In commemoration of President Greg Peterson’s inaugural celebration, SLCC is staging a special retrospective of the President’s Art Show from August 11-21 at the George S. & Dolores Doré Eccles Gallery at the college’s South City campus.
The exhibit celebrates the decades-long legacy of SLCC’s annual juried show while taking a look forward. The selection features works from the College’s permanent collection and highlights pieces from President’s Art Shows dating back to the late ‘90s. The timeframe spans the tenures of four former presidents, one interim president, and now — with his official inauguration over a year after he took the president’s chair — President Peterson.
The show was curated by James Walton, SLCC’s art collection manager and gallery director. “Exhibiting selections from the permanent collection that span three decades gives a sense of where SLCC’s art committee has been under previous presidents,” Walton said, “while preparing us to focus our attention on where we’re heading with Greg.”
The community won’t have to wait long to see that direction realized, as the next President’s Art Show will open this November and Walton is organizing a surrealist exhibit immediately following this retrospective. The surrealism exhibit is built around the inaugural theme of “Opening Doors,” and it will feature works from nearly 40 local artists — more details to come in this space.
The first President’s Art Show opened under former-President Frank Budd’s leadership. Initially, it was an invitational event pitched by Terry Martin, now emeritus faculty in Visual Art & Design, and Gordon Storrs, who’s won multiple awards in past art shows and recently retired from SLCC as an academic advisor.
Martin and Storrs proposed two art shows a year as justification to lobby the President’s Office for funding to enliven the interiors of SLCC’s campuses — or, as Walton puts it, they “were fed up with the damaged, faded posters and other less-than-appealing pictures adorning the walls of the College.”
President Budd authorized funding for the project, also establishing SLCC’s Art Committee and permanent art collection. The project’s scope has since grown to more than a dozen exhibits annually, far exceeding the initial proposal, and the President’s Art Show has returned as a consistent highlight for the past 30 years.
Under President Peterson, the show is showing no signs of slowing down, and the 31st edition is scheduled to open November 6, 2025, with the call for entries open through September 1. Visit the President's Art Show call for entries page for more details.
EVENT DETAILS
Celebrating 30 Years of the President’s Art Show
EXHIBITION DATES
August 11-21, 2025LOCATION
The George S. & Dolores Doré Eccles GallerySouth City Campus, Center for Arts & Media
1575 S State Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84115
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