New Beach Museum of Art exhibition highlights the work of a K-State alumnus

The Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art at Kansas State University will feature the work of alumnus Scott Anderson '97 in its newest exhibition.

This exhibition presents paintings by Anderson, who is known for richly layered works that move between landscape, memory, sensation and abstraction. He creates paintings that feel both deeply observed and inwardly charged. His work invites viewers into spaces that are not easily fixed — places shaped as much by feeling and perception as by geography.

The "Scott Anderson: Wayfarer" exhibition will run from Nov. 10, 2026, to Sept. 11, 2027, in the Ruth Ann Wefald Gallery.

"Scott Anderson: Wayfarer" exhibition features art by K-State alumnus

The term "wayfarer" suggests movement, searching and the experience of making one's way through unfamiliar terrain. In Anderson's paintings, that terrain is often psychological and physical. Forms emerge, dissolve, collide and drift. Color and gesture carry the weight of atmosphere, while the surfaces of the paintings reveal a sustained engagement with process and material. The result is work that feels alive with uncertainty, discovery and transformation.

Curated by museum director Kent Michael Smith, the exhibition is especially meaningful because Anderson's journey began, in part, at K-State. Bringing his work back to campus allows the museum to celebrate the lasting impact of a K-State education while introducing students, faculty and visitors to an artist whose national reputation continues to grow.

Anderson received a BFA from K-State in 1997 and an MFA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2003. He attended the Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture in 2015. Anderson has exhibited nationally and internationally at numerous institutions and galleries, and he has received multiple awards and fellowships, including being named a 2024 Joan Mitchell Fellow, a significant recognition of his work and its place within contemporary painting. Learn more about Anderson's exhibits and awards.

His work has been reviewed in several reputable publications, including the New York Times, Art News, Art Pulse Magazine, Beautiful/Decay, The Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times, among others. He currently lives and works in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is a professor in the Department of Art and Art History at the University of New Mexico.

"Scott Anderson's extraordinary paintings remind us that discovery begins with curiosity, not certainty," said Kent Michael Smith, exhibition curator and museum director. "'Wayfarer' invites us to look more closely, question what we think we see and discover meaning in the unexpected. Welcoming an artist of Scott's remarkable vision and accomplishment back to K-State makes this exhibition all the more meaningful."

Beach Museum of Art exhibition to include unique gift print, public artist talk

In connection with the exhibition, Anderson will also work with K-State's Department of Art students and faculty to produce the museum's biannual gift print. This longstanding tradition invites an artist to create a limited-edition print that supports the museum and becomes part of its permanent collection.

For this edition, the process itself carries special meaning: an acclaimed K-State alumnus returning to campus to work alongside students — sharing the discipline, questions and possibilities of making art.

The public also has an opportunity to learn from Anderson at a free Artist Talk from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Feb. 18, 2027, at the Beach Museum of Art.

'Wayfarer' invites us to look more closely, question what we think we see and discover meaning in the unexpected. Welcoming an artist of Scott's remarkable vision and accomplishment back to K-State makes this exhibition all the more meaningful.

In this way, "Scott Anderson: Wayfarer" becomes more than an exhibition. It becomes a homecoming, a learning opportunity and a reminder that the path of an artist is rarely linear but always shaped by the places, people and questions encountered along the way.

Major sponsors of the exhibition include the Friends of the Beach Museum of Art, the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation's Lincoln & Dorothy I. Deihl Arts and Humanities Grant Program, the George and Margo Kren Fund, and The Weary Family Foundation.

About the Beach Museum of Art

The Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art is at 701 Beach Lane at the southeast corner of the K-State campus in Manhattan. Opened in 1996, the museum is dedicated to connecting regional art, culture and communities, with a mission to collect, preserve, research and present the visual art of Kansas and the surrounding region.

Through exhibitions, educational programs, and campus and community partnerships, the Beach Museum of Art serves as a vital cultural resource for students, scholars and the broader public. Its hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. on Thursdays; and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays.

Admission is free, and free parking is available adjacent to the building. Visit the Beach Museum of Art website to learn about exhibitions, educational offerings, news and how you can support the museum. View special programs on the museum's YouTube channel. For more information about upcoming programs and events, visit the museum's calendar.