Exhibit honors family of artists

“DreamScapes,” an art exhibit by the Nichols family celebrating the landscapes and traditions of the Rio Grande Valley, opened  Sept. 19 at the Performing Arts Complex lobby on the Edinburg campus.

It is a talented family of artists. Edward Edson Nichols was a professor of art at legacy institution University of Texas-Pan American for 33 years before retiring from teaching in 1999; his wife, Maxine McClendon, an internationally renowned artist; and their son, Christopher, a UTPA alumnus.

“We called their exhibit ‘DreamScapes’ because it represents the different landscapes of the Rio Grande Valley, seen through the eyes of artists that loved the area,” said Dahlia Guerra, associate vice president for Public Art and Projects.

“The impact he made on the local artists, on students was just incredible,” Guerra said referring to Professor Nichols.

Special guests in attendance were the Nichols’ daughter, Jennifer Siegler, and her husband, Grant Siegler.

“The art department here was the family I grew up with, but to be able to get an exhibit, especially with all three of them, I think would have just meant the most to them,” Jennifer Siegler said.

Losing her brother Christopher a couple of months ago and both of her parents in early 2016, Siegler knows they would be quite touched and honored by it.

“It looks amazing,” she said. “It’s weird to have the opportunity, especially for my mom’s work, which is the big multipaneled pieces.”

Siegler explained why her mother had such large scales for her pieces. She said they were meant for big corporate boardrooms and finding a good space to fully show what they’re supposed to look like is hard to find.

“A lot of my mom’s work is based off of an aerial view of her interpretation of looking out a window from an airplane,” Siegler said. “She put that on canvas and painted it. My father did a lot of landscape stuff as well.”

Even though the whole exhibit is by the Nichols family, she said this is just a tiny bit of the amount of art she has, about 1% of all the art she has from the family.

“The thing with living with this caliber of art and seeing it every day, yes, you kind of get numb to it but there are times where it kind of catches you and even though you’ve been walking past it and seeing it all your life, it will cause you to stop at one moment one day and you’ll see something new about it and have a whole new level of appreciation.”

Sandra Samara Barba, a vocal music education senior, said she felt the feeling of home that Siegler  might feel every day from the paintings as well.

“I think it’s cozy because all the pieces have this, like, cushiony, like, soft texture and it just makes me feel like they’re trying to put out that message of home and comfort,” Barba said.

One message that Siegler wants to give all UTRGV students is, “Never accept limitation and never give up.”

“DreamScapes” will be on display at the UTRGV Performing Arts Complex lobby through Feb. 7, 2020. Admission is free.