The RC Art Gallery is a vibrant space that celebrates creativity and artistic expression within the Residential College. Each semester, the gallery features three unique exhibits. Two are professional exhibitions showcasing renowned artists from across the country, bringing diverse perspectives and practices to our community. The third exhibit highlights the incredible talents of RC Visual Arts students, providing them with a platform to display their work.
The RC Visual Arts Program encompasses a wide range of disciplines, including fine arts, photography, ceramics, sculpture, printmaking, cyanotypes, furniture building, drawing, and more, fostering innovation and hands-on exploration.
The gallery is open to the public and visitors are invited to experience the dynamic artistic energy of the RC through these thoughtfully curated shows.
Currently at the Residential College Art Gallery
Maris Van Vlack
"Subtle Machines"
August 25 - October 3, 2025
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The public is cordially invited to an artist's reception on September 19 at 4:30 pm in the RC Art Gallery.
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Artist's Statement
Using traditional textile techniques, Maris Van Vlack constructs tactile images that reference topography, geology, and generational memory. Her work is primarily hand-woven, consisting of panels of fabric slowly built up thread by thread, trapping memory and history in the sedimentary process. After hand-weaving the base tapestry, she layers the surface with drawn, painted, and stitched marks and incorporates areas of industrial jacquard weaving and stoll knitting. Each piece balances the materiality of the fibers and the atmosphere created within the deep pictorial space. The landscapes in the work depict architectural spaces from her family’s history, referencing photographs of places in Europe destroyed during World War II, where family members lived. Her work is a window through which to see layers of time and memory, depicting the space between the past and the present.
Visitors can expect to experience a diverse array of media and ideas - hand-built ceramic forms inspired by ritual and storytelling, black-and-white and digital photography that captures human complexity and everyday beauty, and prints that explore texture, technique, and the political power of visual repetition. Sculpture students have transformed mixed media into bold, dimensional statements, while others have tackled the intersection of art and activism through socially engaged projects. From first-time makers to advanced artists refining their craft, each piece represents an individual journey through process, reflection, and expression.
Artist's Bio
Maris Van Vlack is an interdisciplinary artist from Massachusetts who works with textiles and painting. She received a BFA in Textiles from the Rhode Island School of Design with a concentration in Drawing. Among her many accomplishments Maris exhibited in the USA and Europe, including shows at the U. S. Capitol Building, Superhouse, and the RISD Museum, she received the Kennedy Center’s VSA Emerging Artist Award 2024, and has been published by the Boston Globe, Dwell Magazine, and Warp + Weft Magazine.
Visit the Art Gallery
Open Hours: The RC Art Gallery is open Monday-Friday from 9:00 am - 4:30 pm during the academic year.
Visitor Access: Access the gallery from the door located near the northwest corner of East Quadrangle on East University just across from Weiser Plaza. The door is open to patrons, students and faculty during the gallery open hours.
Contact the Gallery: Email us at rc.artgallery@umich.edu
