COLUMBUS, OH.- GenWex, the Wexner Center’s young patron group, will present the panel discussion Bare Walls: An Intro to Art Collecting on Thursday, May 7 in the Wexner Center Performance Space. The evening will be hosted by Wex exhibition curators Catharina Manchanda and Christopher Bedford, and introduced by (two-time Heisman Trophy winner) Archie Griffin, president and CEO of The Ohio State University Alumni Association. The panel will also include local gallerist Rebecca Ibel; Ohio Art League President and collector Haley Boehning; and ChopChop Gallery's Craig Dransfield. With the idea in mind that you don’t need to be a Sotheby’s-shopping blue blood to collect art, the panelists will discuss places to look for art, how to theme a collection, cost versus value of art, and simply how to begin down the lifelong path of art collecting and appreciation.

Manchanda and Bedford both began their tenures at the Wex in 2008, making this their first formal introduction to the young professional community of Columbus. Manchanda, senior curator of exhibitions at the Wexner Center, was previously curator at Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Washington University in St. Louis, and Bedford (curator of exhibitions at the Wex) was previously assistant curator in the Department of Contemporary Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Both have a wealth of knowledge in curating both exhibitions, and their own personal collections.

GenWex is the Wexner Center's young professional (or semi-professional) art fans group. Part social, part educational, GenWex holds events throughout the course of the year, including concert warm-ups, exclusive events with curators, and meet-ups.