RIVERSIDE, Calif. (March 27, 2015) – Scores of art lovers filled the CBU Gallery in downtown Riverside during the opening reception March 26 for the third annual Honors Exhibit.

California Baptist University students, faculty, family and friends came to see the artwork students had created. Visual Art faculty chose the pieces from the work their students completed for various classes. The exhibit featured about 200 pieces, including ceramics, drawings, paintings and sculptures.

Any student in an art class may have work chosen, said Kristi Lippire, assistant professor of visual art, whose classes include sculpture and 2D design.

"You don't have to be an art major to be in this show or to have a piece in the gallery here through CBU. You just have to make really excellent work," she said. "We're such a small department on campus, it's just a way to highlight what amazing talent we do have here."

When selecting pieces for the exhibit, Lippire looked for "work that goes above and beyond whatever I asked for just in time and energy, but also in concept and idea."

"I always tell them the weirder the better. We usually try to push what is your normal instinct to represent something," she said.

Jenna Mohn, a sophomore graphic design and photography double major, filled the requirement for weird. For her mixed media project, she made a color wheel using teeth. Real teeth. Her dad is a dentist and supplied her with what she needed.

"I wanted to use something that nobody else would use, and I knew no one else would have access to teeth," Mohn said. Her piece won the Mixed Media award.

Nancy Ward, a visual art lecturer, considered the idea, skill and craftsmanship when choosing work for the exhibit.

"Some of my students have never taken a drawing class before," Ward said. "It's exciting to see that talent come out."

Julianna Anderson, a visual art senior, had several pieces in the exhibit including a large wood sculpture. Ideas and opinions from her classmates and professors help guide her in her creativity. Being in the Honors Exhibit gave her acknowledgement that she can do this, she said.

"It means a lot when you think you did a good job, but then someone else also gives you that approval," Anderson said. "It kind of gives you that push into everything else that you do."

The exhibit will be at the CBU Gallery, 3737 Main Street, Suite 101, Riverside  until April 2, then it will travel to CBU's Community Life Lounge for the CREATE(D) event on April 9.

Awards were given for the best of each media and, for the first time, an Audience Choice Award was chosen by the guests attending the reception.

Painting: Nicole Statham, senior

Drawing: Jessica Schoellerman, junior

Sculpture: Julianna Anderson, senior

Ceramics: Tawni Franzen, junior

Watercolor: Lynnae Maki, senior

Mixed Media: Jenna Mohn, sophomore

Audience Choice Award: Samantha Morales, sophomore