Ohio Wesleyan Graduating Seniors Create ‘Visual Insights’ Exhibition
DELAWARE, OHIO – The artworks of 20 Ohio Wesleyan University graduating seniors will be on display from April 14 through May 13 at OWU’s Richard M. Ross Art Museum, 60 S. Sandusky St. The exhibition will open with an artist reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. April 14. Admission to the museum is always free.
The 2012 senior show is titled “Visual Insights,” a name chosen by the seniors to represent their various Ohio Wesleyan journeys.
“Looking beyond what is visible and searching for a deeper meaning is a crucial part of the process of creating art,” the seniors state in their exhibition guide. “This act of perceiving further is also critical in viewing artwork. The works compiled in this show are meant to not only be visually pleasing, but also to engage all your senses and elicit a somatic experience. Each piece is intended to challenge you as the viewer to experience them as they are presented and further into the realm of aestheticism.”
All artworks on display were selected by a jury of Ohio Wesleyan fine arts faculty. After the pieces were chosen, the exhibit was designed by Justin Kronewetter, director of the Ross Art Museum; Tammy Wallace, first assistant at the museum; and students in Kronewetter’s gallery management class. These students also helped to install the exhibit.
Ohio Wesleyan graduating seniors participating in the “Visual Insights” student exhibition are:
Nyssa Berman of Evanston, Ill. Berman is studying fine arts and sociology. “Art forces you to think differently, to look at the same everyday object in a new way,” she says. “I have always had curiosity in me to find new ideas and to look at things in new way. Art gives me the opportunity to use my curiosity and creativity. I love exploring all mediums and pushing my limits.”
Kelsey Countryman of Fenton, Mo. Countryman’s fine arts concentration is painting, and she is pursuing a minor in education. “I have always been fascinated by the way people’s faces age,” she says of her latest series of paintings. “I believe every wrinkle, every age spot, is the result of an event. If we could read someone’s face, it would speak of all the struggles, the epiphanies, and the moments that make a person who they are.”
Kelly Crunkilton of Mansfield, Ohio. Crunkilton is pursuing majors in both art history and women’s and gender studies, as well as a minor in English. “When I tell people that I am an art history major and that I thoroughly enjoy taking studio classes, they continually seem to be shocked,” she says. “Art history and studio art are not mutually exclusive; instead, I believe that my studies in art history have given me the ability to talk more openly and freely about the art that I create, as well as inspiring me to step outside of my comfort zone and to experiment with different techniques and processes.”
Christian Fernandes of Richmond, Calif. Fernandes is pursuing majors in fine arts and psychology, as well as a minor in business management. “As a young boy, I could never keep away from the crafts section of a store,” he recalls. “I always had this desire to transform objects from one state to another based on my imagination. It all began at the age of 5 with the hobby of crafting my own ‘Star Wars’ toys out of cardboard.”
Stephanie Grohowalski of Washington, Pa. Grohowalski’s fine arts concentrations are photography and ceramics. “My work completely embraces the medium which I’m working in, whether it be ceramics or photography,” she says. “My aim is to take advantage of what each has to offer, but to not turn it into something that it is not.”
Aaron Hamby of Plain City, Ohio. Hamby’s fine arts concentration is sculpture. “I do not like to restrict my style or my views to a particular category because I am constantly finding myself falling into new ways of thinking, which in turn takes my work in new directions,” he says. “My passion for sculpture is driven by the desire to defy gravity and create forms that are appealing to the eye. … [M]y goal for you as the viewer is to interpret conclusions for yourself.”
Andi Hartawan of Jakarta, Indonesia. Hartawan is studying fine arts and business management with an emphasis on accounting. “I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of the sublime from the Romantic Movement, both in beauty or the feeling of awe,” he says. “The sublime is what drives my vision and creativity for my work.”
Marissa Hassee of Norwalk, Ohio. Hassee’s fine arts concentration is drawing, and she is earning a minor in education. “Art is temporary freedom,” she says. “It guides me in understanding my own desires and feelings, and challenges my own comforts and ideas about the world. I am inspired by the process of creating, and find that it leads my mind to continuously explore making richer and more meaningful works of art.”
Mary Heidamos of Cleveland, Ohio. Heidamos’s fine arts concentration is photography, and she is earning a minor in psychology. “To me doing art is a way to express the intimate feelings and emotions we all experience and tend to repress so we do not have to deal with them,” she says. “Art can be therapeutic in that sense, allowing us to release all these intense emotions that cannot be expressed in words. … In my work I explore this idea of escaping reality and focus on capturing the splendor of the subject matter.”
