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By Alex Guerrero

Beth Tostenson, artistic director for the Albert Lea Art Center, will be recognized at the opening of her exhibit — Healing Arts -— in a reception next week in the John and Susan Morrison Medical Plaza at Northbridge Mall. 

“I was asked by Jean Eaton and the [Albert Lea] Healthcare Coalition, if the Art Center would show their art in the hallway [of the John and Susan Morrison Healthcare Plaza],” she said.   

According to Eaton, a trustee for the Healthcare Coalition, the reception will allow the coalition the chance to partner with a local art center.

“We wanted to liven up our beautiful space and to invite people in from the public,” Eaton said.

She also wants the exhibit to help distract people from difficulties in their lives.

Eaton hopes to place a mural at the other end of the building at some point.

Tostenson will be the first artist featured in the medical plaza, with artwork rotating every three months. Eaton would like to work with community members and local schools to help with a 100-foot mural. 

“We’re kind of following what Owatonna and Faribault have done in their health care facilities where they have local art showcased,” Eaton said.

“This is just another venue for us to be able to showcase our art,” Tostenson said.

Food and drinks will be provided at the event, which will be open to the public. Masks will not be required, though visitors can wear them.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for the Albert Lea Heathcare Coalition to partner with other entities in our community,” Eaton said. “We are very community-involved. That’s how we build out the building and have our wonderful retailers in our building.”

Tostenson, who has created art for 30 years, is a watercolor artist who also dabbles in acrylics.

The reception will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday in the medical plaza, which is at 2510 Bridge Ave., Suite 2073, in property owned by the Healthcare Coalition.