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Barton Art Galleries presents 2012 Senior Art Exhibition

Opens in the Barton Art Galleries on April 21
The Reception is Saturday, April 21, from 6-8 p.m.

An astounding array of student work in the 2012 Barton College Student Art Exhibitions will be on view in the Barton Art Galleries on the campus of Barton College from April 21 through May 7. A reception to introduce these students and their work to the community will be held on Sunday, April 21 from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Artist talks will be held on Friday, May 4, in the Barton Art Galleries beginning at 1 p.m. Both events are open to the public at no charge, and the community is invited to attend.

Within the Virginia Thompson Graves Gallery, there will be two micro exhibitions by five talented Barton College seniors. "Between the Lines" will showcase Megan Kay Bell, Erin Dempsey, Jamie Brittan Kistler, and Krystin G. Moore. The exhibition will focus on ceramics, drawing, painting, and photography. Robert Kowalczyk is displaying site-specific designed technology-based work in "Technomancer."

Megan Kay Bell
Megan Kay Bell of Durham plans to graduate in May with a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education. Bell's portions of the exhibition "Between the Lines" are pieces that describe her personal artist voice and style. On display are a broad range of skills in several areas of the art, such as her "On Your Mark" oil on canvas, collographs, and ceramics.

With a concentration in ceramics, Bell prefers the creativity of hand-built work. Professor Susan Fecho, advisor for the student exhibitions, expresses admiration for Bell's nature themed collographs. "Bell's 'X Marks the Spot' is one of three multi-hued collographs, which are essentially inked and printed collages," Fecho explains. "This expressive work achieves on paper, what Bell enjoys about working with clay."

Bell is guided by a quote from artist Federico Fellini, "All art is autobiographical." She says, "I hold that statement to be unequivocally true. All artists create pieces that directly relate to the things around them and experiences that have changed them. The artwork that I create comes from the heart that has been sojourning in a world that is very much ephemeral." Bell continues, "Growing up in the very urban city of Durham, I have always been surrounded by art. My artistic ability is very diverse and is often times about experiences that I have been through."

After graduation, Bell plans to enter the Expressive Arts Therapy Program at Appalachian State University.

Erin Dempsey
Erin Dempsey of Rocky Mount is an Art Education licensure student displaying a series of graphite drawings and oil paintings of still-lifes in the "Between the Lines" exhibition in the Virginia Graves Gallery. "My emphasis in art is drawing," Dempsey explains. "The attention to detail in works such as 'Huntin Games' uses both atmospheric perspective and controlled balance to achieve success of the composition. Using graphite helps me focus on shaded details and provides surface control. When mapping out my subject matter, I tend to be drawn to shapes and knots of fruits, vegetables, duck decoys, and antiques."

After graduation, Demsey is interested in pursuing a career as an elementary art teacher.

Jamie Brittan Kistler
Jamie Brittan Kistler of Selma is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education. Kistler is exhibiting her "Language of Flowers" series for the "Between the Lines" exhibition. These four photographic pieces titled "Wisdom [Iris]," "Imagination [Poppy]," "Innocence [Daisy]," and "Dedication [Sunflower]" are mixed media composition. Black and white photographic imagery is altered with gesso, crackled medium, and threading to focus on Kistler's continued research concerning the evolution of women and mental illness.

Associate Professor Gérard Lange, recognizing Kistler's work, shared, "Jamie's work involving mixed-media application of photography with sewing strongly benefits her interest in becoming an educator. This unique approach demonstrates a versatility that will aid her future students in coming up with original solutions to assigned projects."

Kistler explains, "I create work based on feelings, specific emotions, and my constant desire to express myself through an outlet that allows for experimentation and interpretation. I work to combine color, texture, and a variety of materials to convey a meaning that is not always clear to me. I never start a piece with a specific message that I intend to convey, but instead I allow the work to evolve on its own into a statement that is at times only evident during the conclusion of my creative process.

Krystin G. Moore
Krystin G. Moore of Clinton, pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education, also is participating in the "Between the Lines" exhibition. With a concentration in drawing, Moore's personal focus for the exhibition has been to try new technical approaches while producing imagery based on natural subject matter.

"It was a combination of media and processes used for each piece," Moore shares. "Some drawings were done strictly with drawing mediums, and others were done in mixed media using paper, paints and washing, and drawing mediums."

Fecho notes, "I have enjoyed working with Moore this past year and seeing her develop work based on personal scenery. Her heritage-based imagery is presented with rich colors, organic shapes and familiar textures that evoke nostalgic memories."

For Moore, being a southern female is more than just an acronym. "Having southern roots is one of the most inspirational parts to my artwork," she shares. "I am inspired by some of the smallest things in life, such as dew on morning grass or the dust that rises up behind an old tractor as it plows up a field. It is a breathtaking feeling you get when you look out over a field when the sun is setting on a summer day; these are the feelings that I try to portray in my work. I try to create emphasis in my pieces by using subject matter people can relate to and using colors to create unity in my pieces that also relate to the things that inspire me."

After graduation this May, Moore plans to move home to Sampson County and pursue work while continuing to create art, helping to tutor and teach art to local students.

Robert Kowalczyk
By using current technologies in new ways, the Virginia Thompson Graves Gallery is also presenting a micro-exhibition "Technomancer" by graduating senior Robert Kowalczyk. Kowalczyk, a native of Chicago, Ill., is a Visual Design major showcasing the fine art applications of digital graphic design. This exhibit is meant to engage the viewer with the use of their personal electronic devices. Kowalczyk is showing sculptural abstracted drawings, vector based illustrations, and highly designed Quick Response (QR) codes all under the theme of "magic through technology."

Sharing his technique, Kowalczyk explains, "My imagery begins in Photoshop. I create undersketchings and pre-modified imagery using a digital drawing tablet. The imagery is dropped into Illustrator for converting and finalizing.

"Music, the expansion of technology, and social trends based on history inspires me," he continues. "Art, as a bridge between science and philosophy, is an extension of my study and research of tangent ideas, of programing and computer modding."

