Upcoming: High School Art Day, Spring 2017

It is time once again for the Pittsburg State University Department of Art's High School Art Day! On Tuesday, April 25th we will be hosting groups of students from all over the region. They will participate in workshops led by our students, to get some hands on experience with a new art technique, and to get a feel for the kind work we do here at the university. As with all of our High School Art Day events, we will also be holding an art competition for the students in attendance, judged by alumni of the program. This year's judges are Michael DeRosa and Janelle Null.

We're looking forward to welcoming all of the students next week! Below are some pictures from last semester's High School Art Day workshops. Our undergraduate workshop leaders had a great time, and so did their students!

3rd Annual Pitt State Student Art Fair 12/7/16!

High School Art Day 2016!

Lasting Impressions in the University Gallery

A new exhibition is on display in the University Gallery in Porter Hall until December 1st. Lasting Impressions: Printed Masters from the Leonard H. Axe Library Special Collections features a selection of prints from the library's Special Collections in order to highlight one of the Collection's many strengths, as well as to celebrate the printmaking, one of several art-making processes taught here at Pitt State. The exhibition includes work by several notable artists, such as Käthe Kollwitz, Otto Dix, Aubrey Beardsley, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, Fransisco Goya, and more.

The Special Collections and Archives departments contain material pertaining primarily to Kansas and Pittsburg State University, specializing in printed materials from Southeast Kansas, its culture and inhabitants, as well as the correspondence, libraries, business files and memorabilia of significant Southeast Kansans. In addition, the Special Collections has a significant amount of artwork. Lasting Impressions was curated by two Pittsburg State University undergraduate students, Brittney Walton and Morgan Vietti, both of whom have worked with the Department of Art for several years. 

A printmaking demonstration, led by Professor S. Portico Bowman, was held at Porter Hall on September 7th as part of the programming associated with the exhibition. On September 8th, Curator of Special Collections Steve Cox gave a talk about the material included in the exhibition, followed by a talk by Assistant Professor Emmalyn Gennis about the relevancy of printmaking to 21st-century art-making, and a reception. Lasting Impressions will be on display in the University Gallery until December 1st. 

Art Students Honored For Research Colloquium Presentation

Students from Jamie Oliver's Mural Painting class participated in Pittsburg State University's annual Research Colloquium this spring and were awarded first place in Category C Creative Works Oral research presentation. The students collaborated to present work in both the poster competition as well as the oral presentation competition on "Practice-Based Investigation of Large Scale Client-Based Artwork Production," in which they discussed the design process, working with clients, the execution of the works, and conclusions from the Fall Mural Class producing four 6'X6' paintings for Axe Library. 

BFA students Lauryn Hastert presented the poster, and Brianna Harris gave the oral presentation, but the research and work was also shared by Luis Calderon, Jared Jennings, Leslie Van Loenen, Lauren Downing, Shandara Richardson, Aaron Skapik, Sarah Walden, Brittney Walton, Ithaca Marlier and Gaga Zheng. The Research colloquium took place on April 7th. 

Representing the group at the Research Banquet on April 25th to accept the award were Brianna Harris, Luis Calderon, Lauryn Hastert, and Aaron Skapik. The abstract for their award-winning presentation can be read below. Congrats to all of the students who participated!

Abstract:

This practice-based research aims to develop unique knowledge in the areas of experience and representational learning through the design and execution of 4 large- scale paintings client based artworks.  While supporting the mission of the Department of Art, the arts on campus, and creative research this project will culminate by bringing artwork into the Axe Library. 

The project allows students to merge their artistic skillsets with the demands of the client utilizing a practice- based visual output as both material and creative representations of knowledge.  This investigation will engage aspects of student visual research and design, input from the client, and knowledge of artistic skillsets, both from prior experiences and those gained from the execution of the project. 

Through developing visual strategies in the design and execution phases of the work this study will explore how the resulting paintings might support the representation of knowledge in the field.  Central to this investigation will be the development of material knowledge through learning new craft based skills and how the development of this knowledge or skillsets might influence future artwork creation on the part of the collaborators.  

Please Join Us for Divergent Generation

The senior undergraduates of the Department of Art would like to invite you to Divergent Generation, the culmination of the Exhibition Design class, and for those student who will be graduating this spring, their studies here at Pitt State. The exhibition in the Harry Krug Gallery here at Porter Hall was organized, designed, and installed by the student artists: Gretchen Burns, David Bush, Hannah Coward, Jacqueline Denton, Molly McVey, Jessica Purevich, Robert Raio, and Whitney Reeves.

Please join us in Porter Hall to hear the artists lecture on their work this Thursday, April 28th, starting at 4pm. Therewill be speaker from 4-5pm and 6-7pm, with a reception in between. Divergent Generation will be on display in Porter Hall until Friday, May 6th.

Read an Interview with Professor Emeritus Marjorie Schick on Art Jewelry Forum

Art Jewelry Forum recently published an interview of Pitt State's own Marjorie Schick by artist/designer Matt Lambert. Schick creates bold and colorful wearable art, and has taught in Pitt State's Department of Art for nearly 50 years. Lambert begins the interview, titled "Who's Afraid of Marjorie Schick?," by describing Schick's work:

"Gaudy. Oversized. Humorous. 'So American.' Marjorie Schick has been making louder work than anyone else in the field for the last 55 years. She also worked with performance as early as 1977, and tested the idea of integrating wearable elements into static, sculptural objects before everyone else, while also flirting with the vernacular of fashion. Today, she stands as a model of fearlessness for a younger generation of jewelers interested in the radical scale and colors of her work."

Read the entire interview on the Art Jewelry Forum website.