Wade Judge’s “Inspiration in Color & Shape” to be featured in Ray Frederick Gallery
Wednesday / August 31, 2022
MARSHALLTOWN – Opening the 2022 school year, local artist Wade Judge will share a display of his artwork in MCC’s Ray Frederick Gallery on the Marshalltown Community College campus. The exhibit will open Tuesday, September 6 starting at 9 am and will display through noon on Wednesday, September 28.
The exhibit will include acrylic paintings, wooden pieces and photography.
Judge’s love of the arts started in junior high and high school and encouraged by some amazing teachers that he had. Mrs. Weaver in Gilman and Mr. Hildebrandt in Le Grand and continued through his time at MCC with Tim Castle. “Art has been a lifelong journey for me,” commented Judge.
After graduating from East Marshall High School in Le Grand, Judge was unsure of his plans for the future. “Being a Le Grand kid, it was a no brainer to explore what MCC had to offer. I had a ton of great experiences right here in Marshallltown. I took classes that I wouldn’t have thought to take including art classes,” said Judge. “Once I had Tim as a teacher, I knew I wanted to do more. It was at MCC that I really knew, I wanted to do something with art as more than just a hobby. I wanted it to be an integral part of who I am.”
After graduating from MCC with his Associate of Arts degree, Judge earned his Bachelor of Arts in Art Education from the University of Northern Iowa. He then spent seven years teaching in Yuma, AZ. He returned to Marshalltown to start teaching at MHS in 2012 where he taught photography, drawing, pottery and sculpture. In May 2019, he completed his Masters in Art Education from UNI.
During his time in Arizona, he started working with pottery. When he switched to MHS he continued in that media. Photography was always his first love but during his time teaching, it provided him the opportunity to dive into other medias.
“I took a break from photography when I started working with pottery. I felt like I was becoming stagnant with my photography. I took that time to figure out more what I want to say in my photos. I want it to be more than a snapshot. I’ve grown but have a lot of room left to grow.”
When asked what he hopes people will take away from his exhibit Judge said, “Hope. I want to allow people to explore what they like, what they are comfortable or uncomfortable with. I want them to take more than just a quick passing glance. I want them to enjoy it at the bare minimum.”
“I have really enjoyed getting back into doing work for myself. It has allowed me the freedom to work with color and shape as well as allowing gravity to play a part in the end result.”
“For me, color and shape is where I started. I would spend hours filling out coloring books as a kid, and that mindset has continued for me into my adult life. This has been the most important part of my work, as I want color to jump out at you. I want color combinations to be powerful. Colors are where I start. To go along with color, shape is just as exciting and important. I want the colors to be free within the confines of the space available, until they arrive in the orientation that suits the piece. I let the pieces themselves do a lot of the work in helping me figure out what shapes I want the colors to look like. This has been a great growing process for me and I hope you enjoy the end results,” commented Judge.
This will be the first exhibit for Judge at MCC. All of the pieces on exhibit will be for sale. The Ray Frederick Gallery is open weekdays from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information contact MCC Art Professor Tim Castle at 641-844-5776 or Tim.Castle@iavalley.sites.flyinghippo.com.