ASMS GALLERY: A WINDOW TO THE WORLD

When the new Bedsole Building was being planned, art instructor Orren Kickliter glimpsed an opportunity to include an art space that would give students a window to the world. “The idea was to exhibit artists who have something in common with the kinds of things going on in our curriculum,” says Kickliter. “It’s much more than just an art gallery – it’s really an academic exhibition space.” But perhaps the most unique aspect of the gallery is the fact that it can accommodate electronic media. LCD displays and digital projectors can be located throughout the gallery, making it possible to exhibit art or academic research from anywhere in the world.

Already exhibiting its third show, Anagama Clayworks, the space has enjoyed excellent coverage in the Mobile Press-Register newspaper as well as a good amount of traffic. “I’m pleased with how this year has gone,” says Kickliter. “We tried to vary the content of the shows and I’m excited about the last show of the year, which will showcase student work.”

‘The Veil Series’
The first show, “The Veil Series,” featured the works of noted New Orleans artist Jacqueline Bishop, who also lectured students about her work and its focus on man’s impact on the environment. “For the last twenty years I’ve focused on painting intimate ecosystems combined with psychological and political elements regarding the natural world, influenced by years of traveling through Third World countries and Latin America, particularly the Brazilian Amazon,” she says. “I’m interested in the intimate and hidden connections between the human and nonhuman and the influences of nonhuman characteristics on humans, for example bird nests.”

ASMS Alum Sara Jones
The second show featured the work of ASMS alum Sara Jones (see alumni news item on page 10). She describes her style: “I do generally representational paintings and drawings that use architecture and the spaces that we create for ourselves as subject matter.”

Her current work explores the aesthetics of destruction and deterioration. “I am interested in the way cataclysmic events (both physical and emotional) can recombine familiar elements into strange and unexpected scenarios,” she says. “The scenes I create in the paintings and drawings are sometimes real and sometimes imagined, and they parallel other types of irreconcilable loss, those which occur on a more intimate scale, or which are less physical in nature.”

Jones also credits ASMS for having a profound impact on her career by providing a well-rounded education. “Having exposure to physics, chemistry, anatomy, economics, government, literature, foreign languages, etc., influenced my understanding of the world from a molecular to a cultural level,” she says. “This helped me make the educational decisions I did (attending a liberal arts college to continue to explore a variety of subjects, for example), and having a broad education in varied subjects has kept my curiosity alive and has positively influenced my art.”

Anagama Clayworks
Curated by University of South Alabama ceramics instructor Tony Wright, the gallery’s third show, Anagama Clayworks,” features ceramic pieces fired at a famed kiln at the University of Montevallo. Anagama translates to “cave kiln” in Japanese. It refers to an ancient kiln design brought from China through Korea at about the 5th Century A.D., where the earliest examples were derived by literally digging a single chamber into a hillside.

ASMS instructor Kevin Dolbeare added to the show by providing information on the chemistry involved in firing ceramic pieces. “We should encourage multi-disciplined activities to bring together student ideas, not compartmentalize individuals and thoughts,” says Dolbeare. “I think that a well rounded student will be better prepared for the future than a single facetted child. Your brain does not separate how you think and linking different fields of knowledge can bring about creativity in students.”

Last Show - student art
The final art installment of the 2007-2008 school year will feature computer graphics art by ASMS students. It will run from April 25 until August 20 – longer than usual due to the summer break. “This last show of the year should be very unique,” says Kickliter. “There are student artists here at ASMS who have been creating computer-generated graphics art, and the gallery will allow them to showcase their skills.” So what’s on tap for next year? Kickliter has more than a few ideas in mind, including emphasizing shows that can display digital content, and of course, another end-of-year student show. In the meantime, please support the ASMS Gallery by stopping in for a visit and signing the guestbook. If you’d like to become a member of the gallery, please contact Orren Kickliter at okickliter@asms.net.