Louisville Art Scene

The three-day weekend was a great opportunity to take in the Louisville art scene. I was able to view five shows: one closing, two opening, and two remaining on view. Hopefully you'll find time to take in one of these. If nothing else, make a trip to the KMAC to pick up the exh catalogue for this show—it's fashioned after an old-school airline ticket envelope to hold boarding passes—something familiar to travellers in the days before e-ticketing.

Created by Design Research, this folder is a stunning reminder of innovation and
expanding the boundaries—of graphic design - that serves as a fitting tribute to
Saarinen's quest for timeless principles that used innovation through technology. 

Countdown to Linda: two weeks....

Join AHRECO (Art History Reading Group) for the journey to Louisville to hear noted art historian, Linda Nochlin, who will lecture at the U of L. Details: leave GC at 3 pm, head over to the U of L/Speed campus. Lecture at 6 pm. Those who wish can visit 21C on the way home. Hope you can join us. RSVP to Dr. Decker by noon on 3/31. Also, join the reading group that day, as we'll review Nochlin's seminal essay "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?" All current students and alum are invited to join AHRECO that day!

Lecture by Designer @ NKU

Rural Decay: The Gentle Artistic Mind of Keith Neltner

Neltner shares insights on illustration, design and what it means to contribute to the visual community. E-mail nkudesignguild@gmail.com for more information. More Information:Phone: (859)391-5246 Where Otto M. Budig Theater, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY 41099 When Thursday, Mar. 24, 2011, 7 p.m.- 8 p.m.

Welcome Back!

Welcome back to everyone and a special welcome to our transfer students who are majoring in art.

The art department met last week in preparation for our semester. We've got a lot of great activities on tap for this semester including: Empty Bowls project making ceramic bowls for charity;a visit to Louisville to hear noted art historian Linda Nochlin; a department field trip crossing the state line; several opportunities to see art in our galleries; and our regular "Art for Lunch" offerings on Feb. 3, Mar. 3, and April 7.

Mark your calendars, get inspired, and make art work (or artwork).

photo from the New York Public Library, Return of the 93rd to New York Harbor, 1946

Gallery Hop this Friday

Reminder: Lexington's Gallery Hop will be held on Friday, November 19 from 5-8pm.There's lots to choose from, including independent and non-profit galleries as well as studios offering art, conversation, and a good evening. The link above provides the map. Need more info? Call 859-255-2951. Hmmmm...could that become a NEXUS flex credit event?

Image above taken from the playbook of cartoonist Mike Twohy.

Artist Talk: Ellen Molle at UK

Ellen Mollé, from Nicholasville, is known for creating sculptures and embroideries that echo natural forms and growth patterns: imprints of ferns, hives, fossils and cocoons using materials such as twine, wax, canvas and thread. A selection of previous work by Mollé can be seen on the artist's Flickr website. Mollé's presentation, "Force Fields," is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 9, in the Niles Gallery of the Little Fine Arts Library. The event and reception are free and open to the public. This event is part of the Little/Gaines Artist Series, an event hosted by the University of Kentucky's Lucille C. Little Fines Arts Library and Learning Center and the Gaines Center for the Humanities at UK.

Saatchi Online

Join this community of artists who have launched a revamped website devoted to showcasing young talent in a free and open landscape. If you're an art major or minor, consider sharing your talent with the Saatchi empire -- yes, the same Charles Saatchi who sponsored the yBas. Visit www.saatchionline.com

Good Moral Character & a Fireside Chat Friday @ 1pm

The college catalogue from 1846 described behaviors that were preferred among the student population: "The College is open to persons who desire to study in particular departments only. Such persons must give satisfactory evidence of good moral character, and possess such previous acquisitions in the branches they mean to pursue, as shall qualify them to study with some of the regular classes." A description of such character is not provided, neither are the means by which one should attain it.

