New exhibits at Kennedy Museum of Art, focusing on women, feminism and the environment.
The Kennedy Museum of Art the Ridges has long been a source of viewing pleasure for many Ohio University students, and this weekend exhibits will be on display for parents to enjoy.
In recent months, the Kennedy Museum has introduced seven new exhibits, with plans to continue installing fresh pieces in future months. The featured artists of recent months are Kim Abeles, Annie Strader and Clarence Hudson White.
“With these recent installations, we have selected pieces which thematically connect with each other,” said curator Petra Kralickova. “We want to focus on art that incites discussion about new wave feminism, environment, popular media, activism and the civil rights movement.”
Abeles is a Los Angeles-based artist and graduate of Ohio University’s School of Art + Design. Her exhibition “frugalworld” demonstrates the effects of human waste on the environment. Her gallery exhibit is a small space filled with photographs, multimedia objects, video and interactive media, all to emphasize the overwhelming and dangerous aspects of boundless consumption.
“The exhibits we have now have attracted a lot of attention from all sorts of people,” said museum receptionist Taylor Smith. “I think it’s because they cover such a wide range of topics and mediums, that they have the ability to apply to wide range of enthusiasts.”
“The Trailer” is a traveling performance art piece created by the Bridge Club Collaborative, of which Strader, also an OU Design alumnae, is a member. The inside of a regular trailer has been furnished in the extravagant style of the Victorian era, with an execution that exhibits the conflicting ideas of permanence and impermanence.
White was an acclaimed photographer with ties to Ohio. A series of photos from the Kennedy Museum’s collection by White and his son named “Pictorial Images of Women?” is currently exhibited. White was a founding member of Photo-Secession, a radical turn-of-the-century photography movement. His work commonly features middle-class American women engaged in contemplative scenes with their family, accentuated by White’s masterful lighting techniques.
Michael Hudgins, a junior studying audio engineering, just picked up painting himself and finds the plethora of art in Athens inspiring.
“The new exhibits are good because, although some of them are photography based, they still allow the viewer to see how artistic techniques are applied and integrated into different mediums,” Hudgins said. “It’s good to get fresh inspiration, and have it so close to campus. I’m excited to see what they have planned for the future, it’s all impressively eclectic.”
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