The Delta State University art faculty will present their latest work created during the past year in the annual Faculty Art Exhibition to be held in the Wright Art Center Gallery on campus.
Opening with a public reception Sunday, Nov. 28, from 4-6 p.m., the exhibit will remain in the gallery through Jan. 14.
Duncan Baird’s sculpture will give the viewer a sense of encountering forms which are somehow familiar on the deepest levels of the psyche in their forms, their abstraction and their references to artifacts. Of his influences, says Baird “…I once traced the ruts of wagon wheels cut into the rock and earth by passage upon passage along the Oregon Trail. Being there, in such a place that gathered time and space into itself, was of remarkable significance. In the Mounds of the Mississippian Culture, I have rediscovered this sense of connection, of seeing the ever changing world as a constant present. I find this connection in the presence of artifacts of this period.” Also working in sculpture, Ron Koehler addresses ‘monumentality.’ Monumental representations of the human figure as well as part of his ongoing investigation of brushes and tools which are also extremely large and stretched will be shown this year.
Ky Johnston’s functional and sculptural ceramic pieces are created with attention to form and surface alterations. Known for his masterly craftsmanship of form and beautiful glazes, the artist will show a variety of objects for use as well as visual appreciation. Working in mixed media of handmade paper, clay, sticks and weaving, Pat Brown addresses the concept of enclosure and protection with constructed works which are walls with portals. Other sculptural objects are boat shaped metaphors for travel and transition or figural and avian fertility representations.
Painting faculty member Cetin Oguz will exhibit a diverse body of works from different periods, including experimental drawings, paintings, and mixed media works. Also experimental will be the collaboration of Nathaniel Hein and Jennifer Gonzales with an installation entitled “Post Consumer Suffocation – Greenhouse” in the courtyard area of Holcombe-Norwood building. The installation seeks to create a visual dialog about the hidden environmental costs of our consumer culture. Utilizing discarded bags from retailers with pvc, dirt, water, seeds, and shade cloth, we are asked to encounter the idea of the lifecycle within the structure and to question our own role in the conflict between environment and consumable goods.
Robyn Moore will be exhibiting photographs made by hand-coating silver gelatin emulsion on tea-toned paper. Her imagery poses questions about memory, the relationship between human and animal, family, topographies, physicality, and extinction. Fellow photography art faculty member R. Kim Rushing has begun a long-term project about parents and ageing and plans to show ten in the first of this Parent Series.
Joe Abide continues to explore small wood assemblages that bring to mind repetition, ritual and habit; the patterns woven into everyone’s daily lives. He comments that he is interested in the visual deconstruction of objects to reveal their underlying structures. A similar idea is conveyed through the quilt work of Mollie Rushing. In her textiles, black and white patterned material is intermixed with small rectangles of vibrant color and the result is the iconic symbol of a hand with energy which extends through the fingers in a repetition of shape and color. Art history professor Michaela Merryday is inspired by minimalist designs from pared-down furniture of the Bauhaus to Donald Judd’s aluminum boxes as well as textures of abandoned industrial structures. She translates these influences into something altogether softer, organic and more human, hand-felted merino wool. Felting is a process which is laborious yet minimal involving only friction. In them, the artist finds a logical correlation to her inspirations.
Bill Lester continues his artistic process in various media and forms. This year’s work will include hand-colored block prints, new turkey calls, and a small watercolor of a dove in addition to the well-received oil landscapes of the surrounding Dockery area. A collection of wooden animals which he made for his daughter will also be shown.
The public is cordially invited to the opening reception and to view the artists’ work throughout the exhibition period. Gallery hours are 8 a.m. – 8:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m., on Friday. The gallery is closed on weekends and interims.
For more information and to inquire about viewing availability during the holidays, call the Wright Art Center at 662-846-4720.