A century and a half later, we have no such clause in the college catalog and yet it goes without question that rules and codes of behavior, or, even guidelines for moral character have been a part of the college's history as much as its traditions. Putting this story into visual and verbal form was the task put before students in my Curatorial Studies course. As I mentioned in an earlier post this semester, each fall students in ART 302 prepare an exhibition that is on display in the Cochenour Gallery around our campus celebration of Homecoming. The first exhibit was curated in 2005 and entitled “Faith Ablaze! The Chapel Fire of 1930.” This show recounted that tragic, chilly April morning as the building was lost to the smoke and flames. For the 2010 exhibition, students have been researching the rules and regulations of the college from the earliest College Catalogs of the mid-nineteenth century to the present day. This proved quite challenging because the topic for the exhibition is not entirely focused or well-documented, such as an historic structure or event. Nor is the focus on a specific population, such as alums from a certain dorm or major or club.

The show has been curated, installed, and is now on view in the LRC. Please join us on Friday from 12-2 in the Cochenour Gallery where students will be on hand to discuss their work. The students who prepared the exhibition include: Celisa Bowen, David Gardner, Bess McHone, Jacob Pankey, and Weezie Payton. We also had the help of an alum, Daniel Ware, class of 2010. While browsing the display case and installation of two dorm rooms, you'll be able to enjoy amazing dainty delights made by GC alum, Amanda Hervey. In addition, we'll convene a Fireside Chat at 1:00 with Doc Birdwhistell and a few other GC alums and friends, including Jane Hope Fields, Ann McCamy, Kyle Potter, Kitty Taylor, and Wallace and Judith Williams. All will share insight about rules and regulations. Topics include:

-Freshman beanies (see image at the head of this post)

-dorm life

-bust of J.J. Rucker -- remember it? seen it? stolen it?

-earliest rules

-the present "rules"

-rules as being good or harmful for students in college

Please join us!

Homecoming Week!

It's Homecoming Week! Show your support of your fellow students and art faculty by attending the events slated for this week. On Friday, October 15 12:00-2:00 join us in the Cochenour Gallery for "By the Book: Rules, Regulations, and GC Student Life". This gathering affords us a reception, but will also allow friends and visitors the opportunity to discuss the exhibition with students from the Curatorial Studies class who researched and created the exhibition from the treasures and documents in the college's archives. A special treat will be the Fireside Chat (beginning at 1:00 pm) featuring Doc Birdwhistell and a few alumni. You won't want to miss it!

Later that day, join us in the Wilson Gallery at 5:00 pm for the reception in conjunction with "imPrint", an exhibition coordinated by Daniel and Darrell. In this new venture, we see studio faculty taking on the roles of exhibition designers and coordinators. The show addresses typography through a variety of traditional printing methods.

In addition, on Saturday, October 16, beginning at 9 am, Daniel will offer a printmaking demonstration, in conjunction with the exhibition. A hands on children's activity will begin at 9:15 am that morning.

By the way, if you've not already seen it....check out the SongFest banner created by our art students. Nice job, everyone!

Fall Break Post: See Art!

Fall Break is upon us! I wanted to use this post to put a shout out to some of the art events in the area, in case you find yourself with time to spend in pursuit of visual pleasure.

• Andy Warhol at the Speed, Louisville
• Louisville artist, Julius Friedman at 21c, Louisville (and there's always Text Rain)
• Reflections on a Louisville Landmark at Louisville Visual Art Association
• Portraiture through the eyes of Gainsborough (British artist, 19th century) at Cincy
• Kristine Donnelly's amazing paperwork at Taft
• Glass artist Dale Chihuly at the Frist (note, the Impressionist show opens soon, too!)
• Panoramic photographs of Jeff Chien-Hsing Liao, opens 10/9 at UK
• Workshop at Georgetown's Yuko-En on Saturday!
• Scott County Arts and Cultural Center

OR:

• Pick your own spot to investigate by perusing this listing of Louisville and Lexington spots

Enjoy!

Opportunity: Workshop

Yuko-en on the Elkhorn, just up the street in Georgetown, are presenting a modest 2nd Annual Kiku Matsuri Festival Workshop on October 9th. Kiku Matsuri is the fall Chrysanthemum Festival in Japan, celebrating the season, as is the Spring Cherry Blossom Festival or Hana Matsuri. I went to it last year -- it was wonderful!