Student art exhibit to feature four
seniors: April 28 at Fowler Center

April 20, 2005--The Bradbury Gallery on the campus of Arkansas State University in Jonesboro will open the 2005 Spring Student Art Exhibition Thursday, April 28, in Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive.

Featured are four seniors from the Art Department including Sadie Ivy of Mountain View, Ashley Morgan of Jonesboro, Tim Stacy of Marmaduke, and Lile Stephens of Jacksonville, Ala.

Ivy, who now resides in Jonesboro, will receive her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree with honors in May. In describing her work, Ivy said: ”Images are a standard staple in today’s fast paced world, and yet the perspectives in which they are viewed are as diverse as the media in which they are illustrated. While an artist can influence this perspective, it is the viewer who becomes the interpreter and final critic.”

The photographic work she will be exhibiting are titled “Where Worlds Collide,” which is a collection of digital prints designed to illustrate diversities while attempting to reconcile the visual perspective of beauty and fallibility of both rural and urban personalities.

Morgan will be exhibiting a variety of work including painting, sculpture, collage and a digital projection. In describing her work, she said: ”…whether it is painting, print, film or sculpture, I remove objects from their normal context, hoping to suggest a new and richer interpretation of the materials and so of the work itself. For example, by using ordinary garment parts such as zippers, which I manipulate into lace-like constructs, I emphasize the common practice of pain-based personal adornment. Certainly, I make reference to body manipulation but my focus with this project is how the more typical ornamentation found in our society can be interpreted as an outward sign of internal turmoil. “

Morgan plans to graduate in May of 2006 with a bachelor of fine arts degree and then pursue a graduate degree at the University of New Orleans.

Stacy plans to graduate in August 2005 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. In describing his abstract works, he said: “… drawings consist of shapes, lines, and forms to create a separate reality from the visual world. Although their execution is thoroughly planned, I wish to emphasize accidents and chance and allow for ’mistakes’ which occur during the drawing process. I feel the artist is guided by the work rather than the artist guiding the work.”

Stephens is also graduating in May with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Although he has earned an emphasis in sculpture, he is also interested in drawing, painting, video and digital art as well as music. While discussing his work, he said, ”It tends to be oriented toward materials and media. Instead of starting with an idea and trying to find the solution by exploring different materials, I usually find myself experimenting with a medium, which then unlocks an idea, or a form, or a scene. For me, exploring the possibilities and nature of a medium liberates me within the confines of its limitations.”

The exhibition continues through Friday, May 6, in the Bradbury Gallery. Gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and 2 - 5 p.m. on Sundays. The exhibition is admission-free and open to the public.

For additional information please contact the Bradbury Gallery at 870-972-3471.
 

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