Noted artist and Ohio State alumna Linda Langhorst is coming to the Faculty Club to present her drawings and paintings, as part of a continuous series of two month exhibits put on by the club.
The Faculty Club has been hosting artists and their work, for over 30 years. In 1992 the gallery became OSU exclusive, meaning all artists are required to have some tie to the school, be it as students, faculty, staff or alumni.
According to Faculty Club director Jeffery White, the exhibits serve dual purposes.
“It is a great way to get some artists known, and also get some great art up on the walls,” he said.
Beginning today, Langhorst’s feature work, called “Drawing and Painting a Meandering Path,” will occupy those walls. This is an exhibit that Langhorst takes great pride in because of her personal ties to OSU. She graduated in 1981 with a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture and later returned for her master’s degree.
“I went into agriculture here because I was interested in biology and chemistry. The visual stuff in the biological was what I found most interesting,” she said.
Later, she was able to translate that interest into artwork.
Langhorst is best known to the OSU community for her watercolors of football crowds, and for her collection housed at the Fisher College of Business. Her works have traditionally included depictions of human interactions and groups done realistically in watercolor or charcoal.
Recently, she has expanded her craft and began experimenting more.
“Somewhere along the line things have been shifting. The work has gotten a little looser – almost surrealistic – a couple of different realities banging into each other. I still work in realism, and still love the human form, but things have changed,” she said.
Marion Fisher, head of the art committee at the Faculty Club, has been following Langhorst for many years, and is excited to have her work here.
Fisher generally looks for art that transcends medium, bringing in artists that use many different types of materials. Langhorst fit her criterion because her work includes graphite pencil, watercolor and oil paint.
“We look for a wide range of styles and mediums when we choose the art,” Fisher said.
While Langhorst was formally trained at the Columbus College of Art and Design, her skill and creativity come from a lifetime of drawing and painting.
Only recently focusing full time on her work, Langhorst has noticed certain changes in her style.
“It is an inevitable thing that when you paint and draw long enough you begin to drift,” she said.
Langhorst worries that her new work may be too far removed from her audience. For this reason she is pleased to get a showing, so that she can absorb feedback from the attendees.
“As you get older, and you begin doing work that is your own, it is nice to have people give feedback to make sure that you are speaking to the other people. It is nice to be in touch,” she said.
The exhibit will include between 20 and 24 pieces of varying size and subject. It will run from today through June 27. All exhibits at the Faculty Club are open to the public.