Jaclyn Kolovich of Delaware, Ohio. Kolovich’s fine arts concentrations are painting and drawing, and she is pursuing a minor in Spanish. “I would say my work is mostly based on process that involves a lot of movement with some attention to detail and little to content,” she says. “I am really inspired by dynamic forms in 3D and achieving three dimensionality in my 2D works.”
Emma Kropp of Aurora, Ohio. Kropp’s fine arts concentrations are in metals, printmaking, and drawing. “When I start my creative process, I’m always seeking to learn something, whether that is a new technique or something new within myself,” she says. “I let myself follow inspiration, instead of confining myself to any sort of guidelines. It’s when I’ve created several works that I look back, and see what my work expresses, and how it groups itself into any themes or commonalities.”
Wilson Land of Nashville, Tenn. Land is pursuing a fine arts degree. “I like to think I am a student of all mediums, and I’m always looking to learn a new technique or work with different materials,” he says. “I tend to work with what catches my eye. Color motivates me in the way that fans motivate athletes. I enjoy working quickly and breaking concentration as little as possible.”
Kathleen Lewis of Madison, N.J. Lewis is studying fine arts and sociology. “My work is mostly figurative and realistic,” she says. “I have found my inspiration among those close around me, using friends and family members as models.”
Madeline Mauk of New Canaan, Conn. Mauk’s fine arts concentration is figure drawing. “All of my artwork has been influenced by my life,” she says. “Everything I make is very personal to my own experiences, from dealing with my cystic fibrosis and all the medications and treatments that come with it, and my love of the human figure, and, even more, the skeleton.”
Marlowe Mavian of Columbus, Ohio. Mavian is studying fine arts and English. “Impulsiveness, impatience, and lack of organization … are the foundations to every piece of my artwork,” she says. “It is the mystery and excitement of what my mind will come up with next that keeps me so interested and committed to the practice of creating art.”
Taurey Overturf of Columbus, Ohio. Overturf’s fine arts concentrations are painting and drawing, and she is pursuing a minor in history. “As an artist emerging into the grown-up world, I feel compelled to share my feelings and how I perceive what I see,” she says. “It is interesting to note that I thought as a freshman I wanted to be a realist painter; instead I have begun to distort what I see. In some ways, my paintings and drawings remind me of a kaleidoscope image.”
Maryam Shitu of Kaduna, Nigeria. Shitu is pursuing a major in economics management and a minor in fine arts. “My pieces are from the photography and ceramics discipline,” she says. “I like to take photographs of everyday things that most people tend to overlook because I think the value in life is in the subtle things. [In ceramics] I make things that are interpretations of what I see in nature and forms that my mind wishes to express.”
Linda Stover of Ostrander, Ohio. Stover’s fine arts concentrations are drawing and ceramics. “My goal as an artist is to obtain something that cannot be duplicated on paper,” she says. “It is something more passionate. It is about the experience I am able to achieve and, ultimately, challenging me to be a better artist and individual.”
Phyllis Walla-Catania of Delaware, Ohio. Walla-Catania’s fine arts concentration is metals. “In some ways, art can be a reflection of the artist, providing a narrative glimpse into the heart, soul, and mind of an individual,” she says. “Art can break down the lines of gender, race, and even age, building connections between one another through friendship and creativity. And that I will carry with me … always.”
Caitlin Zeller of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. Zeller’s fine arts concentrations are in metals and ceramics, and she is earning a minor in cultural geography. “I love the long process as the metal or clay is transformed. Because it takes so many steps and so much time, the reward at the end is even better,” she says. “Making objects that will be used is exciting for me because they are something that will be held and touched. … When one can hold and explore something with their hands, only then can one truly know and understand it.”
The Ross Art Museum is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. during the academic year. The museum is closed Mondays and Saturdays, but will be open from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. April 14 for the artist reception and from noon to 4 p.m. May 12 as part of Ohio Wesleyan’s commencement weekend. For more information, call (740) 368-3606 or visit http://rossartmuseum.blogspot.com.
Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier small, private universities, with more than 90 undergraduate majors, sequences, and courses of study, and 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Located in Delaware, Ohio, just minutes north of Ohio’s capital and largest city, Columbus, the university combines a globally focused curriculum with off-campus learning and leadership opportunities that translate classroom theory into real-world practice. OWU’s close-knit community of 1,850 students represents 47 states and 57 countries. Ohio Wesleyan was named to the 2012 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with distinction, is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” and is included on the “best colleges” lists of U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Learn more at www.owu.edu.