Painting, a lifelong passion

Also on display is "Passion to Paint" in the Lula E. Rackley Gallery, representing Life-Long Learners who study painting under J. Chris Wilson. On view will be the work of Lynne Arnold, Clara Daughtridge, George F. England, Margaret Evans, Mary C. Evans, Patricia Evans, Janice Gravely, Carolyn H. Neville, Jo Rhodes, Dinah Sharpe Sylivant, Fran Tyson, Marion Clark Weathers, and Susan S. Webb.

Professor J. Chris Wilson explains, "Having the Life-Long Learners in the painting classes at Barton College enriches the experience for all students and artists. The Life-Long Learners are motivated, dedicated, and hard working, and [they] set a great example for the traditional students. The traditional students challenge the Life-Long Learners with creativity and enthusiasm. It is a great symbiosis. Many of the Life-Long Learners are regional artists of note that have found an artistic community at Barton College that increases their productivity while elevating the quality of their work. Learning to paint in an academic setting requires achieving clear learning objectives and developing transferable skills. The community spirit that has evolved among the artists and students has brought pride in the successes of each and every member and a joy to their teacher."

Lynne Arnold
Lynne Arnold is a native of Rocky Mount. She has used oil and acrylic in her paintings featured in the exhibition. "Study of Girl with Pearl Earring" and "Snake River, Wyoming" present painting completed within this studio painting course.

Clara Daughtridge
Clara Daughtridge of Stantonsburg, a 1969 alumna of Atlantic Christian College, is exhibiting oil paintings with a focus on the imagery of dogs and horses. Daughtridge's "The Competitor" and "Bully Running" are part of her ongoing series depicting dogs and horses. Daughtridge shares, "My subject of choice is animals offering unconditional love, trust and loyalty – as reflected in their eyes. Capturing this spirit is what motivates me to paint."

When asked about her choice of media, Daughtridge explains, "The slower drying time of oils allows me to mix and blend more easily. The buttery texture, smell, and results give me pleasure."

George F. England
George F. England's first art medium was wood, spending over 30 years making furniture. England now spends his time painting with oil on linen canvases. He likes the fact that oil does not dry quickly, lasts longer, and is more forgiving compared to watercolor and acrylic paints. England's favorite subjects to paint are North Carolina landscapes, from farm scenes to the ocean.

One painting England is exhibiting is "Ox Creek in the Fall," portraying a scene from Buncombe County on the mountain side near Weaverville. "My technique is to paint beautiful landscapes from pictures that I take mainly across North Carolina," he shares. "My paintings are somewhat realistic but do adhere to proper color combinations and utilize good atmospheric expression similar to the Hudson Valley School of Painters."

A native of Asheville, England attended Asheville-Biltmore Junior College and went on to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, graduating in 1963 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics. England and his wife, Nancy, have resided in Wilson since 1967.

Margaret Evans
A native of historic Edenton, Margaret Evans currently makes her home in Rocky Mount. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education. Evans is exhibiting two paintings: "Red House on HWY 97," an oil on canvas completed in 2010 and "Carolyn Petway," an oil on canvas completed in 2011.

Mary C. Evans
Mary C. Evans is from Bethel. Evans enjoys painting oil on canvas and continues to explore art technique, atmospheric perspective, and the use of color to improve her art.

Patricia Evans
Patricia Evans of Greenville is a painter who primarily uses oils in her paintings. "I was first taught using Alkyd Oil," she says about her choice of medium. "It dries slowly and gives me time to blend." She adds that her favorite art style is realism. Evans admits that she is inspired by and loves paintings of children and scenes of people in natural settings, such as children at play or people at work. In addition to painting, Evans also enjoys interior decorating, knitting, cooking, and playing golf.

Janice Gravely
Janice Gravely of Rocky Mount is a peripatetic painter with 30 years of watercolors documenting 20 or more countries around the world where she has visited. For the past two years, under Chris Wilson's tutelage, Gravely also has been documenting her small world of family and familiar scenes. For the "Passion to Paint" exhibition, Gravely is exhibiting several oils, including: "Mother and Daughter," an oil on linen painting she completed in 2011 of herself standing in front of a painting of her mother. Gravely has exhibited in several solo shows and recently participated in a retrospective of 79 pieces at the Dunn Center at North Carolina Wesleyan College, and had 30 new oils in an exhibition sponsored by the Winston-Salem Associated Artists. She has had had solo exhibits at the Allegheny County Library, the Nash County Arts Council, and at Roaring Gap.

In her artist statement, Gravely shares, "'Ever learning and never coming to the full knowledge of the truth,' a wise one has said about me and perhaps others. However, I bring to my art a joy shown in this painting that should encourage any younger artist. After a lifetime of painting for my own pleasure, I discovered that others want to share in my joy. Such an expression is neither shallow nor profound, but without apology I can model the value of art in life. I find the following statement true in art and life – unlike in athletics: 'Even in old age, they shall still bring forth fruit.'"

Carolyn H. Neville
Carolyn H. Neville of Whitakers is an oil painter and enjoys the medium because of its flexibility and true colors. Her work reflects places and things that have personal meaning and inspiration. She is inspired by John S. Sargent, Monet, and Georgia O'Keefe. Neville believes life is truly good, and beauty is everywhere. When she is not gardening and sharing her harvest with friends, she spends her time learning new things. Neville says, "My philosophy is you don't know what you don't know until you know it." Within her exhibited oils on canvas, "Childs Play" and "B & E Hunt Club," Neville uses a painting technique of thin layers of oil paints to bring life and nostalgia to the canvas.

Jo Rhodes
Jo Rhodes of Wilson is primarily an oil painter who gains inspiration from the beauty of everyday landscapes and the charm of everyday people. For Rhodes, the most important subject is where she begins her focus, and the image grows from there, developing a relationship between the subject and artist. Rhodes enjoys traveling and incorporates her experiences with the people, cultures, and landscapes into her works of art.

