The Ohio State University at Marion is inviting the public to visit the Wayne & Geraldine Kuhn Fine Arts Gallery during the month of July to view “Machu Picchu, Sacred Valley, Peru, a photographic exhibition of an ancient civilization.”
 
The photos were taken by Dr. Vladimir Steffel, Professor of History Emeritus, The Ohio State University at Marion.  A free public artist reception with Dr. Steffel is scheduled for Monday, July 13th from 4 - 6 p.m. in the gallery.  Light refreshments will be served at the reception with an opportunity to learn about the exhibit from the artist. 

Dr. Steffel said the exhibit focuses on what is known as “The Lost City of the Incas,” Machu Picchu, which literally means “Old Peak.”  The pre-Columbian Incan city was built on a mountain ridge in what is now Peru, 8,000 feet above sea level beginning around 1430 A.D.  Dr. Steffel’s photographs focus on the city itself and other archaeological sites in the Sacred Valley of the Urubamba River.
 
Machu Picchu was more than just a city, said Dr. Steffel.  The Incas used it as a university to study and teach the elements and spirits of nature.  Fortunately, the Spanish Conquistadores never found it, h e said, because they destroyed Inca religious sites and built Catholic structures on and over them.  Interestingly, said the photographer, the Quecha Indians to this day practice both Catholicism and Animism. 
 
The gallery will feature “Drawings & Paintings” by Marion artist Jay Johnson August 10-31.  The artist reception will be held Monday, August 10, 4-6 p.m. 
 
The Wayne & Geraldine Kuhn Fine Arts Gallery is open during normal university business hours Monday through Friday.  If you have a school, community group, or organization who would like a tour guide to accompany them through the gallery, call The Ohio State Marion Office of Community Relations at 725-6341.