Laura Bentz (photo detail, left) and Mary Donahue (painting detail, right)

Laura Bentz and Mary Donahue—two art professors at Chadron State University—have joined forces at the Fred Simon Gallery to exhibit their visions of the Sandhills of Nebraska, with a show opening July 15. Photographer/printmaker Bentz and painter Donahue evoke the beauty of the grassy plains, wide skies, sentinel trees and rocky scapes of this unique ecosystem.

Inspired by their own senses of belonging to the land, Bentz and Donahue also recognize the indelible images of the Sandhills created in the biographies, novels and short stories of Nebraska author Mari Sandoz, whose portrayals of the landscape and its indigenous residents and homesteaders remain influential today.

The Fred Simon Gallery is located on the lower level of the Burlington Building, 1004 Farnam St. An opening reception is scheduled for Thursday, July 14 from 5-7pm by reservation only; the gallery is also open by appointment Mon-Fri from 9am-4pm. Links to reservations are online at the address above.


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