In the case of her portraits, she shares that she is "inspired by images of children or adults enjoying life." Rhodes, exhibiting images of Vollis Simpson, began this series as a "result of a casual visit to see his whirligigs. Simpson graciously invited me to 'sit down and stay awhile.' So, prompted by his 'gracious hospitality, I asked if I could photograph him." Rhodes enjoys traveling and hopes to paint a series from her travels in Europe, China, and Australia, and adds, "I still have a lot of the world left to see!"

Dinah Sharpe Sylivant
A native of Snow Hill, Dinah Sharpe Sylivant has been painting most of her adult life. She is an established artist in the traditional sense, using mediums of oil and pastel. Sylivant has studied art at the Barton College Department of Art and Design, East Carolina University, Nantucket School of Art and Design of Massachusetts, and Savannah College of Art and Design of Georgia. She has also attended numerous workshops and studied under well-established artists in the states as well as Scotland.

Sylivant is a member of the American Society of Portrait Artists, Greene County Museum, Kinston Community Council of the Arts, Lenoir County Artist League, Brushstrokes, and the Carteret Community Council of the Arts. She has served as an artist-in-residence and teacher at Arendell Parrott Academy of Kinston, and as the president of the Lenoir County Artist League. In 2002, Sylivant's work was chosen for the North Carolina Seafood Festival poster. She was also named the 2002 Core Sound poster artist and the North Carolina Sweet Potato Festival poster artist for 2009 and 2011. She is currently painting the labels for Mother Earth Brewery, a recently established business in Lenoir County.

Sylivant, who is showcasing oils on linen in the exhibition: "Atlantic Beach" and "Along Contentnea," believes "art should invite the viewer to enter into the piece of work and feel the presence of the subject." She says she enjoys the challenges presented with each work of art and the continuous learning process helps her to return to her easel daily with enthusiasm and anticipation of what each day holds. Through the years, Sylivant has developed a love of the arts that is evident in her painting career.

Fran Tyson
A resident of Stantonsburg, Fran Tyson began taking painting lessons in 2002. Her choice of medium is oils; however, she also enjoys using watercolors and drawing. The fluidity, control, and freedom of expression come easy for her while using oils. She prefers painting portraits, but she has added landscapes and still life, such the recently completed "Reflections with Orchids," to her collection as well. Her works are inspired by the beauty of nature and people's expressions. "The process of creating a work of art from a blank canvas is the ultimate degree of satisfaction and achievement," explains Tyson.

Tyson's love of painting portraits and the fact that she had already painted her two older sisters, gave her the incentive to paint the youngest granddaughter. Before beginning this project, Tyson made sure she had the proper visuals, color concept, distribution of values, and composition. Her granddaughter was hospitalized while still working on this painting. "This was an emotional experience for me, and I could feel her presence with every brush stroke – the finished portrait was everything that I hoped it would be," Tyson shared. She was honored with an award for this piece in a juried competition.

Marion Clark Weathers
A painter from Rocky Mount, Marion Clark Weathers enjoys creating with oils and watercolors. She particularly likes oil on canvas for large works and for expressive brushstrokes, and she works with watercolors for the colors, fluidity, and its transparency qualities. Weathers' favorite works include eastern and coastal North Carolina landscapes. "To describe a moment …that can be forever in paint," is Weathers' motivation for her "Tar River Trail" series. She is exhibiting two paintings from the series, "Tar River Cypress" and "Triptych of a Vineyard."

When Weathers' is not painting, she works in the Registrar's Office at the Maria V. Howard Arts Center and volunteers her time at North Carolina State University as the President DG House Corp.

Susan S. Webb
A resident of Stantonsburg, artist Susan S. Webb began her art education at Wilson Community College and, for the past several years, she has been studying landscape painting at Barton College under the direction of J. Chris Wilson. Inspired by Hudson River painters and Barbizon painters, Webb began creating a series of North Carolina's lighthouses and coastal landscapes. "Living on the Outer Banks for six and a half years, I was captivated by the beauty of North Carolina's eastern shoreline and its historic lighthouses," she shares. "After moving to Wilson County, my series of oils, 'An Artist's Reflection on NC Lighthouses and Coastal Landscapes in the 21st century,' emerged. I was commissioned to paint Cape Lookout Lighthouse, which awakened my desire to capture nature's lights, shadows, colors, and the ever-changing complexities of environmental forces on the landscape."

Webb has been involved in numerous workshops conducted by Jerry's Artarama of Raleigh and Wilson Active Artists Association. She has been a longtime member of the Wilson Active Artists Association and has served as newsletter editor and vice-president, and is currently serving as president for a second term. Her work has been shown at various locations, including: the Arts Council of Wilson, the Spring Arbor Fall Show in Wilson, Barton College Art Galleries in Wilson, the Imperial Center in Rocky Mount, the Neuse River Foundation Fundraiser in New Bern, the Hammond Gallery in Wilson, the Nash County Arts Center, and the Farmville Community Arts Center in Pitt County.

The Barton Art Galleries, including the Virginia Thompson Graves Gallery and the Lula E. Rackley Gallery, are located in the Case Art Building, at the corner of Gold Street and Whitehead Avenue on the campus of Barton College. The Barton Art Galleries are open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

For additional information about the art exhibition, please contact Susan Fecho, chair of the Department of Art and Design, at 252-399-6480 or sfecho@barton.edu, or Bonnie LoSchiavo in the Barton Art Galleries at 252-399-6477 or blloschiavo@barton.edu.

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Juan Logan's "Works" Exhibition

Opens in the Barton Art Galleries on March 18
The Reception is Sunday, March 18, from 4-6 p.m.

WILSON, N.C. — Barton Art Galleries will host the work of acclaimed artist Juan Logan in an exhibition titled "Works." The opening reception for the exhibition is scheduled for Sunday, March 18, from 4 – 6 p.m. This event is open to the public free of charge, and the community is invited to attend. Logan's "Works" will be on display from March 18 until April 12.

Immediately following the opening reception, Logan will be the featured speaker for a Barton College Friends of Visual Arts Dinner and Lecture on Sunday evening, March 18. The dinner and lecture is by invitation only for members of the College's Friends of Visual Arts. For membership details, please contact Frances Belcher at 252-399-6357 or email fbelcher@barton.edu.

