Our
daily lives are enriched by a multitude of diversity. Each day can embody
the mystery of the seemingly polar. From repetition to singularity, stress
to tranquility, from chaos to unity; we find completeness in the complexities
that make up our day to day activity. By editing, organizing and reorganizing
we can find a harmonious calm within our life.
In these works I explore the relationship of daily life and its diverse intricacies.
By layering shape, color, and texture I symbolically denote the filtration
of complexities within our personal experiences. These serve as a metaphor
for the self portrait.
Peggy Nino, Assistant Professor of Art, teaches painting. She has been at Angelo State University for 10 years.
The
photographs shown in this exhibition were taken at various times in national
parks and in other natural preserves in the western United States. While taking
them, I was particularly drawn to the architectonic shapes of certain natural
formations, seen in some of the works, as well as to forms of spontaneous,
energized, power, depicted in others. The approach taken is that of "straight-photography,"
that is photography, which is not significantly altered in the processing
procedure. Yet, despite the resultant, seeming tangibility of the scenes,
it is the formal abstraction of the works that gives them their expressive
immediacy and artistic reality. Complementary use of viewpoint, framing, and
depth-of-field reinforce the underlying compositional relationships. Therefore,
it is hoped that, beyond the relative recognizability of the subject matter,
one will also view these works as being formal variations on specific visual
themes. In doing so, one may sense the familiar being "held in place,"
as it were, by the more enduring formal relationships that exit in each work.
Professor of Art, Dr. Robert Prestiano is the art historian of the department and has been teaching at Angelo State University for over 30 years
Art
today, more than ever, seems to scream loud as it clamors for silence. 'Pataphysics,
which goes from 0 to infinity in all directions accounts for all contradictions.
Repudiation becomes the source of validity. Duchamp renounces painting. Rimbaud
knew that writing more poetry would kill him. The modernist habit of displeasing
the audience has transferred from modern to post-modernist theory.
The spirituality of the void extends beyond the boundaries of media and culture. Adorno's claim that: "all enjoyable music is only propaganda that promotes a society of compliant submissive consumers" can also be applied to visual art. My having nothing to say is the subject of my expression.
John Vinklarek, Associate Professor of Art, specializes in sculpture and printmaking. He has been teaching at Angelo State University for 27 years.
Hearts.
What seems to be my endless fascination with a symbol, the heart, the organ
that keeps us alive. The image of love and affection that seems to make us
human. I keep wondering what keeps me working on them. I guess it's a searching
for something. I need to have with me this image of hope, warmth and most
of all, LOVE. I also have revisited an idea, the collection of an object.
Specifically, the Hispanic culinary collection of the ristra, the string.
A chile ristra can be found in a majority of Hispanic kitchens and is very
meaningful to the meal. The family meals are the important part of Hispanic
life. My Ristra are symbols of that nutrition, but they are nutrition for
the soul --- collection points or depositors of the love that one may need
in his or her life. The hearts may have the appearance of being dried and
course, but like the chile, a bit of water rejuvenates and brings the flavor
and spice to life. I hope that these hearts bring spice and a lust for life,
enabling the viewer to see me through my constant search into the meaning
of the heart.
Esteban Apodaca, Assistant Professor of Art, specializes in ceramics and has been with ASU for 14 years.
The
process of my art making has always been to start from personal matters and
then link them with the world in general. In the process, I mediated my anxiety,
uncertainty, and nostalgia, which in deed are the natures of life, and responded
to them. In the presence of making art, I came to realize that I have no choice
but to express my life. By representing these sufferings of mine in the form
of art, I survived. To me, the very act of observing, reflecting, accepting
or rejecting, suggests an opportunity for restoring our common identity-humanity.
Dr. Wen-Shu Lai is Assistant Professor of Art and specializes in teaching courses in computer design. She has been with ASU since 2001.
There
is nothing more difficult or challenging to me than painting a picture. If
it were not for my inner necessity and the wellspring of thought and emotion
that I can only best express visually, I would cheerfully do something else.
But art chose me. I have no recourse but to pursue an endeavor that continually
evades me. As I unravel the mystery of the creative process, as I delve deeper
and deeper into my inner life, the more I understand the meaning of the infinite.
This work, as all my work, is the result of all that has preceded it. My vision
is only that which I feel - a nebulous hum that would have no real meaning
if I did not attempt to make it visual. All my paintings are like daily reports
- one person's attempt to define the human condition
John Mattson is Lecturer in Art and teaches Introduction to Art and Primary Art. He has been teaching at Angelo State University for 3 years.
San Angelo Museum
of Fine Arts
One Love Street
San Angelo, Texas 76903
Fax: (325) 658 - 6800
Phone: (325) 653 -
3333
e-mail:
museum@samfa.org