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BROCK COMMONS |
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Upcoming Installations Previous Artists Recent Installations (Spring 2008) Barn Pinecone (2008 -- created on site) Artist’s Statement: The materials I use have been cast out by society, for example: demolished barns, broken bicycles and downed trees. I transform these objects into dynamic pieces and connect them into recognizable shapes of waves, tornados, and pillars of fire.
About the Artist: Retired from teaching sculpture, drawing, and art education at Radford University, Charlie Brouwer has shown his work in nearly 200 exhibitions worldwide. Nationally, his work has been displayed in Arkansas, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin; internationally, in Australia, Hungary, and Poland. From Whence Cometh My Help? will travel from Charlottesville, where it was featured in the Art-in-Place program for 2006-2007.
Artist’s Statement: I try to combine the organic and the man-made. Ideally, I’d like to think that nature and industry aren’t really opposites, but more like complementary terms. My goal is to create finished compositions that leave the viewer with the comfort of familiarity and the uncertainty of not being able to truly identify or categorize any of the forms. About the Artist: Mike Hansel heads the art department at St. George’s School and teaches art at Salve Regina University, both in Newport, Rhode Island. His large-scale steel sculptures combine mechanical and organic forms and have been exhibited in Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, and Virginia. Intestinal Fortitude won the “Best of Show” award at the 2005 Port Warwick Art and Sculpture Festival in Newport News.
Lucy Slivinski (Chicago, IL)
Lucy Slivinski (Chicago, IL) Lucy Slivinski worked tirelessly on site at Longwood for nearly two weeks to create her latest sculpture, Grace. The large-scale tree form constructed from steel and automobile taillights is located between Jarman and the new science building. Well known nationally for her sculptures that combine recycled elements to create naturalistic forms, Slivinski used salvaged angle iron frames welded together to form a “tree trunk” for Grace. She completed the tree form with limbs made of a woven wire mesh constructed by weaving and welding steel 3/8”-1/4” wire and salvaged automobile taillights. During the course of the day the ever-changing natural light illuminates the translucent red taillights, giving the piece color and intensity. Slivinski intends for the work to inspire a dialogue amongst the campus community about “nature verses industry.” Slivinski states, “The contrast produced by using discarded industrial materials in an organic form such as a tree conjures many questions. Does nature support industry? Does industry support nature?” Margaret Hawkins, an art critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, wrote about Slivinski, “The potential beauty of junk has become an axiom in art, and its worth is doubled when we add in the value of recycling. Lucy Slivinski is one of these artists who uses industrial material, at least some of which has been thrown away, to create objects which appear oddly natural. . . . She means to draw a parallel between the choppy progress of our society and its more graceful counterpart in nature. While an insect leaves behind a beautifully fitted shell that soon turns to dust, factories throw off heaps of rusty metal. Slivinski finds her industrial materials lovely, though, and through her eyes so can we.” Lucy Slivinski received her master of fine arts degree in fiber from Cranbrook Academy of Art (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan) and her bachelor of fine arts from Northern Illinois University (Dekalb, Illinois). Her work has been exhibited at Navy Pier, Grant Park, the Shedd Aquarium, and the Field Museum in Chicago as well as at Albion College (Michigan), Beloit College (Wisconsin), San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art, and the Illinois State Museum, among many others. She is represented by Phyllis Kind Gallery (New York, New York). return to list of current artists
Sited between Grainger and Lancaster halls, Bloom (Steel Hide) is a large-scale spherical form constructed from steel and painted with enamel and graphite paint. In this piece artist Kendall Buster focuses on the underlying structure of natural forms. Of Bloomand similar works in her oeuvre she states, “These architectural structures often occupy a territory where ‘nature and machine’ might meet. Combined, for example, are dirigible and chrysalis, belly and cage, honeycomb and subterranean vault. But central to each of the works—whether the interior is exposed like a dissected specimen for entry, or an enclosure is punctured with a tight opening—is an interplay between what is revealed and what is concealed. Viewing slots link exterior with interior space and create framed sight-lines. Narrow entryways and low passages act in direct confrontation with the body, compressing space and directing movement. At times one is hidden, at times one is exposed. There is a contradictory promise of protection and trap.” Kendall Buster is an associate professor in the Department of Sculpture and Extended Media at Virginia Commonwealth University. Art in America reported in March of 2004, “Kendall Buster has been aptly called the ‘dyna-mite’ of American sculpture. She is of diminutive stature and makes monumentally powerful, often huge sculptures. A tornado of energy, she pushes a vision that varies from minimalist, quasi-architectural purity to funky playfulness.” Kendall Buster received her master’s degree in sculpture from Yale University and has exhibited her work internationally. Her works can be found in major collections including the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C. return to list of current artists