Logan's artworks address subjects relevant to the American experience as a whole. At once abstract and representational, his painting, drawings, sculptures, installations, prints, and videos address the interconnections of race, place, and power. They make visible how hierarchical relations and social stereotypes shape individuals, institutions, and the material and mental landscapes of contemporary life. For instance, the silhouette of a head, which appears in many of his works, confronts the viewer to implicate him/her in the politics of social space, even in galleries and museums.

In an excerpt from his "Pleasure and Power" critique of Logan's exhibition, Andrew W. Kahrl, assistant professor of history at Marquette University, explains, "Therein lies the powerful message behind Logan's visual forms: that race is made through the spaces we occupy and the opportunities and disadvantage they entail. The segregation of waterways under Jim Crow was not some irrational product of now-vanquished racial fears, but instead was an integral part of a system of economical exploitation that embedded symbols of racial power into land itself. That these symbols remain with us today, informing where we play and with whom, testifies to Faulkner's oft-quoted line, 'The past is not dead. In fact, it's not even past.'"

Logan has participated in over three hundred solo and group exhibitions. His works can be found in private, corporate, and public collections, including the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Gibbes Museum of Art, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, the Zimmerli Museum of Art, the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Weatherspoon Art Museum.

Logan's honors include awards and fellowships from the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, the North Carolina Arts Council, the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, the Rutgers Center for Innovative Print and Paper, and the Phillip Morris Companies.

Born in Nashville, Tenn., Logan grew up in North Carolina, and currently makes his home in Chapel Hill. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art.

This project was supported by a grant from the Arts Council of Wilson through the North Carolina Arts Council Grassroots Arts Program with funding from the state of North Carolina which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

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Eastern/Central N.C. Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition

Opens in the Barton Art Galleries on January 30
The Reception is Sunday, January 30, from 3-5 p.m.

Barton Hosts The Scholastic Art Awards For Eastern/Central N.C. Region          

WILSON, N.C. — Barton College will welcome students from across the state to celebrate their creativity at the annual Eastern/Central N.C. Scholastic Art Awards ceremony scheduled for Sunday, January 29. This marks the 34th year that Barton College has served as host and regional sponsor for the National Scholastic Art Awards for the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region. The featured speaker for the awards ceremony is John W. Coffey, Deputy Director for Art and Curator of American and Modern Art for the North Carolina Museum of Art.

Following an ice cream social for Gold Key awardees and their families in Wilson Gymnasium on the Barton campus at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, there will be an awards presentation for the award recipients beginning at 2 p.m. The ceremony is open to student Gold Key Award recipients, their families, and North Carolina arts teachers and principals. The Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition will be available for public viewing in the Barton Art Galleries beginning Jan. 30.

A native of Raleigh, Coffey joined the staff of the North Carolina Museum of Art in 1988. As Curator of American and Modern Art, he has overseen the development of the NCMA’s collections of American and modern art, as well as the Museum’s smaller collection of Jewish ceremonial art. Coffey has organized numerous temporary exhibitions, including “Making Faces: Self-Portraits by Alex Katz” (1990), “Louis Rémy Mignot: A Southern Painter Abroad” (1996), and “Color, Myth, and Music: Stanton Macdonald-Wright and Synchromism” (2001). (The Mignot and Macdonald-Wright exhibitions were supported by grants from the Henry Luce Foundation and traveled to major national venues.)  From 1994-1997, Coffey served as the statewide director of the Israel/North Carolina Cultural Exchange. He is the staff liaison to the Friends of the Judaic Art Gallery.

In addition to his work as a curator, Coffey now serves as Deputy Director for Art with primary responsibility for the Curatorial, Conservation, and Registration Departments, and the Art Reference Library. He also serves as an adjunct associate professor of art at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Coffey received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and art history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (1976) and a Master of Arts degree from the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art (1978). Prior to joining the North Carolina Museum of Art, he served as acting director of the Williams College Museum of Art, Williamstown, Mass. (1979-80); and curator of collections of the Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, Maine (1980-88).

Entries from all 50 states are submitted for competition in the nationally renowned Scholastic Art Awards program. The program, created for middle and high school students, is designed to encourage student achievement, to recognize and applaud our fine art teachers and to emphasize the importance of the visual arts in the school curriculum. Barton College is proud to host the Eastern/Central Regional District in North Carolina, representing 62 counties from the piedmont to the coast.

Contributors to the program include the Visual Arts Department of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, the Wilson Chamber of Commerce, Stan Corbett of Corbett Reproductions, Framer’s Alley of Elm City, Blick Art Materials, Jerry’s Artarama, and the Offices of Admissions and Institutional Advancement at Barton College.

Dr. Norval C. Kneten, president of Barton College, and Mark F. Gordon, director of The Eastern/Central North Carolina Region of The Scholastic Art Awards Program, will bring brief remarks during the program. Lisa H. Peszko of the Scholastic Art Awards Regional Teacher Advisory Committee, will present special awards to student recipients.

The Scholastic Art Awards entries for the Eastern/Central North Carolina Region are received at Barton College during the first week of January. This year, there were 2,142 artwork entries and an additional 76 portfolios from 130 schools presented for judging. Students, through their teachers, submitted artwork in a variety of categories, including: architecture, comic art, ceramics & glass, digital art, product design, drawing, fashion, film & animation, jewelry, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, video games, art portfolio, and photography portfolio. Jurors are charged to select entries that they consider especially worthy of recognition.

The Eastern/Central North Carolina Region has an advisory committee composed of eleven art teachers. This year, the exhibition selection jury was composed of retired teachers, college professors, museum educators, and professional artists.

Two hundred and fourteen artworks were selected as Gold Key Awards for the exhibition as well as nine portfolios. Digital images of these finalist art works will be sent to New York City for judging against other regional winners for the national exhibition held in June at the Corcoran Gallery, Washington, D.C. Also sent to New York will be the works of five American Vision Award (Best of Show) nominees, including: Dana Di Gioia, grade 12, Eugene Ashley High School; Ming Wong, grade 12, Southeast Raleigh High School; Allison Tate, grade 12, Timberlyne Day School; Meredith Miller, grade 11, Western Alamance High School; and Victor Foster, grade 12, White Oak High School.

