NATCHITOCHES – Northwestern State University Assistant Professor of Art Edgar Cano Lopez will host an “Open Studio” beginning at 5 p.m. Thursday, June 20.  Cano’s studio is located in Room 105 of the University Printing building on campus.  The public is invited to attend.

Cano, an award-winning pop-surrealist, will show about 70 pieces of art and discuss his work with those who attend.

Cano works in many mediums and has been recognized for colorful, large-scale paintings that have been shown in competitions and exhibited all over the world. This past March, Cano’s work was included in the Masur Museum of Art in Monroe’s 61st annual juried show featuring work by 87 artists from 28 states. In January, a piece won Best in Show at the annual Surreal Salon Soiree at the Baton Rouge Gallery. That work and exhibition were recently featured in Juxtapoz Magazine (https://www.juxtapoz.com/news/painting/interview-edgar-cano-lopez-winner-of-best-in-show-surreal-salon-2024/).   Last November, a painting by Cano was winner of the Grand Jury Award for Season 20 (2023/24), the Biennial 2023 juried competition hosted by Manifest, a contemporary arts center in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Cano’s sweeping, cinematic compositions reflect his beginnings as a professional artist in Mexico when he was creating backdrops for theatre productions.  Since Cano came to NSU to complete his master’s degree in 2021 and joined the faculty in 2022, he has immersed himself in the community through portrait work, demonstrations and local exhibitions. He was designer for the mural at the Ben D. Johnson Education Center titled “Seeds of Hope,” a celebration of Natchitoches’ agricultural heritage that was completed by a community of volunteers.

Information on Cano is available at. https://www.edgarcanostudio.com/.  To view an installation at his large exhibition El Centro Único , visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FM-hw1n7Q8&t=6s

Information on NSU’s Department of Fine and Graphic Arts is available at https://www.nsula.edu/art/