Three artists from Utah will have their work on display at a new style of art exhibition debuting on campus tonight in Foster Gallery.

The opening reception for ‘Domesticity’ will be held from 7-9 p.m. in the gallery, then attendees can head to three Eau Claire residences that are also part of the exhibit.

Junior photography major Drew Hagen is one of the student organizers for the project. Hagen said because a large portion of the exhibition revolves around people’s homes, the show allows people to look at art in a unique way.

“I think ‘Domesticity’ is really an examination of space,” Hagen said. “How as artists, and as a viewer, we interact and how we view and define those spaces.”

The concept behind the show was to take three houses from the area and to empty out a room from each house, Hagen said. Then, the rooms were recreated in Foster Gallery similarly to how they were in the house. From there, the three artists were given the opportunity to create, “their own individual, unique works” within those empty rooms, he said.

Next to each recreated room in Foster Gallery, Hagen said there will also be a video feed from the house itself of what the room currently looks like. Likewise, Hagen was assigned to take photos of the rooms before they were moved. They will be hung on the wall of the gallery as well.

“That’s really the only traditional part of this show,” Hagen said. “It’s an interesting reference on to how the room actually looked inside the original homes.”

Senior illustration major Kevin Krueger is also one of the student organizers for the project. Krueger said he had a similar reaction to most people when he originally heard about it.

“When (a professor) first described it to me, I didn’t really grasp the whole concept of the show, I don’t think anyone really did immediately,” Krueger said.

Krueger, who is also the designer of the project’s website, said because so few people have heard about this type of exhibition, it was important for organizers to get something online.

“We wanted to document it for years to come,” Krueger said. “Otherwise things like this happen — and since this is installation art — it’s not going to last forever.”

Paul Stout, Jared Steffensen and Michael Handley are the three artists that will be part of the show, according to the project’s website.

Krueger said he wasn’t familiar with the artists prior to this show, but that it’s always beneficial to bring in people from other areas.

“They seem to all have their own concepts and interest in what art is,” Krueger said. “They’re bringing their own interests, they’re bringing their own experiences here, and that’s just exciting to see.”

Hagen and Krueger both pointed out how impressed they’ve been with student involvement from the start, doing things from helping move furniture to helping the artists prepare their installations.

Likewise, Krueger pointed out that because of this involvement, there has been a lot of benefit for the students.

“It’s fun just walking around and seeing these artists work, and seeing students help them, and everyone is getting a lot out of it because of that,” he said.

The reception will start with an introduction of the artists and directions to their installations, according to the ‘Domesticity’ website. On opening night, the homeowners will also be serving one of their favorite family dishes for guests, the website also said.

After opening night, Foster Gallery will be open Mon-Fri from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Sat-Sun from 1:00 to 4:30 p.m., according to the site.

There will also be an ‘open house’ each Thursday night for the rest of October from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., when the residences around Eau Claire will be open. Specific information about the times or locations of the houses can be found at domesticityuwec.net.

Hagen said he knows the concept can sound a bit strange initially, but that he thinks guests will be pleasantly surprised by it.

“It sounds a little off the wall at first, but once you really go in and look at what’s there, it’s quite immersive,” Hagen said. “And it’s a great opportunity to see something that the Eau Claire area hasn’t seen before.”