University Gallery

The University Gallery is a contemporary art gallery that serves the Art and Design Department, the University of Massachusetts Lowell, as well as the city of Lowell and the greater Merrimack Valley Region. The gallery hosts 4-6 major exhibitions each year, including the biannual Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) show featuring the senior projects from the Art and Design studios. From emerging artists to seasoned practitioners with national and international reputations, the University Gallery's exhibition program showcases a broad variety of artistic approaches, media and content reflecting the curricula of the Art and Design program and enhancing the cultural environment of the community and surrounding area.

The University Gallery is located on the first floor of Mahoney Hall at 870 Broadway Street, Lowell, MA.

Gallery Exhibitions: Admission is free and opening receptions usually include a lecture by the curator or exhibiting artist.

All in the Same Boat: Contemporary Impressions of Environment and Ecology

October 29 – December 11, 2026
Artist Panel Discussion: Thursday, November 12, 2026, 2-3 p.m in Coburn 255
Reception: Thursday, November 12, 2026, 3-4:30 p.m. in Mahoney Hall

Participating Artists:

Emily Arthur, Sue Coe, Terry Conrad, Amanda Maciuba, Carolyn Muskat, and the Justseeds Artists’ Cooperative

The exhibition explores how contemporary artists use printmaking to reflect on our shared environment and advocate for ecological concerns, drawing on the medium’s longstanding role in communication and activism. For centuries, print’s accessibility and reproducibility have enabled artists to share vital messages with broad audiences, including those addressing environmental issues.

Water emerges as a recurring theme, shaping landscapes, sustaining ecosystems, and supporting human life. The prints explore ecological interdependence and the urgency of protecting vulnerable habitats, while quieter works depict tidal flows, microscopic underwater organisms, root structures, birds, and other forms of life, inviting reflection on the connections between human and nonhuman communities.

The exhibition takes its title from a 2005 woodcut by Sue Coe, created in response to Hurricane Katrina. Coe’s print depicts multispecies interdependence amid environmental catastrophe.