Professors showcase art at Bingham Gallery exhibition

The exhibition boasted various works from the art school faculty.

By Susan Daniels

Published Sept. 3, 2010, last updated 6:31 p.m., Nov. 13, 2010

Heavy rains caused a leak in the ceiling that closed the Bingham Gallery until minutes before the reception for the Faculty Exhibition on Thursday. Despite the mishap, free food, deep conversation and art were never in short supply. Although the chocolate fountain did not make an appearance, many of the artists who contributed did.

The exhibition was a showcase of the work from the art school faculty, creating a unique collection spanning a variety of medias. It was not limited to simply an assortment of paintings, prints and photographs—a 39-minute media presentation, an arrangement of greeting cards, a quilt and several other pieces were on display.

Dan Farnum, who teaches photography, is the photo and gallery director. It is his job to arrange the exhibitions.

“I think the reception went well,” Farnum said. “There was a good turn out of artists as well as students and people from off-campus.”

Farnum had a picture displayed at the viewing showing two young boys. One was leaning authoritatively against a tree grimacing, the other looking uncomfortable and annoyed at having his picture taken.

“I took this about two to three weeks ago,” Farnum said. “One of the boys, who must have been about 14, told me his girlfriend was pregnant and that he was going to drop out of school if it was his.”

Among the works featured were two paintings by Brett Grill, who has taught at MU for five years. Even from the back wall, his paintings attract the eye, seeming to be surrounded by an aura of pink light. This is because the artist actually painted the back of the frames to create this effect.

“The paintings are based on a compilation of the sublime, drawing inspiration from the similarities of NASA photos and 19th century landscape paintings…a lost idea of the future,” Grill said.

Visiting Professor Anne Thompson also had an eye-catching display, an enormous 8-by-9 piece made up of 4,096 symbols standing for a corresponding number. The picture took her two years to complete. After being shown in a gallery in New York, it spent four years in a box.

“It’s nice to see it hanging up again,” Thompson said. “They have so much space here, I thought I would bring it back out.”

The faculty exhibition is an opportunity for students to see their professors’ work. William Toney, a junior majoring in photography, viewed the show as a success.

“(The reception) was a good exhibition of the professors’ talent,” Toney said. “It really showed what those who were instructing us brought to the table.”