Center for the Arts' winter exhibitions explore representations of Earth
The Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech’s winter exhibitions will feature two one-person exhibitions by artists who present their views of the world’s landscape, as well as an exhibition showcasing work from area high school students that explores human connections through various media.
The exhibitions will debut with an opening reception on Friday, Dec. 5, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Moss Arts Center Grand Lobby, 190 Alumni Mall. The event is free and open to the public. The exhibitions run from Dec. 5 through Feb. 1.
The artists featured include:
Sam Krisch
- “Elements”
- Ruth C. Horton Gallery
- The sheer power and splendor of nature in far-away places is the subject of Krisch’s photography. Over the last five years, Krisch has travelled to remote locations ranging from the Mohave Desert to Antarctica to capture stunning images of ice formations, turbulent waters, and desert landscapes. Krisch lives and works in Roanoke, Virginia.
- This exhibition presents a selection of the artist’s digital photographs created between 2013 and 2014. This work highlights his approach to composition that verges on the abstract, taking the work beyond documentation into a world of pristine, yet daunting, beauty. These sometimes idyllic landscapes are tinged with the perception that these worlds are slipping away due to human forces
- Krisch will discuss his work during an informal artist gallery talk on Friday, Dec. 5 at 6:45 p.m. in the Ruth C. Horton Gallery.
Betsy Bannan
- “Fly Over” (2013) and “The Big Country” (2014)
- Francis T. Eck Exhibition Corridor
- This exhibition features excerpts from Bannan's multi-panel painting installation, “Fly Over” (2013) and a new work, “The Big Country” (2014). Based on aerial views of the earth from planes or satellites, these works are painted on multiple panels and configured into segments up to 30 feet long. They represent the stunning visual experience of seeing the earth from above and the artist's fascination with the changes humans have imposed on the earth. Bannan lives in Roanoke, Virginia and is an instructor of painting and drawing in the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech.
- Bannan will discuss her work during an informal artist gallery talk on Friday, Dec. 5, at 6:15 p.m. in the Francis T. Eck Exhibition Corridor.
Young Artists from Community High School
- Miles C. Horton Jr. Gallery and Sherwood Payne Quillen '71 Gallery
- Young Artists is a celebration of the vision and imaginative expression of young artists and their teachers in the region. In this year’s showcase, art students from Community High School in Roanoke, Virginia, will be featured.
- This exhibition presents a collection of two- and three-dimensional works that explore human connections through various media, including puppetry, painting, film, sculpture, and printmaking. Each piece is evidence of a sequence of problem solving—from choices of medium and color, to composition and interpretation—and is a product of a continuing creative and intellectual development.
- Students and faculty from Community High School will perform various elements of their work during the opening reception on Friday, Dec. 5 from 5-7 p.m. A group of students from the school will bring the spirit of their work to the Town of Blacksburg’s holiday parade, which begins at 7 p.m. in downtown Blacksburg.
The center’s galleries regular hours are Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.to 6 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m.to 4 p.m. The galleries are free and open to the public. The center’s gallery exhibitions are curated by Margo Crutchfield, the Center for the Arts’ curator at large.
Parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street. Virginia Tech faculty and staff possessing a valid Virginia Tech parking permit can enter and exit the garage free of charge. Limited street parking is also available. Parking on Alumni Mall is free on weekdays after 5 p.m. and on weekends.
