Three faces of fine arts on campus today by Kim Anderson Kendra Bayer, who received her Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture last May, came to UM almost by accident. Visiting a museum in hometown Indianapolis with her parents, Bayer discovered a piece by Missoula artist Nancy Erickson. Bayer pursued the lead and found herself at UM's sculpture program. "This has just been an incredible place for me to work," she says. "The program is wonderful, especially if you're self-motivated. I like the fact that it's small, and if you choose to get a lot of attention, you can." During Bayer's years in Missoula, her figurative bronze and aluminum pieces grew bigger and started to tell a story largely influenced by her art therapy work with Alzheimer's patients. Many of the pieces feature perambulators, baby bottles, dressmakers' forms of the female torso--strong images of motherhood and childhood. "My thesis show was titled 'Know Who You Are,' which came directly from my work with Alzheimer's patients," Bayer says. "Often the things that remained clearest for them were their childhood and their early parenthood. Holding a doll would trigger a powerful connection. That led me to look more closely at who we really are." When Jee Kiat Wong transferred to UM in 1992 from Malaysia, he was an undergraduate majoring in radio and television. Now he's pursuing a master's degree in music. "I'd always earned my living playing piano in lounges and dance classes," Wong says. "But I didn't take music seriously until I got here." The pianist credits Professors Jody Graves and Steven Hesla with motivating him to enter the graduate program in piano performance. "They brought me to a stage I thought it was impossible for me to reach," Wong says. "They have nurtured me technically and artistically, always keeping in mind my individuality as an artist." After graduation this spring, Wong looks forward to a seven-country performance tour of Southeast Asia sponsored by piano manufacturer Yamaha. "I'll give workshops, perform, go into the community," Wong says, excited. "I think it's very important to go into the world at this point in my life. When you're a solo pianist, you end up spending most of your hours in a practice room. It's time for me to interact with other people." David Pledge didn't have nearly as far to come when he entered UM's graduate program in ceramics. Originally from Great Falls, Pledge earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in ceramics at Montana State University and also held a residency at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena. Drawn to UM by the reputation of professors and ceramic artists Beth Lo and Tom Rippon, Pledge also chose Missoula to be closer to his daughter. Another attraction for Pledge--whose huge, yet graceful, four-foot-tall urns are reminiscent of a distant, ancient culture--was the Anagama kiln, run by the University at Lubrecht Experimental Forest. "The chance to work with that kiln was very important to me," Pledge says. "Each kiln is different, has its own personality, and I particularly wanted to work with wood firing when I arrived." Exploring one more kiln personality, Pledge recently rebuilt a donated soda-salt kiln at UM. "A professor once challenged me to give something back, and rebuilding this kiln was a way to do that," Pledge says. "The kiln should be a good facility for the next ten years." Writer Kim Anderson lives in Missoula.