Guilford’s art department senior thesis exhibition, “Pleiades: a Show of Seven,” opened on April 20 with a packed reception. The upper floor of Founders was filled with parents, students and potential buyers. The theme behind the art exhibit is the Pleiades constellation, known for its seven brightest stars called the “Seven Sisters.” This has a meaningful symmetry to the seven women who have their art on display: Jessica Anderson (B.A. Painting), Maggie Bamberg (B.A. Photography), Vada Bostian (B.F.A. Printmaking), Kris Hohn (B.A. Sculpture), Nicole Minkin (B.F.A Painting) and Heidi MacLean-Marafa (B.F.A. Photography).
Kathleen Kennedy, student in the art department, said, “I was very impressed by the level of work that was on display. Though the sculpture was my favorite, all were sound collections. Often in group exhibitions there are a few that are awful, but the quality resounds across the board. I like them all.”
David Newton, assistant professor of art, said this about the genesis of the quality of work: “A lot of the students changed from what they started doing in the fall to what they are doing now. There were decisions made about the statements that the artists wanted to convey, down to the last minute, of what was going to be in the show. The whole process showed growth and maturity on the part of the students.”
Roy Nydorf, art professor and thesis advisor for the seven graduates, said, “Some of the major surprises were the ambitiousness of some of proposals. They were so large and, having never worked with some of the students personally, I didn’t know that they could pull it off. Though all were ambitious in their own way, all the artists did very well.”
The quality is high, but the range in ideas is more expansive. Some of the works have an ethereal beauty with elusive meanings like Donnelly’s “You’re Talking Yourself in Circles” and Minkin’s “Amphibious.”
“Minkin’s choice of colors is really smart,” said Shawn Miller, junior psychology major and former art student. “She lets her large range of color create the illusion of depth. She allows the color to do the work of shading and provides a new dimension to her work,”
Minkin said this about her art, “All of the creatures depicted in this series, including the woman, are captured before they reach their full potential. A butterfly still wrapped in its chrysalis is paired with a woman wrapped in her blanket. They are on the verge of transformation.”
A similar theme is found in Hohn’s sculpture series about the transformation and flow of life likened to water.
“The intentions of my sculptures were to have a feeling of flow. The series is supposed to talk to the cycles of life as related to the element of water,” said Hohn.
Though Hohn’s work is about flow, Jessica Anderson’s is mainly about the idea of suspension. The majority of Anderson’s pieces are either literarily suspended or display the feeling of a suspended state.
Her piece called “Incubation” is three small wax figures submerged in glass jars of water. As an artist, Anderson says that she uses metaphor and her special blend of sculpture and painting to “seek ways of communicating internal experiences in an external format by transforming emotions into physical, tangible experiences through use of the figure and gesture.”
All of the senior work will be on display through May 5 in Founders Hall. For further information the exhibit or the artists, call (336) 316-2301.