Deborah Lee
Staff Writer
Clay and wire sculptures, canvas paintings, overlapping photographs and roughly 30 University community members filled the Harris Gallery Tuesday to admire the art and art history department’s student-generated exhibit “Wow and Flutter.”
The title refers to forms of pitch variation on records and tape recorders as well as a song by the band Stereolab.
The pieces were created by students from studio art, advanced digital art and art depart classes under the direction of art department professors Nicole James, Keith Lord, Walpa D’Mark and Ruth Trotter.
The professors oversaw the creation of the pieces through their Fall 2016 and current classes, including students who were not art majors.
“I saw that other business students created some of the artwork, which inspires me to do more than just my major,” freshman accounting major Jesus Jaimes said.
Junior anthropology and art history major Allyson Blanck was the student curator of the event.
She curated the exhibit alongside Director of Art Galleries Dion Johnson.
One of the themes of the exhibit was body positivity and positionality, sophomore political science major Jackie Ku said.
Ku particularly identified with a piece by studio art major Damairis Lao titled “Self Portrait with Air Plants in Bloom 2017.”
“It’s one of those bold pencil sketches with a burst of color on top and I thought it was a really nice contrast with abstract realistic collision,” Ku said.
Senior studio art major Dynasty Nakatani displayed her acrylic painting of a nude model.
“Just working with the rich skin tones was unlike anything I’ve had the opportunity to have,” Nakatani said.
She said she chose the piece to make a statement about body image.
“There’s just not enough media out there to show women of color with richer skin tones and different body types, the media doesn’t feed you those things and having the opportunity to paint her was much needed,” Nakatani said.
Jaimes said attending the reception was his first visit to the Harris Gallery.
“It’s very different from what I’m used to and seeing that students on this campus created all this is so exciting,” Jaimes said.
The exhibit will run in the Harris Gallery through May 18.
Deborah Lee can be reached at deborah.lee@laverne.edu.
