'Driven' focuses on artists' struggles, inspiration

The display focuses on inspiration and the healing power of art.

By Trevor Eischen

Published Feb. 3, 2009

A new exhibit, Driven, is on display at MU's Museum of Art and Archaeology. The display features works from artists with varying disabilities.

The exhibit contains works from 16- to 25-year-old artists living in the U.S., and 15 award-winning artists are on display.

Volkswagen of America Inc. and Very Special Arts sponsor the exhibit. The collaboration supports these new artists, who face adversities, to pursue careers in the arts.

The art in the exhibit is no different than any young contemporary artists' work. What differentiates these artists from others is their struggle to create art and to channel their creativity, Associate Museum Educator Cathy Callaway said.

Callaway coordinates activities and events that correspond to museum exhibitions. She runs film and lecture series that correlate with the topics of the featured exhibits.

A recurring theme throughout the Driven exhibit is the motivation to overcome disability, the inspiration a disability can spark and the healing power art can have on an artist.

In the exhibit's brochure, museum curator Mary Pixley said the museum hopes the art will encourage "self-reflection and an appreciation for the variety of expressive means permitted to artists today."

Isaac Caruso, 19, is an artist from Arizona who has attention deficit disorder. His piece, "Etherial ADD," is a mixture of incomplete ideas in one piece.

"My inability to express my thoughts completely with my words is what drives me to make art," Caruso said. "Through it my entire spectrum of emotion and ideas are expressed and because of this need to communicate my vision is created."

Callaway discussed some of the paintings and the importance the exhibit has on developing artists.

Merlin Strevelli, 16, is an emerging artist who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and bipolar disorder. His creation, "Comics and Stories Part 1," is an expression of his interest in comic books.

"There's someone who it's good to give recognition and positive reinforcement, but he's going to do it anyway because it means so much to him," Callaway said.

Adjacent to the galleries displaying Driven is an exhibit about Guy Cobb, a Missouri artist who designed his Braille series to be seen and touched by observers. His work combines both bright colors and detailed textures.

One piece, "Braille 'america'", is a creation of the American flag. The work includes different layers that allow the viewer to touch the painting, feel the stripes, feel the stars in the left-hand corner background and feel where everything is placed.

"If somebody said the stars and stripes to you and you couldn't see, you could make all sorts of combinations with that," Callaway said. "There are parallel lines, red and white and stars against a blue background in the left-hand corner. But the fact that somebody can go touch this flag, I just think that's fantastic."

The museum is free and open to the public. Pixley, with several staff members and volunteers, created an iPod tour of the exhibit. Pixley pursued some of the artists in the exhibit and incorporated quotations of the artists describing their work.

The exhibit premiered on Jan. 24 and runs until April 19.