thePULSEBy Holy Cross’s Visual Arts Department
By Melissa Pingeton
This isn’t your standard art exhibit… and that is a good thing.
Part two of the Crossroads ~ Holy Cross’s Visual Arts Faculty and Staff kicks off on Thursday November 8th and runs until December 19th. According to Director of the Cantor Art Gallery Roger Hankins, the title Crossroads is “…the image, the connection, the convergence of parts to different locations between all the individuals as they meet at the College of the Holy Cross.” Compared to the first part of the exhibition that “…doesn’t feel claustrophobic,” this part has a “…very strong component of color.”
Participants include Amy Wynne Derr, Lecturer of Visual Arts; David Gyscek, Studio Coordinator for the Millard Art Center; Cristi Rinklin, Assistant Professor of Visual Arts; Susan Schmidt, Associate Professor of Visual Arts; and Naomi Ribner, Lecturer of Visual Arts.
Breaking up the exhibition into two parts gives the artists the opportunity to display a number of pieces rather than just one or two. Using a variety of mediums, it’s no surprise that there will be a mix of everything from painting to photography to sculpture, and even a little help from iTunes.
Showing that he just isn’t the Director, Hankins, also an artist, will be showing some of his pieces as well. His sculptures are abstraction-based imagery using ceramics as the principle material.
Among the pieces Gyscek will feature is the seven minute video entitled “Wait, what?” featuring 60 frames of a subject mopping a floor, that at four frames per second “…almost looks like a dance.” It’s complete with a soundtrack created by a former Holy Cross student. Taking a cue from the visualization feature on iTunes, Gyscek took photographs of the computer screen and turned them into paintings. “[It’s] psychedelic, kind of lava lampy,” he said.
Using the same model from “Wait, what?” Gyscek presents a series of photographs of “…sort of desexualized” domestic scenes that are “…composed in the way a Martha Stewart photo shoot.” And on these gender-role switching photography: “I sort of hope it makes people reconsider the world around them and the way they perceive things.” He hopes that aspiring artists won’t be “…so focused on the final product that you miss some nice little happy accidents in the process.”
Rinklin’s contribution to the exhibit is a selection of work she’s done since 2004. It’s a mixture of abstract and the presence of technology and “…any kind of sort of artificial means of seeing.” A perfect example is her work that will be featured on the windows of the front floor of the gallery ~ transparent images that will be set directly on the glass to give it a stained-glass look.
With lectures from all the feature artists, Rankin says, “It’s also the chance to hear what we have to say about our work… it’s a really amazing educational tool.”
The exhibition is open to everyone and admission is free. For more information about the exhibition ~ including hours and artist lectures ~ visit www.holycross.edu/cantorartgallery/.
In honor of Pulse’s annual fashion issue I asked David Gyscek his favorite trend and he said, “I’m kind of a fusion between the British post-punk rocker look of designers like Alexander McQueen and Vivian Westwood and the clean lines and interesting fabrics of Japanese designers like Issey Miyake and Yoji Yamamoto. I think someone like Michael Stipe [from REM] exemplifies that fusion ~ kind of a formalized grunge look ~ suits with a twist ~ understated dandy-ism.”
Photos: Michael Beatty, A Circuitous Route to You, 2005 & Tim Johnson, Untitled, 2001
