Arts & Letters Expressions

An online publication for the alumni and friends of the College of Arts and Letters

Spanish instructor to premiere “Miracles” photographic exhibition May 7-28

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Angie Keller, Instructor of Spanish in the modern and classical languages department, will premiere her latest photographic exhibition in Springfield as part of May’s First Friday Art Walk. “Miracles” (“Milagros”) will be on display at the International Center, located downtown in the Morris Center at 301 S. Jefferson, from Friday, May 7 to Friday, May 28. The opening reception is on Friday, May 7 from 6:00 to 10:00 PM. The exhibition, which features photographs of religious festivities in Keller’s home country of Peru, will also be displayed in Lima, Peru in April 2011. 30% of the proceeds from the sale of the pictures will go towards “Study Away Scholarship Funds” for the Department of Modern and Classical Languages at Missouri State University.

“I’m very excited to display my work here and to get so much support from this department,” Keller says. “I wanted to show my exhibition here before anywhere else.”

Angie Keller has provided the following biographical information and exhibition summary:

51 years ago in Lima, Peru, a desperate mother asked for a favor from the Lord of the Miracles: to cure her baby from polio. In return, she promised to baptize her child with the name “Milagros” (Miracles).

Angie Keller was baptized with the name “Milagros.” She was born in Peru to a Catholic family and sees religion and faith as the most important cultural elements in Peruvian life.

These images explore, in a very personal way, the culture and religion of the Peruvian people. As an American, Keller is not an outsider looking at the religious and societal issues of a foreign country; rather, she is a Peruvian looking at her home with her heart and mind.

Keller is an Instructor of Spanish in Missouri State University’s Department of Modern and Classical Languages. She earned her Master of Arts in Spanish from Texas A&M University in 1997 after graduating with honors from Missouri State University in 1995. During the past few years, Keller has also been a student in the art and design department where she continues to learn about her new passion: photography.