Faculty Art Exhibit: Roots and Growth

This year’s faculty art exhibit, Roots and Growth, opened Tuesday, Sept. 6 in the Karl Drerup Art Gallery. The exhibit features various works and mediums from Plymouth State professors, appropriately fashioned to commence the fall semester. This year’s theme focuses largely upon self-reflection and growth.

Cynthia Robinson, gallery director at KDAG, said that compared with last year, “this year’s exhibit was harder for [professors]... Evolution is not linear.”

Robinson said she is excited about how each artist interpreted the theme in a unique way. Interpretations may have been unique, but a singular idea seemed to resonate with all featured artists: change.

Michael Heffernan interpreted the theme literally. His piece consists of two self-portraits; one painted in 1984 at the age of 18, called “17 Going on 18”, paralleled with a self-portrait he painted in 2016 at the age of 50.

When asked how he felt about looking at the earlier portrait, he replied in good humor, “It hurts so much.”

Heffernan talked about the importance of growth between portraits. He said he will continue painting them every few years to continue to watch his work evolve further.

Heffernan points to his most recent portrait. “Thirty years from now, how much will I hate that one?”

Scott Bulger explores the path of growth in his piece titled “Evolution”, a large, eye catching piece made from cyanotype, gum bichromate, cork and specimen pins.

In his artist statement, Bulger wrote, “My work explores my own contingent relationship to, and understanding of the external world.”

He discusses how, without telling the story of each item shown in his work, he chose items that everyone can associate memories with and interpret in their own way.

By playing with scale, Bulger lends different importance to different things. Visible are large scale hypodermic needles resembling weapons, a giraffe, phone cords, and a large face, just to name a few. Each image is fragmented and overlapped to display the inaccuracy of memories, which are constantly remembered and reinterpreted throughout one’s life.

The materials used represent this idea. Bulger said that the paper he used is recycled copy paper, because memories are often recycled and recreated. The corkboard resembles one that someone might have in a kitchen, to tack important items to. Specimen pins reiterate the idea of trying to preserve certain memories and items, which may otherwise be forgotten or lost.

“Art is a communicative device,” Bulger said while standing before his large work. The message of each part represents an important component to the theme.

Through the arts, people gain a greater understanding of humanity and of themselves, based on their interpretation. Each individual perception is a unique story of growth rooted in their own path down memory lane. The exhibit will remain open in the Karl Drerup Art Gallery until Oct. 7.