Visitors to a Lansing art show today will see more than just a few pieces of art.
Dozens of nude drawings will be on display and for sale from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Lansing Art Gallery, 425 S. Grand Ave., in Lansing. “The Bare Minimum,” in its fourth year, includes free beer, cheap art and nude drawings by several area artists and MSU students.
“It’s really kind of neat for college students because it’s original art and it’s cheap,” show founder Doug DeLind said. “It’s an excellent time to become aware of art, and it’s a very unpretentious show.”
All drawings in the show are $5 and benefit the gallery.
Artists included in the show meet weekly at Kresge Art Center for a life drawing class. They sketch nude models.
DeLind, a Mason resident, said the local artists use water color, pencil, graphite, oil, chalk, pastels and charcoal when creating their works.
Zoology sophomore Travis White attended his first life drawing session at the Kresge Art Center last week.
“It was cool after you get past the initial shock,” White said about drawing nude figures. “Then it’s just like drawing anything else. I liked it.”
DeLind said the concept of the art show began during one of the drawing sessions more than four years ago. He and other artists were doing what they do on most Wednesday nights - drawing.
The 1976 MSU alumnus couldn’t stop thinking of the collection of sketches he’d accumulated over the years. Then, he had an idea.
“I asked some artists at our weekly drawing sessions what they’d been doing with their drawings.” DeLind said. “They said they had piles and piles of drawings in their basements.”
DeLind decided to hold a public show to sell and premiere his and others’ nude figure drawings in 1998 at the Lansing Art Gallery. Tricia Byerly, administrative assistant at the center, said it’s still one of her favorite evenings.
“It’s just totally a friendly, fun night,” Byerly said. “It’s a good chance to pick up that kind of art for a very inexpensive price. A lot of these artists will donate some or all of their drawings. It’s a very large thing that they do for us.”
