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Cragin Art Gallery

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Joplin, MO
Cragin Art Gallery

The MSSU Cragin Art Gallery is free and open to the public. The gallery features contemporary artwork Just east of the main Art Office and room 220.

The MSSU Spiva Art Gallery is a contemporary art gallery that exhibits the work of national and regional artists. The gallery also features the artwork of MSSU students, faculty, and alumni. The gallery also houses a permanent collection of artwork donated to the MSSU Art Department that range from paintings to furniture. This includes an extensive collection of African Art comprised of private c

ollections donationed to the university by five local families. You can access this collection through our online digital catalogue. http://artcollection.mssu.edu/AfricanArt/vex1/index.htm

The gallery is located in the Fine Arts Complex on the campus of Missouri Southern State University. There is parking behind the building and across the street in Hearnes Hall. MSSU Spiva Art Gallery Staff:

Gallery Director: Christine Bentley
Gallery Assistant: Lydia Humphreys
Graphic Designer: Ed Outhouse

04/10/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MSSU Cragin Art Gallery Showcases Faculty Excellence in Per Unitatem Vis
The Missouri Southern State University (MSSU) Cragin Art Gallery invites the public to experience Per Unitatem Vis (“Through Unity, Strength”), a dynamic exhibition highlighting the creativity, innovation, and professional excellence of the MSSU Art & Design faculty. The exhibition will be on view from March 30 through April 16, 2026.

Bringing together a diverse range of media and approaches, Per Unitatem Vis showcases the depth of talent among faculty who are not only accomplished artists and designers but also dedicated educators shaping the next generation of creative thinkers. Their work reflects both individual vision and a shared commitment to artistic exploration, mentorship, and innovation across disciplines.

The exhibition’s title, drawn from the Latin phrase meaning “Through Unity, Strength,” speaks to the collaborative spirit at the heart of the MSSU Art & Design program. It underscores the idea that creative practice thrives through connection between artists, students, disciplines, and the broader community- resulting in work that is both personally meaningful and collectively impactful.

The Cragin Art Gallery is open Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and all events are free and open to the public. Visitors are encouraged to experience this inspiring showcase of faculty achievement and the strength of unity in art and design.

02/20/2026

The Cragin Art Gallery at Missouri Southern State University is pleased to present Shapes the world could have taken, an exhibition of work by Marina Kassianidou, on view from February 23 through March 25, 2026.

Marina Kassianidou’s practice revolves around processes of marking. Through her works, she approaches mark making as a mode of becoming attentive and as a way of responding and relating to something other—a surface, a space, the world around us. The artist works primarily with everyday materials, such as graph paper, plywood, adhesive vinyl, security envelopes, and patterned fabric. Rather than being the physical support for her marks, these materials become an integral part of her work. She studies each surface closely and experiments with ways of marking it, seeking marks that respond to its appearance, use, or history. As a result, her marks/interventions visually interweave with the pre-existing materials. In a sense, her interventions excavate each surface, drawing attention to its features, histories, and potentially unseen or alternative narratives. By rethinking the act of marking, Kassianidou’s work challenges the idea of the artist as sole creator and foregrounds instead the collaboration between artist and materials.

An artist talk and reception will be held on February 23, 2026, with the talk beginning in Corley Auditorium at 4:00 pm followed by a reception in the Cragin Art Gallery at 5:00 pm. These events are free and open to the public. Please find below a Zoom link for those unable to attend in person:
https://mssu-edu.zoom.us/j/83272790225

Marina Kassianidou was born in Limassol, Cyprus, and lives and works between Limassol and Boulder, Colorado, USA. She received a B.A. in Studio Art from Stanford University (California, USA), an M.A. in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design (London, UK), and a Ph.D. in Fine Art from Chelsea College of Arts (London, UK). Her work has been exhibited internationally at spaces suc

02/09/2026

✨ What an inspiring Saturday! ✨
Our MSSU CME Medicine and Art Workshop: “Observational Empathy- Reframing the Clinical Gaze through the Lens of Art“ was a fantastic success! Participants and facilitators came together using art, poetry, AR, animation, movement, theater, and Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) to reflect, share, and explore intrapersonal skills. The activities strengthened observation, critical thinking, and communication, showing how the arts can enrich medical and healthcare practice.