There also were 348 Silver Key Awards and 362 Honorable Mention Awards chosen from the individual entries submitted. A list of gold award recipients and images of their artwork is available on the Barton Art Galleries’ web site at http://www.barton.edu/galleries/scholastics.htm.

From the Gold Key artworks, the jury also selected works for additional regional awards to be presented at the ceremony including the Barton College Award to: Katie Williamson, grade 12, Eugene Ashley High School; “The Wilson Times” Award to Samantha Lewis, grade 11, Riverside High School; the North Carolina Art Education Association Award to Rachel Dutcher, grade 8, Zebulon G.T. Magnet Middle School; the Governor’s Student Achievement Award to Meredith Miller, grade 11, Western Alamance High School; the Emerging Vision Award to Victoria Newberry, grade 8, Arendell Parrott Academy; Jurors’ Choice Portfolio to Sarah Parker, grade 12, Currituck County High School; and the Edward C. Brown Award, which honors the long-time director of the Barton Scholastics Program, to Joshua O’Taylor, grade 11, William G. Enloe High School.

Blick Art Materials donated a $200 merchandise voucher for classroom materials, given to Judy Johnson of Arendell Parott Academy, teacher of the Emerging Vision Award recipient. Jerry’s Artarama in Raleigh donated a $200 gift certificate awarded to Sarah Parker, recipient of the Jurors’ Choice Portfolio Award.

The exhibition will run from Jan. 30 - Feb. 23 in the Barton Art Galleries located in Case Art Building. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. and by special appointment. For additional information, please contact Mark Gordon, at 252-399-6474 or the Barton Art Galleries at 252-399-6477.

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"Body of Work" by D.W. Mellor

Opens in the Barton Art Galleries on November 13
The Reception is Sunday, Nov. 13, from 4 – 6 p.m.

Barton Art Galleries will host the work of acclaimed photographer D.W. Mellor in an exhibition titled "Body of Work." Mellor's exhibition will be on display from November 13 to December 12. The opening reception for the exhibit is Sunday, Nov. 13, from 4 – 6 p.m. This event is open to the public free of charge, and the community is invited to attend.

A magazine and fine-art photographer from Philadelphia (Bryn Mawr suburb), Pa., Mellor will present a lecture on his work immediately following the opening reception. The lecture is open only to members of the Barton Friends of Visual Arts. For membership, please call 252-399-6357, or join the Friends of Visual Arts at the event.

Mellor's skillfully executed black and white photographs on exhibit will include still lifes, portraits, assemblages, nudes, and abstracts that are intriguing allegorical sequences. Boston born master photographer Paul Caponigro describes Mellor's still lifes as "feasts" – "radiating a somber air of mystery." "His dexterity with symbols and intellectual concepts lets him tell a mysterious story in a compelling way," explained Michael More, of Camera Arts in his 2004 "Writing with Light" article.

Through meticulously and classically arranged "in situ" images, contrasting with their simplistic grey or white backdrops, Mellor provides luscious tonalities that pay homage to Dutch and Flemish Old Master paintings as they capture fleeting moments. "The sheer power of scrutiny—the act of intensely looking—is a manner of possession," shared Mellor. "These images are possessions of possessions." A former commercial photographer, professor, photography collector, and gallery director before moving to fine art photography, Mellor, now a world traveler, arranges gathered objects discovered within a particular foreign country to produce still-life travel photographs. He adds, "Working away for a month at a time in foreign apartments, cities such as Prague, London, Amsterdam, Rome, Venice, Florence, I conjured up these still lives from a borrowed or purchased table, different backgrounds, and found objects. Although the imagery is not evocative of any individual city, each city has its own character and charm, influencing the work. Still life images are mysterious and magical — mysterious in the subtlety of composition, the complexity of perspective, and the magic in the illusionary verisimilitude of the images."

The Barton exhibition also showcases Mellor's photographic assemblages and abstracts. Writer Cate McQuaid of The Boston Globe shared, "Mellor delights in how different surfaces reflect or soak up light: crystal, pewter, glass. Photography literally means the writing of light, and Mellor practices this with his materials and his techniques." Mellor portrays his fabricated assemblages as "collages, combining old master etchings, found objects, wood or metal backgrounds that are photographed with an 8×10 camera for extreme resolution. They are visual deceptions, revealing themselves in time."

Masterfully mesmerizing textures and sensual forms are depicted in Mellor's 14 nudes that range from abstracted to tension filled compositions. For Mellor, the nudes provide a means for "exploring the most sensual but difficult of subject matter: mysterious shapes, dark inferences and white forms. These edgy and ambiguous imagery reference pornography and its conventions, are not about power or sex but a design and decoration." In his artist statement, Mellor shares that the photographic abstracts are produced with "hand-shaped form core photographed with a 4×5 camera against a canvas background, one light source and a rope. Several hundred different negatives were realized. In the darkroom, selecting different combinations of two or three negatives produce unique prints from the sandwiched negatives."

Mellor is also exhibiting a selection of 10 from his "The Garvey Series" that portrays South Philadelphia resident Tom Garvey. This collaboration between Mellor and Garvey, spanning 30 years, reveals the subject's character with the same carefully preserved dynamic as Mellor's "in situ" images. In describing his "Garvey" work, Mellor wrote, "Once a year for 30 years, I photographed this enigmatic man. On the day of photography, Tom would be prepared with his own choice of personally made clothing or prop. All of the images were taken within his property or immediate neighborhood. In those 30 years, Garvey showed me strength, vulnerability, feistiness, goofiness, humor, strangeness, and nobility. His character emerges vividly, a strong willed, independent bohemian."

Mellor has had numerous solo exhibitions, and his photographs are in the permanent collections of major museums including the Center for Creative Photography, Tucson, Arizona, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Museo National de Bellas Artes in Buenos Aires, Argentina. His first book, "In Situ," was published in 2004.

