Four art students from York University in Canada will cross the border and bring their work to Ohio State for Hopkins Hall Gallery’s latest exhibit, “Crossing Borders.”
Andrea Loeske, one of four OSU graduate art students who helped organize the exhibit, said the idea for “Crossing Borders” was spurred by the OSU visiting artist program.
Each year, the Department of Art invites several visiting artists to teach classes and seminars to art students. Last year, Canadian artist Michel Daigneault came to Columbus as a visiting artist to teach a graduate seminar for one quarter, and upon his return to Canada, he accepted a teaching position at York University.
“We thought it would be interesting if the four of us, all sculpture students, could do an exchange with his school — we will go to York University to present our own work,” Loeske said.
The four visiting art students — Kim Dorland, Suzanne Nacha, Roch Smith and Christine Carson — will bring a diverse collection to the main room of the gallery. Dorland and Nacha are both painting students, Smith is a sculpture student, and Carson is a video media student.
Dorland’s suite of paintings for the show, titled “Footsteps in the Snow,” uses various mixed media which presents references and to images of nature. Suzanne Nacha uses oil on primed paper to create a shadowy collection of “Mined Sites,” as well as oil on canvas to create two other pieces titled “Disturbance I” and “Disturbance II.” All three of Smith’s sculptures incorporate G.I. Joes, pieces of wood and sandbags.
One of Carson’s pieces is an interactive sculptural relief composed of 50 copper door stops in the shape of sound waves. The sculpture can actually be “played.”
Her other piece, “Numb/Hum: A Subterranean Metropolitan Opera,” is a looped video documentation of a cultural intervention, involving 35-45 singers on a subway platform humming in unison to the sound of a train arriving at the station.
Prudence Gill, the director of the Hopkins Hall gallery, said the work of the students from York University is not only diverse, but also offers students a glimpse into what sort of art Canada has to offer.
“I think it is always interesting to see what people from another country are doing,” she said. “There is really a different sensibility in the work of our northern neighbors.
The four OSU students — Loeske, James Davis, Brian Basnett and Dietrech Wegner — will be heading to York University to present their work during the last week of February.
“It’s really nice to have an exchange with these other students, but they are also just as excited to see Ohio State, Columbus and our studio as they are to be part of the exhibit, and vice versa,” Wegner said.
Wegner one of the most interesting facets of the exhibit may be that Smith used G.I. Joes in his work.
“It’s just funny because all of these visiting students are from Canada, and he used G.I. Joes, which are such an American thing.”
“Crossing Borders” will be on display until Friday at Hopkins Hall Gallery. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and 9 a.m.-7 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.