Next workshop: Saturday, June 6 | 8:30 AM- 12:30 PM | $75 | CE credit available for select healthcare providers

Discover how art can transform the clinical gaze and deepen empathy- join us!

01/11/2026

(2/7 & 6/6, 2026) EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE MSSU CME MEDICINE AND ART WORKSHOPS: Observational Empathy…reframing the Clinical Gaze
through the Lens of Art
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Date: February 7, 2026 OR June 6, 2026
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Time: 8:30-12:30 pm at MSSU in Joplin, MO
Cost: $75
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All healthcare professionals are welcome though radiologic technologists and respiratory therapists are eligible to receive CE credit.
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Purpose of Workshops
To introduce Integrated Arts Activities and Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) into the professions of medicine and the health sciences. These workshops will educate participants within these communities on the benefits of using the visual arts within the training of medical and healthcare professionals.
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Hope to see you there!

01/09/2026

UPCOMING SHOW
Nazanin Moghbeli: Rupture
January 20– February 13, 2026
Cragin Art Gallery, Missouri Southern State University, Joplin, MO

The Cragin Art Gallery at Missouri Southern State University is pleased to present Rupture, an exhibition of painting and drawing by Iranian-American artist and cardiologist Nazanin Moghbeli, on view from January 19 through February 13, 2026.

An artist talk and reception will be held on January 22, 2026, with the talk beginning in Corley Auditorium at 5:00 PM followed by a reception in the Cragin Art Gallery at 6:00 PM. These events are free and open to the public.

There is a Zoom link for guests unable to attend in person:
https://mssu-edu.zoom.us/j/89681521027

Rupture examines the line as both a visual and physiological form—appearing as calligraphy, drawn gesture, and diagnostic trace. Drawing from Persian calligraphy, medical imaging, and abstraction, Moghbeli explores continuity and interruption, flow and fracture. Lines function as marks on paper and as blood and electrical currents moving through the body, translating states of life, vulnerability, and rupture into visual language.

Nazanin Moghbeli grew up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution and the Iran–Iraq War, where she studied Persian calligraphy, miniature painting, and music. She is currently the Director of the Cardiac Care Unit at Einstein Medical Center. Her dual practices in art and medicine inform work that reflects on the convergence of science, culture, and lived experience.

For contact information and additional works, please visit the artist's website: https://www.nmoghbeli.com/

03/03/2025

The MSSU Cragin Art Gallery is pleased to host Drawing is Magic a solo exhibition by artist John Hendrix. The exhibition will run from February 24 – March 25, 2025, with a reception/artist talk on March 25 at 5 PM. Additionally, the MSSU Spiva Library will host a book reading and signing from 2:30 pm- 3:45 pm on March 25.
The artist talk will also be available live on Zoom:
https://mssu-edu.zoom.us/j/85720328542
John Hendrix is a New York Times bestselling author and illustrator. His books include The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hi**er, called a Best Book of 2018 by NPR, Drawing Is Magic: Discovering Yourself in a Sketchbook, The Holy Ghost: A Spirited Comic, Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus, and many others. His award-winning illustrations have also appeared on book jackets, newspapers, and magazines all over the world. His most recent graphic novel, The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis was named a Best Children’s Book of 2024 by The New York Times. John is the Kenneth E. Hudson Professor of Art and Chair of the MFA in Illustration and Visual Culture program at the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis.

From the artist, “As an artist, I aim to communicate clear ideas using both words and images in concert. Made with pen and ink on paper, the heart of my practice has always been—simply—making drawings. But, I have come to realize the core activity lies beyond the drawing, but in the act of translation. In all my works, I aim to make complex concepts more legible. Beyond mere adaptation, a visual translation transforms the existing content. An image that is paired with text is not simply a “caption” in visual form. Instead, the act of illustration is a ‘gestalt’ (the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.) Illustration fuses both word and image into a new whole; a third thing that is neither purely word nor purely image. I hope that my work can create new paths for accessing ideas, learning history, describing experiences, and communicating stories.”

The artist can be contact on:
X: Hendrix Art
Instagram:
The artist’s website: www.johnhendrix.com

Address

Joplin, MO
64801

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+14176253066

Website

http://www.mssu.edu/calendar/index.php?com=location&lID=31

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