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"Reception and Artist Talk by Jack Saylor"
to Showcase Art Works of 46 Alumni at Barton

The Exhibition will be on view through Friday, Nov. 4
The Reception is Saturday, Oct. 22, 5 - 7 p.m.

WILSON, N.C. — An artists' reception for alumni and friends of Barton College will be held from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Barton Art Galleries on Saturday, Oct. 22, to showcase an exhibition of art works by 46 Atlantic Christian and Barton College alumni from across the United States. Planned in conjunction with other Homecoming festivities on campus this weekend, the event will also feature guest artist Jack Saylor, class of 1983, who is scheduled to speak at 7 p.m. that evening. There is no charge for the event, and the community is invited to attend.

The exhibition, featuring alumni from the Art Department and the College, is comprised of artworks in various media, including: painting, sculpture, drawing, photography, and ceramics; and will be on view through Friday, Nov. 4.

Participating artists include: Ruchika Attri, Mary Ann Barwick, Greg Beaver, Kathi Blackmon, Dan Blackmon, Ben Bridgers, Kathy Mercer Brinn, Sallie Brown, Alyssa Damroth, Joshua S. Davis, Clara Daughtridge, Pat Daughtridge, Julia Finch, Kristin L. Flowers, Terry A. Franks, Susan S. Harris, Pamela Hickson, Sarah Hooper, Amanda Lange, Eric H. Little, Stephanie Massey, Robert D. Matthews, John Miller, Dwight Mitchell, Julie Synder Mixon, Pat Montgomery, L.W. Pelletier III, Susan Pelletier, David Pineiro, Ivan Price, Dallas Pridgen, Heather Richards, M. Allison Roach, Jack Saylor, Anna-Olivia Sisk, Brian LaVar Shackelford, Amy Carmichael Smith, Isaac Talley, Keith Tew, Jason Thomas, Roy Tyner, Jr., Brad Tucker, Deborah Young, Kristan Wall, Andrew Wilkins, and Catherine Wilson.

About the speaker:

Upon graduation, Saylor traveled to Spain and Italy where he began his pursuits as an artist while also working as a product designer for Sarreid, Ltd., a U.S. based home furnishings importer. Over the next 10 years, this experience allowed Saylor to develop his painting skills while studying the century's old art of Western Europe, particularly the Italian Renaissance. This rich artistic environment, when combined with Saylor's intense concentration on and appreciation for objects created by master artisans, proved a perfect breeding ground for the development of his work as a still life painter. In 1995, he and his wife, Ann, moved to the coast of North Carolina.

"I wish to make by way of the craft of painting, not the act of painting," shares Saylor. "I often approach my subject matter not square-on, but indirectly from an angle of sorts and thus present it in the same manner. I believe that suggesting a subject can be infinitely more powerful than depicting it entirely, and it is through this approach that a viewer can be enticed into creating the unseen parts by way of their own experiences. And, at that point, the dimensions of the work become limitless."

The Barton Art Galleries, including the Virginia Thompson Graves Gallery and the Lula E. Rackley Gallery, are located in the Case Art Building, at the corner of Gold Street and Whitehead Avenue on the campus of Barton College. The Barton Art Galleries are open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

For additional information, please contact Bonnie LoSchiavo in the Barton Art Galleries at 252-399-6477 or email: blloschiavo@barton.edu.

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"Il Libro"
The Art of the Book Exhibition

Auguest 22 - September 24
Opening reception, August 22, 2 - 4 p.m.

WILSON, N.C. – The Barton Art Galleries is pleased to announce the opening of the "Il Libro: The Art of the Book" exhibition on Monday, Aug. 22, with a public reception on Sunday, Aug. 28, from 2 p.m. until 4 p.m. in Case Art Building on the Barton College campus in Wilson. The exhibition will run through September 24. This event is open to the public free of charge, and the community is invited to attend.

The exhibition, organized by Barton professors Susan Fecho and Gerard Lange, include the work of nationally and internationally recognized artists and book presses: Cara Barer, Gwen Diehn, Andy Farkas (Fablewood), Susan Fecho, April Flanders, Gabrielle Fox, Gérard Lange, Marvel Maring (Crying Dime Press), Donald Martin, Scott McCarney, Steven Miller (Red Hydra Press), Sarah Nicholls, Lisa Beth Robinson (Somnambulist Tango Press), Katherine McCanless Ruffin (Shinola Press), Lauren Scanlon, Shawn Sheehy, Robbin Ami Siverberg (Dobbin Books) Dolph Smith, Kathy Steinsberger, Melissa Walker, Jessica C. White (Heroes & Criminals Press) and Dorothy A. Yule (Left Coast Press).

Artworks featured in this exhibition represent contemporary bookmaking trends. The editioned books and one-of-a-kind artists' books showcase include traditional sewn structures, altered books, sculptural books, broadsides and innovative approaches created in various media including letterpress, handmade paper, printmaking, photography, collage, fiber and ceramics.

As part of the "Il Libro: Art of the Book Exhibition," Barton College's senior Evan Fulks of Wilson will be displaying his artists' books in the North Exhibition Corridor of Case Art Building.

Also on the Barton Art Galleries' schedule is Lisa Beth Robinson, proprietor of Somnambulist Tango Press and East Carolina University instructor, who will be the featured lecturer discussing "Marginalia, Mischief, and the Ornamented Book" on Sunday, Sept. 18, from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sponsored by the Barton College Friends of Visual Arts, this event is also open to the public free of charge, and the community is invited to attend.

In conjunction with the exhibition, the Barton Art Galleries will host "Book Arts Extravaganza Workshops" on Saturday, Sept. 10. Join other participants for a day of hands-on bookmaking and artistic journaling techniques. Instructors include: Lisa Beth Robinson, Melissa Walker, Gérard Lange, and Susan Fecho.

For more information about these upcoming events or to make reservations for the workshop, please contact Bonnie LoSchiavo in the Barton Art Galleries at 252-399-6477, email: blloschiavo@barton.edu, or visit: http://www.barton.edu/galleries/education.

