My husband Andrew and I attended Drake University’s
42nd Annual Juried Student Exhibition opening at the Anderson
Gallery last weekend. Although we missed
the award ceremony (we were busy filling up at the Library on bloodys and
breakfast) we did catch the tail end of the opening and were pleased to see a
couple dozen people attended the opening.
The exhibition was juried by the Des Moines Art
Center’s Senior Curator,
Gilbert Vicario. Gilbert did a great job
of picking a wide variety of mediums which highlighted Drake’s strongest
students. Works ranged from large triptych
paintings to mixed media sculptures of all sizes. I have chosen to highlight a few of the
pieces that resonated with me based on a personal connection. Because there are no wrong or right answers
when writing about art, I tend to stick with my instincts and base most of my
critiques on feeling. All of our
opinions on whether something is beautiful or ugly are based on our own
personal experiences and memories.
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| "Dear Agony" Shoshanah Holl |
When I saw this piece I thought of a friend of mine who is
into suspension and body modification.
She posts pictures of herself and friends attending gatherings (for lack
of a better word) where people have long hooks penetrating through their backs,
forearms, stomachs, and chests which are connected to some type of chains which
suspend them in the air. I’ve also seen
a picture of my friend with a “corset” on her back which looked like piercing
holes with criss-crossed ribbon going through them to form a corset like the
painting. I’ve never participated in these events but my understanding is that
it provides a euphoric sense of freedom.
Here’s a link to a flyer I found online demonstrating suspension:
Her photos always provoked a strong feeling of
anxiety for me. I couldn’t help but
think “What if those hooks tear through their back and that person falls and
bleeds all over the floor?!” Of course
this thought is because I am ignorant to suspension. When I saw “Dear Agony” I
was flooded with memories of my friend’s photos on facebook. That pit of anxiety returned to my stomach
and was immediately followed by appreciation of art and it’s abilities to evoke
such strong emotions.
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| Unknown Artist and Title - Mario |
Chances are this image has already brought back memories for
you. Remember how hard the castle level
of Mario Brothers was when you were a kid?
I swear that level had the best background music! What this brought to mind for me was the
recent announcement by NY MoMA that they intend to acquire 40 video games for
their permanent collection. Here’s a
link to an article on their website, I strongly suggest reading the comments:
This provoked banter back and forth between me and my
husband debating the topic whether or not video games are art. Andrew’s point of view “Video games are
definitely art!” Mine: “I don’t get
it.” But just because I don’t understand
it doesn’t mean it’s not art. I just
haven’t thought about its true purpose in the museum yet. What do you think? Also, I want to apologize for not getting the title and
artist of this piece. The picture I took
was too fuzzy and I was unable to zoom in on the wall text label.
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| "Projecting Rigidness" Katlynn Sammons |
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| "Projecting Rigidness" Katlynn Sammons |
There’s a lot going on here.
First I thought the subject looked like a girl named Rhiannon that was
friends with one of my college roommates, Jesse. It’s not her, but it looks like her. In fact, it could be anyone, the downward
gaze and ambiguity of the female subject makes the piece relatable and makes us
want to turn our heads to the side and do a double take to see if we might know
her. Once I got past studying the
projected person and their identity, I thought about the mesh sculpture
itself. The shape to me looks like a
futuristic mini dress with an outer space influence. The use of negative space with
the mesh sculpture and its effect on the projection behind it are well thought
out. I would have liked to be there to
see the artist turn on the projector and fiddle with the focus and size of the
projected image. Her use of light and
dark with black and white in contrast to the bright pink of the subject’s
tshirt demands gallery goers to stop and take notice. For this factor alone, I think the piece
deserves respect.
There are lots of great pieces I did not touch on that were
featured in this show. Drake is
certainly pumping out great artists who should not be overlooked. Here is a link to the exhibition catalogue:
Show Ends April 5th
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