Located in Runyan Center; free and open to the public.
Gallery Hours: Daily — 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Bathers: Paintings by Ben Lowery
September 4 – September 15
These paintings of bathers are simple slapstick narratives. A swimmer is momentarily blinded while drying his face and unwittingly stumbles over sunbathers. A man with an inner tube tries to insert himself into a crowded group of strangers in a swimming pool. These humorous subjects are a foil for the formal explorations of the work. As each piece develops, they become pictorial inventions that resist, complicate or disrupt the narratives. In particular, I am looking for a formal poise careening toward imminent disaster. This is amplified by various motifs in the paintings that play graphic clarity against spatial ambiguity, formal precision against awkward form. A recurring theme is the tension between the seen and the unseen, both from the point of view of the viewer and the subject. All of these devices are employed to activate the paintings in a surprising way that is interdependent with their original narrative impetus.
Born in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Lowery has an MFA from Indiana University and a BA from the University of Dallas. He has also studied at the Mount Gretna School of Art and the Jerusalem Studio School. He has been exhibited nationally in New York City, Pennsylvania, Indianapolis and Dallas. He received a ‘Best in Show’ award at a juried exhibition at Tellus360 gallery in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. His paintings have been published in the literary journal ‘Dappled Things’, as well as being featured paintings by the group Perceptual Painters. Lowery lives and works in Richmond, Indiana. He is a visiting instructor at Earlham College.
Images from top:
- Room for one more (oil on canvas) by Benjamin Lowery, 2017.
- Altogether now (oil on canvas) by Benjamin Lowery, 2017.
Jessica Calderwood
September 18 – October 20
Jessica Calderwood is an image-maker and sculptor that works in esoteric craft media. She uses a combination of traditional and industrial metalworking processes as a means to make statements about contemporary life. She received her BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art and her MFA from Arizona State University, with an emphasis Metalworking. Her work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and internationally in curated and juried exhibitions. She has participated in artist residencies with the John Michael Kohler Arts/Industry Program, Ferro Corporation, and the Mesa Arts Center. Her work has also been published in Metalsmith Magazine, American Craft, NICHE, Ornament, the Lark 500 series, and the Art of Enameling. She is currently an Associate Professor of Art at Ball State University.
Images from top:
- Protrusion (polymer clay, earthenware, steel, milkpaint) by Jessica Calderwood, 2016.
- Seed (vitreous china, porcelain, glaze, headpins, milkpaint) by Jessica Calderwood, 2016.