November 04, 2020 Howard Quednau Meet the artists of the 2020 MCAD Faculty Biennial This diorama suggests an amusement park attraction and conflates politics and pandemic. built to a scale of 1”=35”. The figures are constructed by modifying commercial model soldiers, using putty, paper, and paint. My background is that of a painter and I think of these as low-relief paintings. Indeed, nearly every surface is covered by a thin veneer of paint. Although I work with narratives and representation, the nature of “realism” still perplexes me. What does it mean for art to be “realistic”? In this work, I am trying to sidestep the parallel universe such a question implies by physically representing small bits of imagined space in diorama form. About Howard Quednau Howard Quednau, MA, MFA, Northern Illinois University, BS, University of Wisconsin, Madison has exhibited nationally and internationally. Trained as a printmaker, he has since exhibited mostly paintings, and in recent years, 3-D dioramas. His work is included in various collections, including the Kemper Corporation (Chicago), Del Mar College (TX), and Concordia University. Recent exhibitions include the Phipps Center for the Arts in Hudson Wisconsin, and Metro State University in St. Paul, MN, Silverwood Gallery in St Anthony, MN, and Gustavus Adolphus College in St Peter, MN. Howard is currently the chair of the Fine Art Department at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. Explore more about Howard Quednau