Spring 2007 Senior Exhibition to be launched at Bradbury Gallery

April 18, 2007 -- On Thursday, April 26, at 5 p.m., Arkansas State University’s Bradbury Gallery will present the Spring 2007 Senior Exhibition and opening reception. The exhibit, held at the end of each fall and spring semester, features graduating students from the ASU Department of Art. The six featured artists are Amber Bradley, David Foust, Karla Keller, Kelli Langston, Morgan Phillips, and Stephanie Sweeney.  

Amber Bradley, a lifetime resident of Jonesboro, will receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a studio emphasis in painting and drawing and a minor in Horticulture. She has been a member of the Art Student union and the ASU Print Club. Her work has been exhibited in the ASU Juried Student exhibition as well as at Jazzman’s Hardwired Café.

Bradley says, “…when considering subject matter for my work, I most often draw inspiration from both the large and small details I observe in nature, where the color and structure found in a small flower can be as significantly beautiful to me as the world’s most renowned sculpture. My hope for my work is that people may view it with an awareness of the awe and beauty of the life depicted there.”

David Foust will graduate this May with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Studio Art. After graduation, he plans to attend Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary in Memphis, Tenn. He says, “I think of my work as a constant learning experience as I examine the limitless possibilities of the relationships between colors, as well as lines, in a particular space. The themes of my work and the subject matter, whether it is the human form or a landscape, are secondary to these explorations. I am currently working with a very limited color palette in my different mediums. I feel that my appreciation for color has almost overwhelmed me. My most drastic venture from my previous work is my black ink paintings on white paper. The series “Intercessions” is a look at ways people communicate, specifically to their god. I have tried to experience the observations I have made by viewing people in prayer and attempting to portray their posture and emotions.”

Karla Keller of Jonesboro will also receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts this May. She has traveled around the world and studied many great works of art. These experiences have kindled her need for personal expression through her own art. Her work has recently been exhibited at Delta Art Gallery in Jonesboro and in “Art de Refuses” in the Student Union at ASU.

Keller writes, “”Passage” celebrates authenticity, choices, and persistence. All the pieces began in reference to my photograph of a familiar scene in my life. l believe a work turns out well when it retains my planned structural elements but takes on a life of its own as the work progresses. The unconscious and intellectual choices made in developing the piece and knowing it is finished make it unique to me and a reflection of my experience. I hope the viewer will allow himself to view my work in his own language without too much concern for the intended significance. Every piece in this collection represents some type of passage, figurative, literal, or both.”

Kelli Langston was born in Paragould. She grew up in Arbyd, Mo., and attended ASU in 1987-90. She will earn her Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in printmaking this spring. She has been included in numerous exhibitions, including the Delta National Small Prints Exhibition held annually in the Bradbury gallery. She has taught drawing and painting, has been a professional photographer, an illustrator for children’s books, and has received a public commission to paint a mural. Langston has served as the President of the ASU Print Club and as a member of the Southern Graphics Council. Langston expects to return to ASU this fall to begin work as a student in the Department of Art’s Master’s Program.

In discussing her art, Langston said, “My work explores the complexities of life by portraying images in layers. Working in unified opposition, the layers combine to create varying aspects of meaning. These meanings conflict, yet work together not unlike a human personality.  The viewer interprets the work differently each time based on his or her current state of mind.  Individual perceptions fluctuate based on circumstance and interaction. This experience heightens the viewer’s perception of the artwork.”

Morgan Phillips of Jonesboro will graduate this May with a Bachelor of Science in Education degree in Art. Morgan is a four-time recipient of an ASU Art scholarship and also received the 2007 Lillian Barton Scholarship. She is a member of both the Kappa Delta Pi Educational Honor Society and the Phi Kappa Phi Interdisciplinary Honor Society. She is also a member of the National Art Education Association and currently serves as the President of the ASU Art Education Club. Phillips has been selected to exhibit her work in two juried student exhibitions at ASU, has had her work featured in an ASU brochure, and has received two public art commissions in the community.

Phillips states, “While I do enjoy abstract art, I prefer to work more realistically. And even though my goal is not to highlight every detail, I do want people to recognize the subject that I am creating. The most important step in starting a drawing for me is to find a subject that I find interesting, whether it be a landscape or a still life. I like to take my own photographs because it allows me to capture a unique, interesting perspective that I find energetic and visually appealing.  Then I push, exaggerate, and personalize the colors and surfaces to reflect my own response to the subject.”

Stephanie Sweeney, from Walnut Ridge, is graduating in May with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a studio emphasis in printmaking. She had been on the President’s list five times and received the Academic Distinction Scholarship and an Art Merit Scholarship. She is an active member of the ASU Anime Club.

Sweeney says, “I explore decadence and the lure of that which is forbidden. Enticed by a world of dark glamour, I indulge my fantasies only in my art and hide the underlying decay beneath gay colors. Prints are my favorite medium. I use relief printing and lithography to capture the whimsical quality of line. Reduction relief generates a variety of colors through layers; each layer slowly destroys the original carving, making it impossible to reproduce. Lithography captures the spontaneity of my lines, as in drawings. These methods are combined in my paper collage through the use of textures and colorful inks. The process of collage is wonderfully fragmented and cannot seem to be reproduced by conventional means. It adds a dimension that drawing alone cannot.”

The exhibition opens on Thursday, April 26, and continues through Saturday, May 5. Gallery hours are noon-5 p.m., Tuesday-Saturday, and 2-5 p.m. on Sunday. The exhibition is free and open to the public. For additional information, please contact the Bradbury Gallery at (870) 972-2567.
 

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