"Rewind," the Hillel Gallery Project's Fall Juried Show, opened Thursday at Brown/RISD Hillel. The show consists of art by Brown and RISD students in a variety of media and will be on display through Nov. 18.
The jurors - Jay-Gould Stuckey '90, visiting assistant professor of visual arts at Brown, and Peter Hocking, director of the Office of Public Engagement at RISD and former director of the Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown - did not select works according to an overarching theme. Instead they simply chose the pieces that they felt stood out as particularly strong, said Davia Rabinoff-Goldman RISD'08, one of the show's coordinators.
Because the jurors selected each piece for its individual merit, a common theme of cleverness, insight and knowledge of the subject matter or materials surfaces. For example, Stephen Neidich '08 demonstrates his dexterity with the relatively unexplored material of expandable foam, creating a deceivingly soft-looking peach-colored sculpture entitled "Neidich #2," which resembles a large overflowing blob of gak. The piece, which is intended to also function as a seat, is light-hearted and humorous, invoking notions of candy and childhood through its shape and color.
Annika Schmidt RISD'08 shows facility with wood in "Pear Veneer," an undulating sculpture made of seemingly delicate, thin wooden shapes.
In addition to the variety of materials presented, the pieces in the show convey a range of tone and emotion. "Alexander," a large enchanting Modigliani-esque portrait painted in soft blues and beiges by Victoria Roth '08, captures a moment of tranquility and calmness for a young man. "Elk Puke," a small oil painting on panel by RISD student Charles Immer on the other hand, uses similarly muted colors to delicately render a grotesquely graphic image of an elk, whose transparent skin allows the viewer to see his internal organs, in the process of vomiting.
The show also features works by artists whose works defy traditional categories. In "Puzzle Dress," Claire Russo '09 dresses up a recycled bald mannequin with a missing arm in a shimmering blue dress decorated with puzzle pieces. Jennifer Kindell RISD'08 sews together small squares of found cardboard into two columns and paints what appear to be food labels onto each square with gouche.
"Rewind" is a diverse exhibition of the creativity on College Hill. The show will be open at the Brown Hillel Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday noon to 6 p.m.
