The Lederer Gallery of Brodie Hall is showcasing 12 artists from around the country in the exhibit "Drawn to New York: A Drawing Invitational," the "third incarnation" of drawing exhibits from gallery director Cynthia Hawkins.
"Drawing is the base at which one's creation begins, even as a child," Hawkins said. "It requires you to be personally involved."
One featured artist, Jill Levine, is showing three gouaches, painted with a bright color scheme and a surreal element to them. The repeated imagery is representative of Mexican and Aztec forms from the Olmec period.
Carl Hazelwood deals with the concept of drawing in an unusual manner with his mixed media kite-like forms. "Unframed, the bounding edges are unrestricted - left free to respond to the visual 'pressures' of what happens within the piece," he said in his artist statement.
Allan Peterson, a former Geneseo professor, is showing four pieces from his "Ebony" series that rely heavily on mark-making to capture both abstraction and representation, turning literary objects into something entirely new.
Juxtaposing these ebony drawings are Russell Gordon's jazz-inspired mixed media pieces, loaded with layers of color, mark-making and form. As his artist statement states: "I believe that images, like words, are in themselves meaningless, and are resurrected in context."
Michael Bramwell is showing four graphite and charcoal drawings, which appear to be the same image repeated from varying distances. The reductive process by which they were created makes the organic white forms particularly luminous against the black grid.
Jill Odegaard takes the unique approach of using embroidery floss as a means of "drawing" on fabric. In her artist statement, she explains that her inspiration comes from board games, patterns in nature and "things seemingly chaotic that lead to an orderly whole."
Victor Davson created an on-site collage, combining artwork on paper with charcoal lines drawn directly on the wall. The organic lines hint at a connection between papers and fade just before or after touching.
Barbara Nesin is showing two stylized portraits entitled "Croquette" and "Vogue." The women portrayed are distinctly decorated and reflect their environments in their clothing.
Cicely Cottingham is showing two abstract line-based drawings entitled "Persian Tight Kisses." In her artist statement, she said they were created in a period of "intense rejuvenation and vibrancy" inspired by "remnants of a dream already forgotten."
Juan Llera's "The Three Messengers" portrays three iconic images of Jesus in birth, life and death. The golden color scheme is contrasted by the black background and white typeface spelling "this is my body" across the panels.
In an entirely different style is Jim Condron's oil painting, "Cherry Tree and House." The rough brush strokes take form when viewed from a distance, and in Hawkins' words, "color implies space and element."
Peter Jemison is showing three mixed media pieces that neatly combine geometric shapes and organic textures. "Stump" appears to be the aerial view of an abstracted stump with the imprint of a wooden bird in the center, successfully "marrying the figurative and the abstract," Hawkins explained.
The exhibit is open until March 12. Gallery hours are available at sota.geneseo.edu.