Kent State University’s School of Art Collection and Galleries will open its fall season with two exhibitions in galleries on the Kent Campus and in downtown Kent, Ohio.
“Best of 2026,” a juried exhibition showcasing contemporary fine craft by 69 artists, opens Aug. 25 in the CVA, Payto and Crawford galleries in the Center for the Visual Arts, 325 Terrace Drive. One week later, “The Good, The Bad, and The Rest of Us,” a solo exhibition by artist Eileen Woods, opens Sept. 1 at the KSU Downtown Gallery, 141 E. Main St.
Both exhibitions are free and open to the public.
“Best of 2026”
Aug. 25-Oct. 7 | CVA, Payto and Crawford Galleries
Reception: Aug. 28, 5-7 p.m.
Organized by the Ohio Designer Craftsmen, “Best of 2026” is a juried exhibition showcasing contemporary fine craft by 69 artists, with 73 works in clay, glass, metal, wood, fiber and mixed media selected from nearly 400 entries.
The exhibition was juried by Carol Sauvion, creator of the Peabody Award-winning PBS series “Craft in America” and recently retired executive director of the Craft in America organization. Thirteen artists received awards of excellence.
“What a joyful experience it was to become familiar with new and vibrant manifestations of the best of contemporary craft, which has evolved tremendously in the past decades,” Sauvion said. “It was a pleasure to ‘meet’ many new artists, and I look forward to following their careers and staying in touch with the work being done so well and for such a long time by the Ohio Designer Craftsmen.”
The Ohio Designer Craftsmen is a statewide organization that engages and enriches the community through high-quality exhibitions and education programs while supporting and promoting the professional development of fine craft artists.
“The Good, The Bad, and The Rest of Us”
Sept. 1-Oct. 31 | KSU Downtown Gallery
Reception: Sept. 4, 5-7 p.m.
In “The Good, The Bad, and The Rest of Us,” artist Eileen Woods challenges our instinct to read morality or character in faces through hand-embroidered portraits integrated into sheer silk and patterned fabrics.
The artist states:
“I render portraits of individuals whose lives defy visual expectation—killers who might pass for librarians, spies with gentle eyes, saints with hardened features, victims whose demeanor seems fearless.
The deliberate slowness of my process—threading needle through fabric for hours, days, weeks—mirrors the complexity of human biography. Each stitch becomes a meditation on the person beneath: the childhood of a convicted murderer, the compromises of an intelligence operative turned traitor, the private doubts of the canonized, the unexpected killing gunshot from a loved one. The decorative patterns —exploding nebulae, sprawling roses—serve as ironic halos and damning backdrops, beautiful containers for difficult truths. The transparent silk, backed with a mirror, reflects fully the embroidery process and represents the struggles of the subjects themselves.
I’m drawn to the gap between appearance and essence, the impossible task of knowing someone from their face alone. We hunger for physiognomy to guide us, for evil to announce itself and goodness to glow. But faces are just faces. The embroidery itself embodies this paradox: an art form associated with domesticity and decoration employed to examine violence, sacrifice, and moral ambiguity. What emerges is neither accusation nor absolution, but sustained attention—the only honest response to another person’s irreducible mystery.”
Both exhibitions are presented by the Kent State University School of Art Collection and Galleries and are made possible with support from the Ohio Arts Council.
EXHIBITION DETAILS
“Best of 2026”
Aug. 25-Oct. 7, 2026
Reception: Aug. 28, 5-7 p.m.
CVA, Payto and Crawford Galleries
Center for the Visual Arts
325 Terrace Drive, Kent, Ohio
“The Good, The Bad, and The Rest of Us” by Eileen Woods
Sept. 1-Oct. 31, 2026
Reception: Sept. 4, 5-7 p.m.
KSU Downtown Gallery
141 E. Main St., Kent, Ohio
Both exhibitions are free and open to the public.
About the School of Art: The School of Art at Kent State University was established in 1941 and maintains a tradition of excellence in visual arts education, creation, scholarship and leadership. Its undergraduate and graduate programs in the visual arts offer a range of directions and opportunities in the fields of art education, art history and studio art, which includes a comprehensive array of studio disciplines: ceramics, drawing, glass, jewelry/metals/enameling, painting, print media and photography, sculpture and expanded media, and textiles. The School of Art Collection and Galleries consist of six exhibition spaces located on the Kent campus and downtown Kent and a collection of over 4,000 artworks and objects. The School of Art is located at the Center of the Visual Arts at 325 Terrace Dr. in Kent. The 27,900-square-foot facility, twice the length of a football field, had its grand opening in 2016 and houses School of Art studios and classrooms.
