The exhibition includes more than 97 works of by 60 artists, each of whom is an AU alum. Jack Rasmussen, curator and director of the Museum, was one of the individuals tasked with jurying the show. To be considered, the work had to have been created no earlier than the year 2000.

What does school spirit look like? For most people, the words conjure images of pom-poms, school colors, and victory celebrations. But at American University, school spirit is not limited to athletics—it’s also expressed through intellectual and creative exploration, as evidenced by RE-VISION: American University Alumni, one of the exhibitions opening the 2010-2011 fall season of the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center on Tuesday, August 31.

Each artist has a story to tell about his or her experience at AU. The works serve as an illustrative timeline of the art program’s development, including approaches to painting styles inspired by The Phillips Collection as well as more contemporary approaches involving fur-covered bricks and iPod animation.

The exhibition, which closes with the end of AU’s family and alumni weekend on Sunday, October 24, showcases alumni across several generations—from those who graduated this year to those who studied under Luciano Penay (also opening an exhibition at the museum), Robert Gates, Helene Herzbrun, Ben L. Summerford, Robert D’Arista, and others in the AU Art Department’s first wave of faculty.

In addition to RE-VISION: American University Alumni, three other exhibitions will open at the American University Museum on August 31: Luciano Penay: Time, News, Paintings, and Natural Forms, BG Muhn: Love Affair of the Empress, and Alan Binstock: Way-Stations. Norse Soul: the legacy of Edvard Munch, social democracy, old myths, anarchy, and death longings, which opened earlier this summer, will also be on display.

The American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free. For more information, call 202-885-1300 or look on the Web at www.american.edu/cas/museum/index.cfm.