Gallery named for PHS alum

Wegner taught art at Austin Community College, the institution that is now Riverland Community College, for 28 years. He also taught for ten years in the junior and senior high schools in Austin. He is now an emeritus faculty member at Riverland.

"Jim's legacy to Riverland art and to the surrounding art community is legendary," said academic dean Marty Shepard. "He continually lends his expertise and skills to the promotion of artistic endeavor. He is very deserving of this honor."

Wegner has a master of art degree from the University of Minnesota with an emphasis in painting and art history. He has studied with noted artists Max Weber, Millard Sheets, Dong Kingmann, Carl Morris, Richard Diebenkorn, Ralston Crawford, and Cheng Kee Chee.

He has received awards for his work in oil, acrylic, watercolor, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture, and fiber. He has exhibited at the Walker Art Center, the Minneapolis Art Institute, and at other museums. His work can be found in private collections on the east and west coasts, in the midwest, in Canada, and in Europe.

Recently, Wegner donated eight of his paintings to the Riverland Community College Foundation for the beautification of Riverland Community College. The paintings, valued at $5,000, will be displayed throughout the Riverland facilities in Albert Lea, Austin, and Owatonna.