By late September, Fort Lewis College athletics are well underway. It’s also time to showcase Skyhawk faculty talents in art and music.
The annual Faculty Collage Concert took place Sunday in Roshong Recital Hall. The faculty art exhibit is up now through Thursday. Both tell a story. The concert was a bit lopsided; the show is quiet, intense and exploratory.
The art faculty exhibition dramatically reveals the changes the department has undergone in the last few years. Once a studio art department focusing on the fine arts, the department has morphed into a hybrid. It continues to offer courses in traditional media – painting, printmaking, sculpture and ceramics – but the department has added computer graphics and design with an emphasis on commercial and business options. It’s a sign of the times.
The new title, Department of Art and Communication Design, says it all. And the current faculty exhibit demonstrates the shift. Gone are walls of landscape paintings and pristine still life watercolors. Now you see sophisticated conceptual pieces, mixed-media works and a punchy, abstract commentary on the Gold King Mine.
It’s a quiet show with no large, splashy works. Take a second look, and you may sense an undercurrent of wit. Many pieces are driven by ideas, by a concern for process and discovery. Only Hillary Raab’s digital bird photographs suggest anything close to traditional visual interpretation.
Susan Moss’ experiments in fabric staining and stitchery dominate the central space. Her pieces look like pages out of an embroiderer’s sketchbook. “Footnotes” consists of 36 panels. They brim with disparate techniques and fanciful patterns.
Jay Dougan’s tall, elegant steel and wood sculptures also suggest creative exploration – into the nature of vessels. Dougan’s two gorgeous slip-cast porcelains epitomize classic craftsmanship.
Amy Wendland’s always surprising works range from witty found-object sculptures to a little art history joke on paper. “Bound” may look as if Wendland picked it up on a hike, but it’s the result of a complex process involving 39 disguised joints. “Queen” suggests a miniature royal statue, but it’s a network of bones and teeth enveloping a rusty nail. Wendland’s fierce imagination is in play, sparked by a keen sense of humor.
Chad Colby’s two abstract paintings may suggest landscape inspiration. But they, too, have gone through a densely layered sieve of artistic interpretation.
Paul Booth’s provocative triptych titled “Gold King Mine” is an acerbic commentary on last summer’s river disaster. Two backlit light box collages by new faculty member Doug Cahoon stretch the medium into abstract social commentary.
Andrea Martens and Tony Holmquist beautifully articulate non-objective languages. Holmquist’s “Propulsion System” is a playful collage. Martens’ six pieces explore the most ordinary of gestures.
For its annual faculty showcase, the FLC music department has an open selection process. Whoever signs up is in, Marc Reed, chairman, said after the concert. As a result, most, but not all, full-time faculty participate, and the program is filled in by adjuncts.
Two trios, one old and one new, performed. The Red Shoe Trio, long the only FLC faculty chamber group, played one movement from Beethoven’s Piano Trio in c minor. It was a brilliant, polished performance and the only time you will hear the Trio this year. Cellist Katherine Jetter said after the concert that other commitments preclude the Red Shoes from giving its annual recital. That’s a shame, as the ensemble has been a highlight of every concert season.
A new vocal ensemble, Quadrivium, made its debut Sunday. Soprano Charissa Chiaravalloti, mezzo-soprano Kerry Ginger and tenor Erik Gustafson performed a contemporary setting of an ancient hymn,” Ave Maris Stella,” by American composer Donald Skirvin. From Chiaravalloti’s clean opening phrase, the work shimmered with tight, complex harmonies right up to a surprising conclusion – a pure unison. Quadrivium will present its first full concert at 1 p.m. this Sunday in Roshong Recital Hall.
Adjunct professors and a key retiree filled in the bulk of the program. Pianist Linda Mack-Berven did the heavy lifting for various soloists: Marc Reed on trumpet, mezzo-soprano Drea Pressley and tenor Andreas Tischhauser. Percussionist John O’Neal supported soloists on a variety of instruments – bodhran for Pressley, drum set for jazz pianist Easton Stuard and marimba for violinist M. Brent Williams.
Overall, the collage turned out to be a wonderful concert. But given the playing field, you’d think FLC had a jazz major.
Judith Reynolds is an arts journalist and member of the American Theater Critics Association.
If you go
What:
“Fort Lewis College Art and Communication Design Faculty and Staff Biennial Exhibition”
Where:
Fort Lewis College Art Gallery
When:
Through Thursday. Gallery hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily
