Opening Reception:Friday, September 4 | 6–8:30 PM
Lowertown First Fridays Dates September 4 | 6–9 PM and October 2 | 6–9 PM
Regular Gallery/Exhibit Hours; Open Saturdays and Sundays, 9 AM–3 PM; August 8 – September 26, 2026 and during Lowertown First Fridays from 6 – 9 PM.
Location: Calendula Gallery, the Poppy Room; 275 - 4th Street E, Suite 110, St. Paul
Calendula Gallery is thrilled to present a solo exhibition by artist Ethan Edvenson, whose mixed-media drawings pulse with life, movement, and intimate storytelling. This vibrant body of work invites viewers into an expressive visual world that feels at once deeply personal and irresistibly alive.
Ethan Edvenson creates mixed-media drawings built from layered paper using India ink, colored pencil, and chalk pastel. His work is raw and lively, with loose, gestural marks that collide with carefully defined forms and figures. Each piece breaks free from the traditional rectangular frame, featuring cut and shaped edges that interact visually with one another, forming larger, organic installations when displayed together.
Edvenson’s imagery often centers on characters navigating landscapes of marks, symbols, and abstract forms. Their inner worlds are revealed through posture, action, and interaction with the surrounding visual elements. Recurring motifs create a visual language that feels playful, surreal, and deeply human.
Each of Edvenson’s pieces is intimate and conversational, echoing the feeling of paging through a personal journal or sharing a moment with a close friend. Humor and narrative are woven throughout, reflecting intentional, precise human decision-making and a genuine purpose behind every mark.
In Dwelling Under Polaris, themes of individuality, transformation, and wholeness run throughout the exhibition, championing the idea that every aspect of a person’s life holds immense value and purpose. The work celebrates beauty, human potential, and transcending the temporary, while quietly pushing back against what is artificial, superficial, or self-serving. Rather than striving for perfection, Ethan Edvenson embraces honesty, absurdity, and emotional accuracy, resulting in work that feels both fearless and profoundly alive.