GRCC sends condolences to the friends and family of Dr. Jud VanderWal, a leader on this campus for more than 30 years. He passed away on Sept. 4 at age 84.
“Jud was forever inspired by God’s intelligent design for the evolution of our universe and earth,” his family wrote in his obituary. “His curiosity was always captured by the wonders present in our being as well as the creatures surrounding us.”
VanderWal taught for 32 years and served as Life Sciences Divisional Chair. He also served a 10-year term as vice president of the Junior College Faculty Association. He earned degrees from Calvin University, Michigan State University and Western Michigan University.
“His former students, when he saw them in the community, never failed to let him know that he was a ‘favorite — hard but fair and always interesting,’ always respected.”
In retirement, he enthusiastically volunteered as a zoo docent, bringing small animals to various groups, including seniors and school children.
He will be missed by his wife of 62 years, Judy, three children and six grandchildren and decades of students!
Grand Rapids Community College’s Paul Collins Art Gallery is hosting three ArtPrize entries, showcasing digital animation, pen and ink technique and acrylic painting.
ArtPrize 2022 runs from Sept. 15 to Oct. 2 and features 750 entries in the interactive art competition.
The Collins Art Gallery is found on the fourth floor of Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall, 143 Bostwick Ave. NE. From Sept. 15 to Oct. 2, the gallery will be open from 1-8 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Guests visiting during the weekend should enter through the doors on the south end of Finkelstein Hall Level G2, near the iconic lion fountain, or through the skywalk connected to Parking Ramp A. Signs or staff will direct you to the gallery.
The entries include “Inexcusable,” which features pen-and-ink drawings by teacher Ginger Creasy in collaboration with student Jessica Newell, which explores the intricacies of nature.
“I am collaborating with one of my art students with the thought of creation and its wonderful intricacies from the largest mammal, hidden in the designs of the ocean, to the smallest of creation, and the complicating designs of organisms,” wrote Creasy, of Twin Lake, Mich., in her artist’s statement.
“This is really a hidden adventure for all to enjoy. ‘Inexcusable’ is what we think about when we see the complicating designs of what seem simple. Nothing in nature is simple! For instance, why don’t ducks’ or geese, or even penguins’ feet freeze? DESIGN! You will find this somewhere in my art piece.”
Creasy, who is entering ArtPrize for the eleventh time, said there is a story behind everything I chose to put into this piece. Newell’s piece, although separate, relates also to creation, particularly the golden ratio which describes predictable patterns on everything from atoms to huge stars in the sky.”
“Derivations of a Gothic Arch Part 2” is a digital animation by Morehead State University instructor Gary Mesa-Gaido.
The six-minute digital animation with sound moves through multiple iterations of a gothic arch being pushed and pulled in a multitude of directions and shapes that all tie back to the gothic architectural element of the arch.
Mesa-Gaido has been an artist for more than 30 years, and his work has been displayed in international, national, regional and state-juried and invitational exhibits. His pieces have been viewed at diverse venues, including the Abraham Lubelski Gallery in New York, the Museo ItaloAmericano in San Francisco, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland, plus museums and galleries across the United States.
“Landscapes in my mind’s eye,” is an acrylic-on-canvas piece by Seongbae Cho, was inspired by a summer trip to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National parks. He said the title comes from the words of Ansel Adams
My title for his entry was inspired by acclaimed landscape photographer Ansel Adams.
“I think the word, ‘mind’s eye’ would show the meaning of my paintings,” he said in his artist’s description. “I traveled to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National parks last summer. I stayed in the park and explored great nature. I saw huge mountains, river, falls, geysers, hot springs, and wild animals. I felt something beautifully and imagined I lived in paradise. I am seeking to capture the inherent beauty in nature in my artwork.”
Cho was born in Seoul, South Korea expresses the beauty he sees with various methods; abstract landscape paintings, representative landscape paintings, and digital images that he produces with a computer program.
Since 2010, he had five solo exhibitions and has taken part in several group shows in South Korea. He also showed his digital paintings at the Muskegon Museum of Art and at the ArtPrize in 2021.
GRCC student Christina Hindley has an entry nearby at she will be at Park Congregational Church, titled “For the Love of Hope and Harmony.”
The piece is 14,114 paper-quilled hearts mounted on board that is four feet by eight feet and arranged to resemble a sunset. Paper quilling is a centuries-old craft that uses thin strips of paper that are then formed into shapes; these shapes are combined into further shapes via artistic pinching and the strategic use of glue.
Hindley estimates that the project totaled hundreds of hours of work from December 2021 to July 2022. But the time invested, she added, was for a greater goal.
“My purpose is to show everybody that we are a lot more similar than we are different,” she said. “All of the hearts are individual but similar and then put together in what looks like a sunset because that’s something that everybody can see all over the world from anywhere you are. So, it’s a unifier. I feel like there’s just so much division right now. I wanted to do something to pull people together.”
The GRCC Dental Clinic is open now through December, and then again January until April.
The clinic is located on the third floor of the Cook Academic Building. Contact the clinic at 616-234-4237 to schedule a cleaning. Each appointment is three hours long, and the staff would need you to commit to two appointments with us initially.
The cost to students and faculty is $20, and $35 for all other patients. If you are age 17 and younger, the cost is $30. The clinic has many dates and times to choose from, Monday thru Thursday. Times vary, so please call ahead.
Each appointment consists of:
Dental Cleaning
Blood pressure screening
X-Rays
Oral Health Education/Assessments
Patient Treatment Plan
Fluoride Treatment
Free parking if you park in one of GRCC’s parking garages
And you get to have a great conversation and see what the GRCC dental clinic is like.
The clinic is available for many kinds of patients, whether it has been awhile since their last cleaning, or if they want to book their family to come at one time. The clinic can schedule just x-rays as well!
GRCC’s Admissions Team is hosting our annual Fall 2022 Open Houses from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Fieldhouse on Saturday, October 29, and at our Lakeshore Campus on Saturday, November 12. This is normally an event highly attended by prospective students and their families.
The days’ events will include:
Student Tours.
Campus Overview and Admissions Presentation.
Academic Advising and Transfer Presentations.
Financial Aid Presentation.
Resource Fair.
We would love to have your department represented. It is a great chance to connect with future GRCC students, answer questions and showcase your department! Please sign up for one or both events so we can reserve a spot for you.
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