SFA's Griffith Gallery to host University of Dallas faculty art show
September 13, 2012
This piece by Kim Cadmus Owens, associate professor of art in painting at the University of Dallas, is among the featured work in a University of Dallas faculty exhibition opening Tuesday, Sept. 18, in Griffith Gallery in the Griffith Fine Arts Building on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University. The show runs through Nov. 9 and is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS - In celebration of almost four decades of creative exchanges between Stephen F. Austin State University and the University of Dallas, the work of UD faculty artists will be displayed for several weeks in the Griffith Gallery beginning Tuesday, Sept. 18.
The exhibit is presented as part of the 2012-2013 SFA College of Fine Arts and School of Art's Gallery Series.
This marks the 36th year that SFA and UD have executed artistic exchanges between the two universities, according to Dan Hammett, chairman of the University of Dallas art department.
"A graduate school friendship in upstate New York that was transplanted to the Republic of Texas has led to many formats of exchange," Hammett wrote in the show statement that will accompany the exhibit. "Collegial exchange has been a wonderful gift to the students and faculty of SFA and UDallas."
Both institutions have been "blessed" with years of graduate and faculty workshop exchanges, kiln building workshops and graduate and faculty exchange exhibitions, the statement explains.
"The current faculty of the University of Dallas feels privileged to present their latest creative efforts to you, the gallery patrons, students and faculty of Stephen F. Austin. We hope you will find visual delight in the work presented, and we look forward to the next professional exchange," the statement reads.
The exhibit features the work of four UD art professors.
Juergen Strunck, professor of art, has taught at UD since 1968 with an emphasis on printmaking. He has had more than 60 solo exhibitions across America and internationally and has presented workshops and lectures worldwide. His prints are in the collections of more than 100 public institutions.
Phillip Shore is associate professor at UD and teaches sculpture. His artwork is influenced by his travels to and the study of archeological artifacts from Ancient Greece and the relationship between humans and the environment. His work is in many public and private collections.
Kim Owens, associate professor of art in painting, has turned her innate interest in structure and space into works that negotiate place and the observer's experience it. Her studio practice includes paintings, drawings, prints and installations. Owens' work has been exhibited nationally and reviewed in various publications.
Dr. Catherine Caesar, assistant professor of art history, has been teaching at UD since 2003, and her work focuses on contemporary American art. Most recently, she has been investigating the notion of "aerial art" and Robert Smithson's 1955 project for the Dallas-Fort Worth Regional Airport.
Hammett has taught at UD since 1974, where he is currently professor and chairman of the art department. His ceramic work has been included in exhibitions across the United States and is included in private, university and corporate collections. His private studio, "Handcrafter Ceramics," has produced architectural ceramic sculpture as well as functional ceramics for more than 35 years.
The show runs through Nov. 9 and is free and open to the public. The Griffith Gallery is located on the SFA campus in the Griffith Fine Arts Building and is open from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
At the closing reception, Caesar will conduct a presentation titled "The Culture of Air Travel: Art at DFW Airport, Then and Now." The reception will be from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 9, in Griffith Gallery.
For additional information, call (936) 468-1131 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.