New art gallery officially open on UC Merced's campus

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- Thursday begins a three-day grand opening celebration of UC Merced's new art gallery on campus.

LaGalleria is now open to the public and for its inaugural opening, there's a pop-up art show featuring artists from the San Joaquin Valley.

The show will display inspiring works by a variety of artists with an emphasis on the many cultures within the Valley, and includes a mixture of different mediums such as paintings, photography and sculptures.

Curators for the exhibit say this addition is meaningful for so many reasons.

Thursday's public reception runs from 6 pm to 8 pm.

Friday and Saturday, gallery hours are 12 pm to 5 pm.

At the show, guests will also be able to see the artists model of the forthcoming sculpture of Rufus, UC Merced's Bobcat mascot.