Submitted photoArtist Mary Schellert took canvases into the forest, hung bags of paint and shot them. “It was an interesting process she went through. Then she would drag them to the studio and work on them, then take them back out and shoot ’em again,” said Sandy Brooke, associate professor Oregon State University.

As anyone who’s ever strolled around during First Friday Gallery walk — or read GO! Magazine’s galleries listing — knows, there’s no shortage of art galleries in Bend.

But when was the last time you headed up the hill to take in an art exhibit? The art created by students at a local college is no less deserving of attention.

There are two year-end shows on exhibit now at Central Oregon Community College, at Barber Library and the Gallery at Pinckney Center in Pence Hall. Unless you’re enrolled at either Oregon State University-Cascades or Central Oregon Community College, though, you wouldn’t stumble upon either. Both are well worth your time and the gas it takes to make it up there.

There’s not much foot traffic in The Gallery at Pinckney, said William “Bill” Cravis, a full-time instructor in COCC’s Visual Arts Program. Maybe a couple or few of people a day.

“The big day is usually the opening,” he said. That happened earlier in the month, but there’s still a week to catch the exhibit of paintings, drawings, ceramics, sculpture, 2- and 3-D design and more by students who have been enrolled in art classes for credit during the academic year. It displays through May 29.

The show was juried by Andreas and Jennifer Salzman of Lane College.

“They happen to be a married couple. He teaches sculpture and ceramics at Lane, and she teaches in the art department and is also director of their gallery,” explained Cravis. “They selected the works; they made some suggestions, then we hung the show. That credit goes to the students, who did most of the work for hanging the show.”

It’s critical in their development as artists for students to get their work seen, Cravis said, though it’s not always a painless process. Of the 160 works were submitted, the Salzmans chose 40. Said Cravis, “Students might be of the impression that if they just submit work, they can be in the show, but it doesn’t go that way. I think, generally, the faculty agree that that’s good. That builds character. You need your rejections.”

In their jurors’ statement, posted near the entrance to the gallery, the Salzmans say, “As artists we have been on both sides of the jurying outcome. The true ‘winners’ are those who chose to put themselves out on display and took the risk to let others look and judge the level of their work.”

Down in the Rotunda Gallery at Barber Library, seven graduating seniors in OSU-Cascades Bachelor of Fine Arts program are wrapping up their undergraduate careers by way of the 2015 Senior Thesis Exhibition, which begins on the first floor, lines the stairs to the second floor, and wraps around most of the rotunda.

“More years than not, it turns out that we have these (shows) up at the same time, which is also kind of nice,” said Sandy Brooke, associate professor at OSU-Cascades, as she gave this reporter a brief tour of the show.

The exhibit, which opened Thursday, features a variety of paintings, photography and digital works by Kurt Armstrong, Sarah Fisher, Olivia Haro, Angela Nestrand, Cindee O’Connor, Michael Peterson and Mary Schellert.

Seven graduates is a typical size for a graduating BFA class, Brooke said.

“You’ll start out with 30 in freshman drawing class, but you know, people take different paths. Not everybody wants to be an artist. It’s like, ‘Yeah, I understand,’” she said with a chuckle. “It’s not all fun.”

But it can be a blast — literally — as evidenced by four large splatter paintings on canvas by Schellert that are in the thesis exhibition.

“She put the canvas out in the woods and hung a bag of paint over it, and shot the bag of paint and let it splatter,” Brooke said. “It was an interesting process she went through. Then she would drag them to the studio and work on them, then take them back out and shoot ’em again.”

The exhibit will be on view during library hours through June 15. If you don’t make it up the hill — which you should! — another show of works by even more OSU-Cascades fine arts students will open in June at Franklin Crossing in downtown Bend during — yes — First Friday Gallery Walk.

— Reporter: 541-383-0349, djasper@bendbulletin.com