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The South ��ֱ���� State University School of Design is hosting artist Anna Schenker as the Stuart Artist-in-Residence Sept. 2-26. 

Schenker creates rubbings, paintings and sculptures that record direct interaction with her immediate surroundings. Through physical actions and systems for making, she uses touch as a tool to gain understanding and preserve a moment in time. These close investigations seek to slow down our initial perception of environments and create space for wonder and play. 

Schenker received her B.S. in art and psychology from Skidmore College and an MFA in visual art from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. She is based in St. Louis. 

“Rubbings are a tactile and meticulous act,” Schenker explained. “They show touch rather than sight. I want these works to slow down our initial understanding and perception of environments through the work’s unhurried process.” 

The Brookings community will be a unique source of inspiration. 

“I am excited to get to know the students and faculty and be a part of the school’s arts community while developing a new series of site-responsive rubbings and works that engage with the environment in Brookings,” Schenker said. “I’m looking forward to getting to know this new environment and finding ways to record the moments I discover. I am particularly interested in examining the intersection of our built environments with natural landscapes while I’m here.” 

The Stuart Artist-in-Residence program is funded through a donation from Joe and Signe Stuart, who worked and taught in Brookings for several decades. Signe Stuart was a professor of art at SDSU from 1972 to 1994, and Joe Stuart served as director and curator at the South ��ֱ���� Art Museum. Together they initiated the development of an artist-in-residence program on campus to enrich the community and create opportunities for artists, students and faculty. 

Each fall, a national or international artist is invited to make art on campus for one month, interacting with campus and community through lecture, critique, open studio hours and an open studio event in the Ritz Gallery at the end of the residency. 

This program is an experimental way for students to learn from the artist and observe how their work develops. 

The Stuart Artist-in-Residence lecture will be held Sept. 10 at 1 p.m. in Founders Recital Hall at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. The open studio event will be Sept. 25 from 4-6 p.m. in the Ritz Gallery. Both events are free and open to the public.