s gone! 🍐🌟

📸: Audrey Hemmert and Sofa Arias
From left to right: Sofa and Inez, Sara Kirsten and Ray, Skylar and Kyle, Brady and Charlie, Tully and Alegra, Sofa and Myrie, Sara Kirsten and Felix, Skylar and Audrey, Tully and Maude

Our Artist Talks for Perishable Goods have concluded, and tomorrow is the last day to view the exhibition. With a divers...
06/12/2026

Our Artist Talks for Perishable Goods have concluded, and tomorrow is the last day to view the exhibition. With a diverse array of mediums and perspectives in their work, WWU’s Bachelor of Fine Arts student artists created the unique experience that is Perishable Goods. Don’t miss out before it’s gone! 🍐🌟

📸: Audrey Hemmert and Sofa Arias
From left to right: Sofa and Inez, Sara Kirsten and Ray, Skylar and Kyle, Brady and Charlie, Tully and Alegra, Sofa and Myrie, Sara Kirsten and Felix, Skylar and Audrey, Tully and Maude

THIS MONDAY: Artist Inez Chiapella will be discussing their work in our current exhibition, Perishable Goods! Come learn...
06/06/2026

THIS MONDAY: Artist Inez Chiapella will be discussing their work in our current exhibition, Perishable Goods! Come learn about their artistic practice at 12 PM, with an interview conducted by intern Sofa Arias. 🌊🍊

This event is free to attend! Daytime parking is available for purchase through pay stations and the WWU website.

More information about the event and other upcoming events for the exhibition is at the 🔗link in our bio.

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Fine Arts Building, Western Washington University
Bellingham, WA
98225

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