About the artists and their work

Among the exhibited art are three large scaled photographs showcasing the work of Cara Barer of Houston, Texas, including "Manhattan." These photographs document the evolution of her sculpturally re-purposed books.  "I have changed a common object into sculpture in a state of flux," said Barer. "The way we choose to research and find information is also in an evolution. I hope to raise questions about these changes, the ephemeral and fragile nature in which we now obtain knowledge, and the future of books."

Artist and author Gwen Diehn is exhibiting three multi-media, one-of-a-kind, layered books, "LivingBelowSea Level," "Imrana," and "Ice Fishing in New Hampshire," with stylistic commonalities. The third book, "Imrana," juxtaposes boats, of which Diehn described as, "…those most fragile of temporary shelters, with the enormous watery world in which they move. It is about the trust we place in fragile systems and constructions as we set out into unknown places and emotions and experiences." She is the author of several books, including "Simple Printmaking" (1999), "The Decorated Page" (2002), "The Decorated Journal" (2005), and "Real Life Journals" (2010), all published by Sterling/Lark.

Andy Farkas, proprietor of Fablewood, is exhibiting "Crab," "hmmm…," "Four Stories," and "River." "I have made prints throughout my artistic career, although a more accurate description of my work would be story telling," Farkas explained. "It is a medium that goes beyond ink, paint, words, and music, of which life itself is a tool, and in its best examples makes active participants of all those involved in the hearing, seeing, reading, telling, or handling."

Barton College professor Susan Fecho of Tarboro has two books on view: "A Woman's Work is Never Done," a soft, quilted book of repurposed clothing (printed and dyed cotton, linen, rayon, and silk), and "Relative Randomness: 365 Color," an accordion folded book that documents the usage of color terms used in daily news articles with word-cloud designs that utilize the researched colors. "Before I construct a piece, I am constructing its meaning for myself – a story – a matrix of personal, cultural, and archetypal associations within which my assembled fragments will find their place, Fecho shared. "The works reveal multiple layers of material and meaning."

April Flanders of Boone is showcasing works that include "Toxic Irritation" and "Codex Scolex," two artists' books produced with screen printing, lithography, and collage. Flanders explained that her creative research reflects a commitment to social change. "Through prints, paintings, and installation, I investigate the relationship between what we consume and our collective future," she added.  "Over-consumption is devastating the planet and the human spirit.  The consumer diet is out of balance with the needs of the environment, but we continue to treat consumer goods as if they were vitamins needed for nutrition." Flanders currently teaches full time at Appalachian State University in Boone.

An accomplished artisan in the binding, conservation, and restoration of fine books, Gabrielle Fox, is author of "The Essential Guide to Making Handmade Books." On view in the exhibition are her works: "Water," "Nothing to Wear," "Haiku and other poems," and "Queen Mab." Fox shared, "A book opened reveals a world each of us interprets individually. We paint our own pictures from the descriptions, and we create our own stories with the visual stimulation of colors and images. It is our very own world to keep, and only if we choose do we share the view or story we have experienced. Books provide us with a space, which can be put aside and reentered when we want to continue the story, remember a person, or express ourselves. What a wonderful thing to share, and what a delightful way to express oneself."

Barton College assistant professor Gérard Lange, reflecting on his inspiration, said, "Having always been a collector of things – bottle caps, scientific apparatuses, cameras, fabrics, fibers, dirt, and coffee cups to name a few – my eyes are constantly scanning the environment for interesting articles of any sort to add to my cabinet of curiosities. Often articles gleaned from my endeavors are things, which go with sets of items I have amassed over time. But occasionally, something comes along that sends my mind to a purpose I could direct the newly discovered object. This is my primary modus for bookbinding. The three books in the exhibition, "Evening News," "Hair Reliquary," and "Burning Chair Prophesy," are all responsive to an object come across in my travels."

Marvel Maring is a practicing book artist, creating one of a kind artist books and design bindings. She publishes fine press limited editions under the imprint of "Crying Dime Press." Maring also serves as the Fine Arts and Humanities Reference Librarian at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Her current position as Fine Arts and Humanities Reference Librarian has impacted her studio activity directly in recent years. She shared that her role as humanities librarian requires her to travel to the National University in León to train a group of jointly appointed Nicaraguan English Department faculty. "Meeting these faculty members and exploring their literary culture has opened up a magical assortment of folk tales that are visually evocative and literarily rich and compelling," she shared. Interested in the tunnel book structure, which originated in the Renaissance to teach perspective, she was looking for stories that might lend themselves to this format. The folk tales exhibited, "The Golden Crab," "The Weeping Woman," "The Bad Cadejo," and "The Good Cadejo," are iconic in the Nicaraguan culture.

Donald Martin of St. Augustine, Fla., has on exhibit "Book of Nature: Muir" and "Second Nature Series: Dusky Seaside Sparrow." The latter is described by the artist as an altered book with a hand bound book insert, cast paper, and wood. "This piece is meant as a memorial to the now extinct Dusky Seaside Sparrow," explained Martin. "The inserted book is an Ethiopian Coptic codex book form that demonstrates the disappearance of the bird through simple cut out shapes."

Scott McCarney of Rochester, N.Y., is showcasing two one-of-a-kind altered books. "Knowledge in Depth: West to East" was originally created for the 2008 "Information Is Not Knowledge Project," organized by James Prez with Amanda Thackray and exhibited at the New Jersey City Canco building. Also on display is "Pre-Columbian Sacred," which was originally created for the 2010 "Information Revisited: The Encyclopedia Britannica Project" at the Martin Hicks Gallery, Belskie Museum of Art and Science in New Jersey.

Steven Miller, professor and coordinator of the Book Arts Program at the University of Alabama, is the founder of Red Ozier Press (a fine art press devoted to publishing literary first editions in handmade limited editions). Miller is also the proprietor of Red Hydra Press and the co-director of Paper and Book Intensive, a nationally recognized annual series of summer workshops in the book arts. Miller, exhibiting "Lion-froth Crown," has a passion for making books by hand and  letterpress printing, as well as teaching letterpress printing and hand papermaking. "Words are the motivating factor in my desire to create a book," he shared.

