As the 2009-2010 school year begins at Gustavus, so too does a new year of art at the Hillstrom Museum of Art, located in the lower level of the C. Charles Jackson Campus Center.
The first three exhibitions are set to run from Sept. 14 to Nov. 8, 2009, and each brings its own unique theme and tone to the Hillstrom. The first of these is titled Winds of Inspiration, Winds of Change.
“[The exhibit] features works by Gustavus Adolphus College studio art faculty, local artists from the St. Peter and Mankato area and art faculty from colleges and universities across the state,” Director and Senior Curator for the museum Don Myers said.
The exhibit focuses on the exploration of wind turbines and their role in the environment, “as environmentally sensitive objects and as objects with a powerful, sublime presence,” Myers said.
This exhibit is comprised of the artwork of several Gustavus staff and faculty members who were asked to contribute pieces relating to the turbine theme, including Professors Priscilla Briggs and Nicole Hoiland.
Briggs, whose video is featured in the exhibit, gives viewers a glimpse into her inspiration and insight. “Vast farmlands of corn and cows juxtaposed with the monolithic turbines create a surreal landscape … the light at the end of the video is like an answer to the question, ‘Why?’” Briggs said.
“I think thematic shows can be very interesting, and usually for the artists it can be quite fun to be able to let loose on one given idea,” Hoiland said. She said her work is meant to be both “satirical and truthful.”
The second of these upcoming exhibitions is titled Cuadros from Pamplona Alta: Textile Pictures by Women of Peru, and features the works of several women from an impoverished shantytown outside Lima, Peru. These women are burdened with a plethora of social and economic burdens and oftentimes carry the majority of responsibility in their homes. However, in their few moments of free time during the day, they enjoy sewing textile pictures that express their feelings toward their families, poverty and communities.
Some of the cuadros not featured in the exhibit are available in the Book Mark for purchase. Each sale helps the artists by supplementing their modest wages.
The third exhibit is another of the Hillstrom’s FOCUS IN/ON projects, which means the piece will not only be displayed in the show but also analyzed by a knowledgeable figure in the field; in this case, geology.
The piece is titled “Dry Creek Bed, Kansas,” and is the product of the late Swedish-American artist Birger Sandzén. An essay co-written by James Walsh, chair of the department of geology, will explore Sandzén’s life and career and also the geology of western Kansas, which is the focus of the painting.
This collaboration is being presented as part of the 2009 Nobel Conference on water resources, so viewing the exhibit is a great way to both prepare for the conference and to get an artistic interpretation of the subject.
Briggs commented on the appeal and importance of the exhibitions: “It reminded me of teaching: I give students all the same assignment, and it is fascinating to see how each one approaches it in their own unique way.” The Hillstrom will begin hosting exhibitions on Sept. 14 and will run throughout the school year.