For most students, finishing up the school year involves copious amounts of cramming for tests and writing papers.
For art students, however, the end of year provides an opportunity to display the works of art they have poured their heart and soul into.
The exhibition, which opened Mar. 26 and runs through Friday, is on display at the Ball State Museum of Art.
Works featured in the exhibit encompass a variety of formats, including collages, ceramic works, oil paintings, photographs, videos, collections of found objects and computer graphics.
More than 100 pieces of artwork, created by more than 80 student artists, are on display in the exhibit.
Art professor Sam Minor said that gaining exposure for students' work is a driving factor behind the annual art show.
"It's a function to display the artwork to the community, to educate the community and the students of Ball State University of what is being done in the Department of Art," he said.
Fourth-year art student James Ratliff said that, with preparation for the annual exhibit, spring is a particularly exciting time for the Department of Art.
"It's a lot of fun," he said. "Every year ... the art department is in a furor getting ready for the show. All of the students are in the building finishing up work and talking art. It's great."
Ratliff's oil painting, "One Fine Day," received an award in this year's exhibit. Ratliff had a work selected to be in last year's art show as well, but this is his first exhibition to win an award.
Ratliff, who is majoring in painting and graphic design, said that he enjoys oil painting because of the ability to completely restart a work at any point.
"Oils are the most fun for me because I can eradicate the entire painting at any time and just start from scratch, which I do quite often," he said.
Minor said that having work exhibited in the museum is a special experience for the art students.
"It's a highly honored idea to be in the museum of art, instead of just our gallery (in the AJ building)," he said.
Nancy Huth, assistant director and curator at the Museum of Art, said that exhibiting student art at the museum gives regular museum visitors an opportunity to see artwork they might not otherwise have access to.
"It's a venue where people who come to see some of the more historical works might be pleased and surprised to find artwork by young artists," she said.
According to Ratliff, the annual art show is a satisfying way to end the scholastic year for art students.
"It's our big payoff," he said.
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