School of Art - University of Manitoba

School of Art Gallery welcomes Derek Dunlop as Director/Curator 🎉

Please join us in welcoming Derek Dunlop, who began his role as Director/Curator of the School of Art Gallery on January 5, 2026. Dunlop brings curatorial experience, research excellence, and a national exhibition history to the position.

“I was drawn to the School of Art Gallery because of its position at the intersection of studio practice, art history, and critical theory within a major research university,” Dunlop says. “That combination creates the conditions for programming that is intellectually rigorous while remaining closely connected to making, teaching, and public conversation.”

Looking ahead, Dunlop is excited to build on the Gallery’s strong foundation—deepening its role as a welcoming public space and an active site of learning, research, and collaboration.

Read the announcement: https://umtoday.ca/stories/school-art-gallery-welcomes-derek-dunlop-directorcurator

School of Art Gallery welcomes Derek Dunlop as Director/Curator Dunlop brings research-driven curating and a commitment to local art histories to the Gallery’s next chapter.

✨CBC Arts: School of Art Assistant Professor Anna Binta Diallo reflects on her grandfather, renowned architect Étienne Gaboury, in Heliophile — her new glass-based exhibition at Galerie Buhler Gallery. On view until August 22.

Read more ⬇️

CBC Manitoba: To Canadians, he’s Manitoba’s greatest architect. To this artist, he’s grandpa Anna Binta Diallo, an assistant professor at the University of Manitoba’s School of Art, is opening a new exhibition at Galerie Buhler Gallery that reflects on the legacy of her grandfather, renowne

Spotlight on Research 🎉👀

Congrats to Professor Grace Nickel on receiving a SSHRC Insight Grant for her project “16th Century Meets the 21st Century”, which explores the historical and contemporary impact of Anabaptist/Haban ceramics.

Read the full story ↓

Spotlight on Research: Professor Grace Nickel Awarded SSHRC Insight Grant Congratulations to School of Art professor Grace Nickel, who has been awarded an Insight Grant through the 2024 SSHRC competition. Her project, 16th Century Meets the 21st Century — the Hi

🎓 Huge congratulations to our 2025 School of Art grads!

It was such a joy to celebrate with you at convocation this week—what a moment. You’ve brought curiosity, care, and bold ideas into our studios, lecture halls, and galleries. We’re so proud of everything you’ve accomplished.

𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗶𝘁. Keep in touch—we’ll be cheering you on from here. 💛

🎉 Shout-out to School of Art alum 𝗖𝗵𝘂𝗸𝘄𝘂𝗱𝘂𝗯𝗲𝗺 𝗨𝗸𝗮𝗶𝗴𝘄𝗲 (BFA Hon. ’22), shortlisted for the 2025 𝗦𝗼𝗯𝗲𝘆 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱!

gallery.ca/whats-on/sobey-art-award/artists-2025

Representing the Prairies, Dubem’s multidisciplinary work explores identity, history, and connection through painting, video, performance, and more. Drawing on influences ranging from experimental music and literature to history and futurisms, his practice engages with themes of semiotic dissonance, shared authorship, and global aesthetics. His work will be featured this fall in the 𝗦𝗼𝗯𝗲𝘆 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗵𝗶𝗯𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗮.

So proud — and cheering you on, Dubem!

Think you could spot a fake Tom Thomson?

Students in 𝘊𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 (FAAH 3250) asked just that. Taught by Dr. David Foster, the course explores the history, theory, and ethics of copying, forgery, adaptation, plagiarism, and appropriation—from modernist ready-mades to postmodern pastiche and contemporary postproduction art. It also examines the harms of cultural appropriation through the lens of decolonization and postcolonial theory.

📸 Students examine a forged Tom Thomson—unpacking questions of authorship, creativity, and appropriation.

We’re proud to celebrate faculty member and acclaimed ceramic artist 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗹, named the inaugural recipient of the 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘂 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, presented by the Manitoba Craft Council as part of the 2025 Craft Awards earlier this month.

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The award recognizes an outstanding career in craft, and it was only fitting that Grace—a former student, colleague, and friend of Bob Archambeau—was the first to receive this honour.

From international exhibitions to major public commissions and years of dedicated teaching, Grace’s impact has been felt across generations. As she shared in her remarks: “𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.” 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲! 🏆

🔗 Read the full article: https://news.umanitoba.ca/celebrating-grace-nickel-inaugural-archambeau-award-of-distinction-recipient/

💡 Opening this Friday at the School of Art Gallery:

Lisha Wang: 𝘓. 𝘐. 𝘍. 𝘌.

May 23–June 20, 2025
Opening Reception: Friday, May 23 | 5:00–8:00 PM
School of Art Gallery, 180 Dafoe Road, UM
 
“𝘔𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦,
𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦-𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘵,
𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦-𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘪𝘵.”
 
In her MFA thesis exhibition 𝘓. 𝘐. 𝘍. 𝘌., Lisha Wang blurs the line between concept and form, creating subtle, immersive works that use text, photography, video, sound, and performance to reflect on the nature of being. Her minimal aesthetic and poetic gestures create space for quiet disruption and reflection—raising questions about perception, time, and the fragility of experience.
 
