Friday, March 28, 2014

Ohio Wesleyan's Senior Show in April


The artistic creations of 18 Ohio Wesleyan University
graduating seniors will be on exhibit April 12 through May 11 at OWU¹s
Richard M. Ross Art Museum, 60 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. The exhibition,
titled "Happenings," will open with a special Saturday reception from 5
p.m. to 7 p.m. April 12.

"Happenings" celebrates our moments ­ both the ones that happened at
Ohio Wesleyan, and the ones that happen continually in our work, said
Suzy Stephens of Columbus, Ohio. "Though we say a bittersweet goodbye to
our OWU peers and professors, our art keeps the memory of our collegiate
experience alive."

All of the pieces in the exhibit were selected by a jury of Ohio Wesleyan
fine arts faculty. After the works were chosen, the exhibit was designed
by Justin Kronewetter, director of the Ross Art Museum; Tammy Wallace,
first assistant of the museum; and students in Kronewetter¹s gallery
management class. The students also helped to install the exhibit.

Ohio Wesleyan graduating seniors participating in the "Happenings"
exhibition are:

Hannah Appelbaum of St. Louis, Mo. "My pieces vary from expressive
portraiture to meditative carving and sculpture," said Appelbaum, who is
studying ceramics and painting. "I'm drawn to very detailed images and
designs. Recently I have had the opportunity to work in metals, and I get
a lot of gratification from creating intricate piercing and soldering
designs. My inspiration comes from artists such as Dürer and Cezanne, and
forms from sea life."

Hazel Barrera of Juarez, Mexico/El Paso, Texas. "As a U.S. citizen raised
in Mexico, my work speaks of my Mexican identity and values," said
Barrera, who is studying metals and jewelry. "I use mineral pigments to
bring into my artwork the colors from the Mexican culture. My artwork
also raises conversations about femininity influenced by Frida Kahlo, and
makes a comment on the ideal Mexican woman."

Challen Brown of Cardington, Ohio. "My art is about conveying certain
ideas and aspects to people through photographs," said Brown, who is
studying photography. "It's about showing people the things they do not
normally notice, by using certain angles and highlighting small details
that people often disregard in their daily lives. I often like to
photograph subject matter and places that are not necessarily considered
beautiful by the general public, to convey the value that I see in them."

JaeMin Chung of Seoul, South Korea. "I use Photoshop, Illustrator, and
InDesign to design advertising and marketing materials," said Chung, who
is studying graphic design. "This includes logos, posters, booklets,
info-graphics, and pamphlets. I¹m also interested in book making, because
my graphic design skills allow me to create unique artist books. I
believe that art is the language of emotions. Through art, I am trying to
express my innermost feelings, and I wish to communicate my thoughts and
emotions with people around the world."

Danielle Haley of Toledo, Ohio. "I am always bouncing back and forth
between using a digital camera, a 35 mm, and a Hassleblad," said Haley,
who is studying photography. "Sometimes I print in the dark room, but
mostly I upload my digital photos to the computer or scan my film and
edit the images in Photoshop. Some of my pieces are based on texture, and
some of them are landscape. One thing they all have in common is that
they are usually simple. Some of my work was done in New Mexico, which
has inspired me to want to travel to other places out West and even other
countries to take photographs."

Sanaa Hazratjee of Dayton, Ohio. "Born in Texas to a Greek and British
mother and Pakistani father, I am a graduating senior with an art major
and economics and philosophy minors,² Hazratjee said. "I mostly define
myself as a hyper-realism drawist; however, I also enjoy building 3D
elements with ceramic and metal medium. I like to showcase my cultural
heritage through my art, and often reflect adopted styles from Pakistan,
such as Arabic calligraphy, both in the literal sense of creating art
with text, as well as with the curvature nature of my artwork itself."

Ha Le of Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. "My art owes its intricacy, linear
quality, and warm color palette to my cultural background ­ Vietnam," said
Le, who is studying drawing, painting, and printmaking "My figurative
work centers on describing to the fullest extent the personality and
expression of my models. ... Recently I'm moving toward abstraction and
focusing more on exploring composition, line quality, and interaction of
shapes and lines in space. Through close investigation of structural
elements and their possibilities, I want to move away from the narrative
track and take on the challenge of creating compelling images that
communicate with the audience on a stronger visual level."

Ngoc "Allie" Le of Hanoi, Vietnam. "Currently, I have been self-teaching
motion graphic, which takes a big role in the commercial/communication
world nowadays. I have also experienced all aspects of design ­ from
logos, banners, website interface to flash, iPhone apps, and
videos/motion graphic," said Le, who is studying graphic design and
photography. "I enjoy working with both film and digital camera. My hobby
is to travel and do landscape photos. I focus on creating harmony and
simplicity in my work. My palette is commonly pastel colors. My work
shows my longing for nature and the beauty around me."

