Wendy Lane

What brought you to MCAD for your MFA?

Prior to MCAD offering its MFA program, the University of Minnesota was the only option. I wanted to attend a smaller school with more personalized instruction. I had recently participated in a mentoring program through Women’s Art Resources of MN (WARM) that I loved, so I was also drawn to the mentoring aspect of MCAD’s MFA program.

How did your creative practice change while you were at MCAD?

The thesis class requirement helped me explore and articulate my creative process in writing, something I had not tried before. Other MFA students worked in different disciplines, and our combined critique class encouraged me to see my work in a different context. I had almost exclusively painted plein-air landscapes before going to MCAD, but I developed a studio practice while in school, and designed and collaboratively painted a mural on the wall of a shopping mall. We also started using computers to support our work, so I took a Photoshop class to learn what it had to offer.

Do you have a favorite memory from your time in the program?

There was the freedom to develop my work off-campus. I created a residency at the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge for a year while I was in the MFA program. I ended up holding two graduate exhibitions for my work, one at the Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center Gallery, and the other at MCAD’s Gallery. It was extra work, but I enjoyed seeing the same work hung in two totally different environments and how different audiences responded to it.

What is next? Any new projects or life events that are in the pipeline?

I am becoming a writer, working on my memoir through a collection of personal essays. I will have my first essay published in 2022. I look forward to traveling again when it is safe to do so. When I travel, I paint plein-air what I am experiencing on postcard-sized paper, then write about it on the back, and mail them to friends. I hope to do more of that.