Originally from China, Wang studied contemporary jewellery in Italy and Germany before turning to conceptual art. Her interdisciplinary practice seeks not answers, but atmospheric provocations—moments that unfold slowly and linger.
 
Public Thesis Examination:
Friday, June 6 | 1:00 PM
School of Art Gallery – All are welcome.
 
🔗 umanitoba.ca/art/mfa-thesis-exhibitions

🌿 Opening this Friday at the School of Art Gallery:

Netsanet Shawl: 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘈𝘳𝘵
 
May 23–June 20, 2025
Opening Reception: Friday, May 23 | 5:00–8:00 PM
School of Art Gallery, 180 Dafoe Road, UM
 
In 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘈𝘳𝘵, Netsanet Shawl explores the memory held in materials—clay, cattails, and natural fibres—through sculptural vessels that bridge cultural identity, ancestral knowledge, and migration. Her process begins with the land: gathering local clay, weaving grasses, coiling by hand. Through these gestures, she honours the women’s craft traditions of her Ethiopian heritage while reflecting on new relationships formed in Canada.
 
Her work speaks across geographies, combining basketry and ceramics to challenge the division between craft and fine art. Each vessel becomes a carrier of care, resilience, and continuity—handmade stories of belonging and cultural memory.

Born in Ethiopia and now based in Winnipeg, Shawl holds a BFA (Honours) and is completing her MFA at the University of Manitoba. Her work has been exhibited nationally and is included in upcoming international exhibitions, including with ITSLIQUID Group in Venice, Italy.
 
Public Thesis Examination:
Thursday, June 5 | 1:00 PM
School of Art Gallery – Everyone welcome.

🔗 umanitoba.ca/art/mfa-thesis-exhibitions
 

🚫 Opening this Friday at the School of Art Gallery:

Frankie May: 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯

May 23–June 20, 2025
Opening Reception: Friday, May 23 | 5:00–8:00 PM
School of Art Gallery, 180 Dafoe Road, UM
 
Through body performance, experimental photography, and video installation, Frankie May launches a full-scale critique of normalized society and ideological conditioning. Everyday Life Revolution is a conceptual rebellion against the monotony and control of capitalist life—a space where perception is disrupted, absurdity becomes strategy, and the body refuses to conform.
 
Influenced by Dada and Fluxus, May employs humor not for relief but rupture—interrupting the passive gaze and exposing what society represses or refuses to see. His work is confrontational, provocative, and often unsettling, asking viewers to think with their bodies, not just their minds.
 
Originally from Ningbo, China, May worked as an artist and curator in Hangzhou and Shanghai before moving to Canada in 2023. He completed his BFA and MFA coursework at the China Academy of Art and has exhibited widely across China, the UK, and Canada, including as a 2024 participant in Plug In ICA’s Summer Institute.
 
Public Thesis Examination:
Wednesday, June 4 | 1:00 PM
School of Art Gallery – All are welcome!

🔗 umanitoba.ca/art/mfa-thesis-exhibitions
 

🖼 Opening this Friday at the School of Art Gallery:

Xianghui Guan: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵

May 23–June 20, 2025
Opening Reception: Friday, May 23 | 5:00–8:00 PM
School of Art Gallery, 180 Dafoe Road, UM

In his MFA thesis exhibition 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵, Xianghui Guan invites us into a deeply personal visual narrative. Through a series of painted scenes that blend still life, memory, and metaphor, he explores how the self is formed through loss, migration, and fractured language.

Treating images as both emotional residue and perceptual sites, Guan’s “painted novel” challenges the boundaries between word and image. His work centers on themes of childhood, family, illness, and dislocation—not through nostalgia, but through visual disruptions that activate memory and affect.
Originally from Henan, China, Guan holds BFAs and MFAs from the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute and has exhibited widely across Asia and North America. A committed artist and educator, his practice reflects years of research into image-making as a form of storytelling and self-construction.

Public Thesis Examination:
Wednesday, May 28 | 1:00 PM
School of Art Gallery – All are welcome to attend!

🎨 Opening this Friday at the School of Art Gallery:

Laila Fazal: 𝘞𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘙𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘴 (𝘴𝘶𝘵𝘰𝘺 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘰𝘳)

May 23–June 20, 2025
Opening Reception: Friday, May 23 | 5:00–8:00 PM
School of Art Gallery, 180 Dafoe Road, UM

In her MFA thesis exhibition, Laila Fazal reflects on the emotional and cultural complexities of immigration, identity, and belonging. Drawing on the visual language of Bengali scroll painting and personal iconography, her vibrant, symbolic works weave together past and present—mapping stories of memory, displacement, and resilience.
Fazal’s work honours lived experience while confronting the lasting effects of colonialism on tradition, gender, and cultural continuity. Through richly layered narratives, she reclaims space for voices too often overlooked and reframes inherited identity through her own lens.

Born in Bangladesh, Laila holds BFAs and MFAs from the University of Dhaka and is currently completing her MFA at the School of Art. Her work has been exhibited across South Asia and Canada and reflects a growing presence in diasporic and contemporary art conversations.

Public Thesis Examination:
Thursday, May 29 | 1:00 PM
School of Art Gallery – Open to all!

🔗 umanitoba.ca/art/mfa-thesis-exhibitions