Joyce Audy Zarins (Amesbury, MA) Joyce Audy Zarins’ Strobus takes form as a monumental red pine cone made of steel. Its delicate curve and careful balance exquisitely capture the elegant construction of a real pine cone. The name “Strobus” is descriptive, as in Pinus strobus, the scientific name for white pine. This piece is in response to artists creating monumental sculptures of man-made objects and an example of Zarins’ deep-seated belief in environmental preservation. Nicole Matthews ’06 stated upon selecting Strobus for the Brock Commons Sculpture Program, “Strobus can be seen in many different ways, and it really incorporates nature and the surrounding campus. This sculpture is different when viewed from different angles. People can be inspired from it.” Zarins received a BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Her work has been shown in more than 70 exhibitions in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Maine, Washington, D.C., Ohio, Florida, and Rhode Island. Strobus was exhibited in the 2003 Navy Pier exhibition in Chicago. Zarins is also an author and illustrator for numerous children’s books related to the natural world, mythology, and human experience. return to list of current artists
Hanna Jubran (Grimesland, NC) Of the sculpture, Jubran states, “This abstract painted steel sculpture depicts a mountain landscape. The circular form can be interpreted as the sun rising or setting. The horizontal and diagonal forms represent the mountain, horizon and clouds.” He adds that although the sculpture is painted, its colors change “depending on the time of day and season. It also changes as you move around the sculpture and its relation to the background.” Hannah Jubran received his MFA in sculpture and ceramics from the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. His work has been exhibited across the country including exhibitions in Alabama, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. Internationally, his works have been exhibited in Argentina, Canada, China, Cuba, Denmark Finland, Germany, Israel, Latvia, Japan, Mexico, and Taiwan. Jubran’s accolades include Distinguished Alumni Award (University of Milwaukee) and Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award (Southeastern Museum Conference). He currently is a professor of art at East Carolina University, where he teaches sculpture. return to list of current artists
Rob Neilson (Appleton, WI) Thirty-seven years after Ernie began singing about his rubber ducky on Sesame Street, a giant version of his “very best friend” arrived on the Longwood Campus. Wisconsin sculptor Rob Neilson takes a playful approach to art, resulting in Two-Headed Trojan Ducky, which has the shape and colors, if not the scope and size, of a regular bathtub duck. Previously featured at Chicago’s Navy Pier, the nearly seven-foot-long sculpture appears near Greenwood Library. Two-Headed Trojan Ducky was picked by a selection committee that included graduating art students. Senior and committee member West Bryant praised the sculpture for its exuberance, and commented that it would be “a good conversation piece” that would “bring attention to the art on Longwood’s campus.” Noting the sculpture’s roots in pop art, fellow student and committee member Thomas Santerre explained that he chose the work because it was so different than the other art on campus. He also predicted that students will like the piece because it “looks fun and inviting…. I mean, who doesn’t like a giant-sized yellow rubber ducky?” Rob Neilson is assistant professor of art at Lawrence University in Appleton, WI. Trained at the College for Creative Studies and with a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, he has done numerous installations and completed commissions for mass transits stations, hospitals, and the city of Los Angeles. return to list of current artists Brock Commons Outdoor Sculpture Program Established in 2004, Longwood University’s Brock Commons Outdoor Sculpture Program has prominently placed on campus a variety of sculpture by nationally known artists. The sculpture program’s purpose is to bring to campus contemporary art and artists to foster intellectual discourse and illuminate the creative process, and to provide an aesthetic environment in which the visual arts can be appreciated on a daily basis. Each year, three artists will complete a residency during which they will install their work with students and present collateral lectures for the campus. Graduating art students select the works based on the artistic merit of the project, evidence of the artist’s experience with producing large public outdoor work, ability of the works to inspire meaningful intellectual discourse, and the appropriateness of the project for the Longwood community. The Brock Commons Sculpture Program is made possible by the Longwood University Art Department, the Longwood Center for the Visual Arts, the Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and the Office of Facilities Management. |
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About the Artist
From Whence Cometh My Help?
Intestinal Fortitude
