The Friday night opening of the “Through the Viewfinder” exhibit at the Colorado Mesa University (CMU) gallery downtown was unlike any exhibit in years past.

Students were excited to see their photography displayed and a sense of normalcy returning to the world of art galleries. Two students who had their artwork hung in the gallery were sophomores Jackson Moore and Caitlyn English.

“I mean, the art exhibit itself is phenomenal; but due to COVID, it doesn’t really feel the same as it used to be. With a lot of people in a vibrant atmosphere gazing upon works of art created by students,” Moore said.

In the past, Friday night openings at CMU’s art gallery have been larger celebrations. It was common for the gallery to be packed with students, professors and comunity artists.It was common for a reception to end the night.

Galleries are and opportunity for students to get their work out to be viewed by the community. Moore and English were excited to get back to the gallery and have their art represented in the gallery.

“I think the show is really well put together there’s a lot of diversity with pieces. There’s lots of alternative process pieces and there are landscape pieces. It’s just nice to be able to see what others in your class are doing. Sometimes you don’t necessarily get to see that unless it’s in a gallery,” English said.

The art gallery had a variety of photographic processes represented. Landscapes, animals, and alternative process photos were all around the gallery for the opening night.

The downtown gallery is an important aspect of life in the CMU art community, and the continuation of Friday night openings are a sign of normalcy returning after COVID.

“It’s a sure sign that society is coming back with new ways of trying to recreate what once was. With a new gallery opening, I think we are putting our feet forward in the right direction. I am excited for galleries to be open again so I can promote and create more content for different galleries in the future,” Moore said.