2009 Faculty Biennial opens season at Bradbury Gallery on Aug. 27

August 19, 2009 -- On Thursday, August 27, Arkansas State University’s Bradbury Gallery, located in Fowler Center 201 Olympic Drive, Jonesboro, will host the first exhibition of the 2009-10 season.  The 2009 Faculty Biennial will open to the public at 5 p.m. This exhibition is free and open to the public.

This bi-annual exhibition features artwork by the faculty of the ASU Department of Art, including William Allen, Roger Carlisle, Tom Chaffee, Shelley Gipson, Gayle Pendergrass, Phyllis Rambin, Daniel J. Reeves, William Rowe, John Salvest, Curtis Steele, and Kimberly B. Vickrey. Two new faculty members, John Norris and Jessa
Wilcoxen, will also be featured.

John Norris, who joined the ASU faculty as an assistant professor of art in the fall of 2008, is a painter and musician. Originally from Kentucky, he earned a double bachelor of arts degree in studio art and English from Centre College. He then received a master of fine arts degree in painting and drawing from Louisiana State University. His work has been shown nationally, including exhibitions at First Street Gallery in New York; ARC Gallery in Chicago; Baton Rouge Gallery: Center for Contemporary Art in Baton Rouge; David Lusk Gallery in Memphis, and Mindpuddles in Houston.  Previously, Norris taught at Louisiana State University and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.

In the 2009 Faculty Biennial, Norris will be exhibiting some of his recent works. These paintings are simple yet dramatic without being trite, and at times seem like a stage set or a still from a film. This is obviously his intention; as he states, “I see my paintings as plays that are cast with the ephemera of my daily life. Some are comedies, some are tragedies.”

In addition to his visual art accomplishments, Norris also makes music for “Harlan,” an ongoing musical project that began in 2005. “Harlan” has recorded two albums, “The Still Beat and Spiderette.” Learn more about John Norris at johnharlannorris.com and thestillbeat.com.

Jessa Wilcoxen will begin teaching at ASU this fall. She is a designer whose work and research incorporates interaction and user-centered design as well as print media. She has held design positions at O.T.V.S. and Lewis Clark Advertising Design in Memphis. Originally from central Illinois, Wilcoxen graduated with a bachelor of arts degree from Bradley University in 2006. Last spring she completed her master of fine arts degree in graphic design at the University of Memphis.

Wilcoxen’s work in this exhibition humorously and sensitively reinterprets the well-known fairy tales “Hansel and Gretel” and “Little Red Riding Hood.” She intentionally minimizes some of the more gruesome or disturbing elements of these tales, ultimately leaving the ending of the stories up to the viewer’s imagination. More information about Wilcoxen can be found on her website, jessaportfolio.com.

Bradbury Gallery hours are 12 noon-5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and 2-5 p.m. on Sunday. For additional information, contact Les Christensen (lchristensen@astate.edu), director of the Bradbury Gallery, at (870) 972-2567.  
 

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Image:
John Norris's "Forest, 2008,"oil on linen, 36 X 36 inches, will be on display on Thursday, August 27, at Arkansas State University's Bradbury Gallery.