Amy LeFebvre of Granville, Mass. "For a long time I was content with the
beautiful, variable, and strong lines that pencils can make," said
LeFebvre, a studio art major and sociology-anthropology minor. "I adapted
these lines to photography, metals, charcoal, ink, and ceramics, but oil
paint was conflicting with its historical roots with the great masters.
When I started, I realized oil paint was flexible and swam its beautiful
lines across the canvas whereas pencils were solid and strong. These
beautiful lines, my beautiful lines, help me explore and learn about
humankind, human culture, and the world around me."

Maddy Mavec of Hunting Valley, Ohio. "Geometric shapes fascinate me and
are a large part of both my paintings and ceramics," Mavec said. "When I
am working, the decisions I make are based on impulse. Each shape,
including its size, orientation, color, and application, is affected
based on the reaction I have to what came before. I find myself obsessed
with how these shapes naturally interlock. I am intrigued by how such
simple forms are capable of becoming complex compositions when put
together. My works are not just random colorful geometric forms;
instead, they are visual displays of myself."

Alex Michener of St. Louis, Mo. "My practice revolves around the
obfuscation of Dionysian principals through observing the temporality and
discreetness of form and gesture," said Michener, who paints in oils. ³I
find my work fits in the trajectory of art historical traditions of such
masters as Mathew Day Jackson and Jocelyn Hobbie.²

Sonja Petermann of St. Louis, Mo. ³I enjoy working from the figure in an
indoor space and strive to create interesting compositions using shapes
made by light and adding layers of texture to create depth," said
Petermann, whose concentrations are in printmaking and drawing.

Katasha Ross of Dublin, Ohio. "Much of my metal work contains a small
shape or pattern that repeats based on a rule," Ross said. "Even if I use
the same pattern on another piece, the effect will always be different by
the end, because the entirety of the design is a response to the unique
first shape that I began the pattern with. As I work, it looks as if the
pattern is alive as it grows naturally across the form, reacting to
itself. It is this concept of self-awareness that inspires me to create
the piece. This urge to design based upon self-reflection of the design
is drawn from my own life philosophy, highly valuing inner reflection and
conscious living."

Suzy Stephens of Columbus, Ohio. "Fear, anxiety, memory. I needed a way
to visualize feelings that were at once both wordless and restless,"
Stephens said of works submitted for the "Happenings" exhibit. "I was
looking to my family history for answers ­ specifically in the form of an
old box wrapped in faded pink, stashed silently in my parent¹s closet.
Vernacular photography is one thing, loaded recollections are another.
How could I make ordinary pictures of my family interesting to a
stranger?"

Tyler Travis of Delaware, Ohio. "When I begin an art piece I rarely know
what I am trying to create," said Travis, who is studying painting and
printmaking. "Generally, I make a few marks and respond to what I see
before me. My process is intuitive and at times subconscious. I try hard
not to fit myself into an art movement of the past, but instead strive to
create an art movement of the now. I feel strongly about making art
that is relevant to my specific unique time and setting on this planet.
Therefore, I aim to create art that transcends conventional
classifications, intrigues the art folks, and introduces something new
into the world."

Melissa Ward of Delaware, Ohio. "I work in charcoal and ink to create my
drawings," said Ward, a fine arts major and health and human kinetics
minor. "My works focus mainly on the figure as well as the beautiful
mistakes that can happen within the mediums themselves while making a
piece."

Elizabeth Warner of Plain City, Ohio. "I am moved to create art through
digital photography in the forms of photographs, artist books, and
digital imagery," Warner said. "My artwork is inspired by the simple
intricacies I find in everyday life as well as by color, texture, line,
and movement. ... I have also found new interest in the form of airplanes
and the line and movement they create. Using their form along with other
images dealing with airplanes, I have created digital images that are
more abstract than the plane itself. With each new discovery, my artwork
takes on new form and I can¹t wait to see it grow throughout my lifetime."

Matt Wasserman of Weston, Conn. "My work incorporates my interest in the
eye and brain by creating art that provokes the viewer into both
appreciating and solving the puzzle that is my work," said Wasserman, a
photography major and psychology minor. "Photography is my preferred
medium, but I also exhibit work in mixed media."

Learn more about the Ohio Wesleyan artists and their creations on a

Ohio Wesleyan's Richard M. Ross Art Museum is open Tuesday, Wednesday,
and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and
Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The museum is handicap-accessible and
admission is always free. Call (740) 368-3606 or visit
http://ross.owu.edu/ for more information.

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