Sarah Nicholls, program manager at The Center for Book Arts in New York, N.Y., has on view "Phosphorescent Face Highlighter" and "The McGinley Paper Company Sample Book of Faults."  "My work revolves around the authority of printed language," she said. "I borrow that tone of authority to explore the comforts and limitations of community: what kinds of things bind people together, and why it is difficult to hold that in place. I am fascinated by the way language can be used to prevent communication as easily as it can be used to foster it."

Lisa Beth Robinson, exhibiting the book "Migration," and "Nomad: Orientation" is the proprietor of Somnambulist Tango Press where she makes artists' books (letterpress, papermaking, and printmaking). She describes her books as a visualization of the relationship between language and experience, making connections between disassociated objects and concerns. With degrees from the Johnston Center at the University of Redlands and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Robinson also serves as an instructor at East Carolina University in Greenville.

Katherine McCanless Ruffin, Book Arts Program Director at Wellesley College, publishes limited editions under her own imprint of Shinola Press. "Portrait of a Universal One" was originally printed in response to an invitation from the Center for Book Arts' "Vandercook Book," in celebration of the centennial of the Vandercook company. Ruffin says, "I set for myself the challenge of printing a portrait of my Vandercook Universal One press with metal and wood type in my studio. The main body of the press is printed from wood type. Franklin Gothic capital Ms and Ws make up the gears on the bed of the press. The press in the portrait is on — the power switch is in the on position, the red light is on, and the rollers are engaged."

Exhibiting three broadsides, Lauren Scanlon, born and raised in Memphis, Tenn., currently serves as an assistant professor of visual art at Penn State Altoona. "My recent work uses bed sheet designs as an entry point for investigating the pattern, structure, and impact of a specific line of romance novels that I read when I was very young," shared Scanlon. "The series was 'Harlequin Presents.' I was about 10 years old when I read them. Both the books and the bed sheet patterns are strategically designed repetitions intended to induce a feeling of familiarity. This familiarity — and associated ease of recognition — can engender a sense of predictability, stability, and safety. But something that's familiar isn't always safe."

Shawn Sheehy, of Chicago, Ill., shared, "Artists' books can uniquely communicate complex narrative concepts through image-based and text-based channels." Exhibiting two pop-up books, "Beyond the 6 Extinction: a Fifth Millennium Bestiary" and "Welcome to my Neighborhood: A Pop-up Book of Animal Architecture," he further explained, "Within the book arts, I am most attracted to creating pop-ups — I enjoy working sculpturally within the book format. I enjoy the engineering challenge involved in developing intricate dimensional forms that fold flat."

Artist Robbin Ami Siverberg is the founding director of Dobbin Mill, a hand-papermaking studio, and Dobbin Books, a collaborative artist book studio, which publishes small editions by Siverberg, in collaboration with other artists. Her artwork is divided between solo & collaborative artists' books and large paper installations. She explained that her work conceptually focuses on word cognition and interlinearity, with an emphasis on process and paper as activated substrate. Exhibited books include: "Dustpan," "Nightmare's Resolution," "Affidavit," and "Proverbial Threads: Series 100."

Now working in his studio in western Tennessee, Dolph Smith, is a professor emeritus at Memphis College of Art. In this exhibition, he has on view, "How to Make a Highbred Paper Airplane," Regarding his book art, he explained that he is "currently working with creating unique books as kinetic sculpture. I see the book as a quite animated three-dimensional object with moving parts. A book has 30 pages; I see 30 moving parts, plus the covers. I have found a niche apart from the traditional pop-up. I believe the illustrations in a 3-D object should also be 3-D!"

Kathy Steinsberger of Raleigh has been a book artist and ceramic artist for over 15 years. Steinsberger's two books on view, "Oh Asia" and "Tao: Book 1 and 2" showcase glazed clay covers, and handmade and Japanese paper. She has taught book arts classes at Pullen Arts Center in Raleigh since 2008, and she also currently teaches at the Cary Arts Center in Cary and the Beaufort Arts Center in Beaufort. Steinsberger explained, "I define myself as a potter turned maker of books. Like clay is to ceramics, print, paper, words, and imagery are the concrete aspects of books. The structure of a book shaped like parts of the human heart and held close when reading, represents humanity and life... much as clay vessels mirror the human body."

Melissa Walker of Seagrove described her altered book work as being influenced by abstract expressionism and incorporates mixed elements. "I find the intuitive experimentation and discovery involved in creating abstract art very challenging," she added. "Working with acrylic and collage allows me to work quickly and keeps my artwork fresh and loose. Building layers with collage and adding gestural lines, as well as journaling and stamping, are just some of the techniques.

Jessica C. White studied iron casting as an undergraduate at East Carolina University and, following a stint in book and paper conservation, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Printmaking and a Certificate in Book Studies at the University of Iowa. She currently works as a studio artist, teaches workshops, serves an adjunct professor of papermaking and book arts at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, and is the co-director of Ladies of Letterpress. White also is the proprietor of Heroes & Criminals Press, a small printing and binding venture that specializes in fine press and artist books, letterpress prints, and a variety of printed ephemera and chapbooks. "The Lost Land" and "The Bad Sparrow" are on display.

Dorothy A. Yule has on view three sculptural books; "Memories of Science," "A Book for Ian," and "Souvenirs of Great Cities." She first started making books while in grade school and eventually earned a Master of Arts degree in Book Arts from Mills College. Yule is fascinated by paper engineering and has created many unusual pop-up and movable books. She often collaborates with her twin sister, Susan Hunt Yule, on books produced under her imprint, Left Coast Press, two of which were published as trade books by Chronicle Books in 2005, "Souvenir of New York" and "Souvenir of San Francisco." Yule teaches book arts at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and has taught pop-ups and movable structures as a visiting instructor at California College of the Arts in Oakland.

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Questions? Contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.