At 5 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 21, the Department of Art, Design and Visual Studies will host its first in a lineup of seven Visiting Artists and Scholars for the 2026-2027 academic year. Acclaimed Los Angeles-based photographer Rodrigo Valenzuela will give a free public talk about his work.
This year’s rich lineup of artists and scholars — including a photographer, sculptor, graphic designer, writer, art critic, children’s book illustrator and painter — is possible thanks to support from an anonymous donor known as Ghost Host. They have generously provided the Visiting Artist and Scholar Program with three years of seed funding to bring these incredible artists to Boise.
In addition to their public talk, each artist will work closely with Boise State art students in workshops and classroom visits. This is especially important for young artists to connect to the wider art world. An opportunity they may not have if they don’t happen to live in cosmopolitan cities like New York and Los Angeles, which the art world revolves around.
“Boise is a little bit of an island because we are so far away from a lot of cultural centers,” said Professor Chad Erpelding, who oversees the Visiting Artist and Scholar Program. “This is a way to create a bridge where we’re able to bring world-class artists and scholars to campus.”
Visits from artists like Valenzuela are a chance for Boiseans to experience the art culture of a larger city. They also present an opportunity for students to find inspiration, get critique from working artists and network in their future profession. Experiences like this are critical for shaping Boise State students into professional artists.
“Being in the room is still critical to everybody’s careers,” Erpelding said. “While we are connected digitally, there is still something incredibly powerful about those face-to-face meetings.”
About Valenzuela
Rodrigo Valenzuela is an internationally acclaimed photographer and recipient of Guggenheim Fellowship, a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship, the Joan Mitchell Award and many other accolades. His work has appeared in recent solo exhibitions at the New Museum in New York, the Lisa Kandlhofer Galerie in Vienna and the Frye Art Museum in Seattle.
Interested parties can attend Valenzuela’s public talk for free at 5 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 21 in the Interactive Learning Center, Room 118. A reception will follow the talk in the Center for the Visual Arts.
