Buddy Holly Center to host gallery talk, closing reception for ‘Daybook’ exhibition

LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – (News release from the City of Lubbock)

The Buddy Holly Center invites the public to a closing reception for Daybook, an exhibition of mixed media works by DFW artist Ashley Stecenko, on Sunday, May 17, 2026, from 2:00–4:00 p.m. in the Fine Arts Gallery. The event is free and open to the public.

During the reception, Stecenko will present a gallery talk and guided tour of the exhibition, offering insight into the ideas, materials, and processes behind the works on view.

Daybook brings together both recent and earlier works that reflect Stecenko’s evolving studio practice. Originally from the Midwest, she received her B.F.A. in Painting from Herron School of Art and Design in 2018 and her MFA in Studio Art from Texas Christian University in 2021. She has participated in numerous group exhibitions, currently works as an art handler for UOVO, and is represented by Fort Works Art.

In Daybook, Stecenko approaches her studio practice like a visual journal—part reflection, part experimentation. Working in mixed media, she incorporates drawing, printmaking, and quilting techniques to create layered compositions inspired by personal environments and domestic spaces. Chairs and household furniture often appear as stand-ins for figures, forming quiet psychological scenes.

The exhibition also includes works from her ongoing Little Ditties series—small pieces that function like brief journal entries. Some are later sewn together into larger patchwork compositions, allowing fragments of earlier ideas to be rearranged and reimagined. Together, the works in Daybook form an evolving record of process, memory, and change.