Drawings, paintings of the human figure are displayed in Oesterle Library Gallery

North Central College presents the artwork of Ian Mitchell Wallace in “Mystical Fruits,” his exhibit of gilded watercolor paintings and dramatic drawings of the human figure Dec. 5 through Jan. 28.

The free exhibit will be displayed in North Central’s Oesterle Library Gallery, 320 E. School St. Wallace will greet visitors at a reception from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5; complimentary refreshments will be served.

Wallace paints what is most enjoyable to his eye—the human figure—and his inspiration is drawn from artist Gustav Klimt’s proposal, “All art is erotic.” Wallace has taken this idea and disguised it as thinly as possible with allegorical, mythological and satirical themes. To him, “A nude, baring everything in its body’s original form, is complete and inspiring.”

Wallace completed a double degree in studio art and in euphonium performance from Lawrence University after five years of intense study. Over the course of his art career, Wallace was awarded the Mellon Senior Experience Grant to fund his work for the Senior Exhibition 2011 and received the merit-based Senior Art Prize for Men scholarship for his series titled, “The Gilded Gaze: Gold Leaf and the Element of Seduction.”

His intention is to elevate watercolor painting from being considered a traditionally lower medium to “museum quality.” He also says, “If anything, I want the viewer to leave with heightened sensations of the people around them: ambient, assenting and awoken.”

In addition to his painting, Wallace freelances as a graphic designer, deejay and illustrator for small companies from the Chicagoland and greater New York areas.

North Central College’s 2015-2016 Fine and Performing Arts Season is partially sponsored by BMO Harris Bank, Nicor Gas, Advanced Data Technologies, Savant Capital Management, USG Corporation, Monarch Landing, Naperville Special Events and Cultural Amenities Fund, Illinois Arts Council Agency, DuPage Foundation and Naperville Development Partnership.