Art Faculty Exhibit New Works January 27 to February 24

South Euclid, Ohio-12 January 2005- The art faculty of Notre Dame College will exhibit new and recent works in a variety of media beginning January 27th, 2005. The exhibit will run through February 24 in the Performing Arts Center in the college’s Administration Building. The opening reception takes place 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Thursday, January 27. The six exhibiting faculty members will all be on hand to informally discuss their new works. A gallery talk is scheduled for February 9 at noon and is open to the college community and the general public.

This is the 5th Biennale the art department has hosted. Art faculty members Megan Dull will exhibit ceramic sculpture; Marilyn Farinacci, paintings; Rachel Morris, mixed media installation; Seong-Ae Mun, hand made books; Lisa Schonberg, monoprints; and Malinda Smyth, photography. “It is a challenge to create new works on such a regular basis when the art faculty is so immersed in teaching throughout the academic year, yet we feel as a department it is commitment to our creativity and the students to exhibit with some degree of regularity,” comments Department Chair Rachel Morris. “It enhances the art environment on campus when students witness the same creative process in their instructors that they are often challenged with in the classroom. It allows the students to see that the process is not always easy even for seasoned artists.”

The interactions between students and faculty are important exchanges that generate new ideas while faculty are working on art in the presence of their students. The process can be exciting and challenging. It is what makes a small department thrive with new ideas. Megan Dull will exhibit figural works in ceramics. She continues to express her understanding of the human figure in fluid clay creations. Marilyn Farinacci has created a new series of paintings based on her observations of nature. Her paintings often challenge our perception of space and these new works are a further exploration of the multiple layers of space presented through the fine-tuned lens of the landscape. Water, sky and the ambiguous surfaces these elements can create on a two dimensional surface are the focal point in Farinacci’s work. In addition to space and perception, she continues to explore a spectrum of color harmonies in these paintings.

Lisa Schonberg has produced a series of large-scale prints also exploring the theme of nature.

An image of clustered trees was the springboard for a complex series of prints that merge nature with a unique series of personal hieroglyphics Schonberg has developed over the years. The images combine recognizable imagery with abstract symbols in a highly charged color palette. The process is tedious and involves multiple layering of printed imagery and stenciled forms. Although each print is unique, they work as a series based on the repeated motif of tree and abstract symbols.

Rachel Morris continues to explore the potentialities of paper and light in a new installation. Malinda Smyth explores and challenges our visual perception with her series of new color photos, and Seong-Ae Mun, the newest member of the department, will present her graphic design work in the form of two handmade books.

Notre Dame College is located at 4545 College Road in South Euclid. For more information contact Rachel Morris at 216.373.5320 or rmorris@ndc.edu.