Studio Art exhibition features emerging student artists at Fairfield University | Press Releases

Image: Quick Center Fairfield University's Studio Art Junior/Senior Seminar exhibition, SoloCollective , opens on Thursday, April 12 at the Regina A. Quick Center's Thomas J. Walsh Art Gallery with a reception from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Admission is free and the public is welcome.

The exhibition will run through Saturday, May 19 and displays the work of the nine students - six seniors and three juniors - who have been planning and creating series of works specifically for the show.

Suzanne Chamlin, associate professor of studio art in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, is teaching the Junior/Senior Seminar class this spring semester. For this course, students have started the process of selecting and working with subject matter unique to their vision. The title of the exhibition, SoloCollective , refers to the individual artist's relationship within a group context. Over the course of the semester, the students have been working in the collaborative classroom environment on a weekly basis that allows for group critiques while also taking time to independently develop their art.

Their final works are varied. Bailey Cardinal, a double major in studio art and art history from Cranford, N.J., has developed a series of watercolors of subjects ranging from wildlife to landscape. Anquanette Chisolm, of Bridgeport, Conn., has created a series of large-scale paintings based on the figure and fashion. Kelsey Holland, of Barrington, R.I., is examining the intersections of photography and painting as she translates her geometric abstract cityscapes into oil on wood panels. Through black and white photography, Paige Jackson, of Duxbury, Mass., focuses on portrait photography, working with the single, double and complexities of group portraiture. Emily Lange, of Wellesley, Mass., a double major in psychology and studio art, has put together a series of canvases that are over 100 inches tall, and inspired by the inner dialogue between the imagination and abstraction. Juliana Lavoie, of Glastonbury, Conn., uses acrylic on canvas in challenging artistic conditions, such as working in the dark, in order to further inspire her ability for invention. Carolyn Molloy, of Wycoff, N.J., is inspired by the geometric abstractions of Peter Halley, and looks to Josef Albers for his work with color as she creates her own compositions including multiple hexagons, rectangles, and other shapes on wood. Alexa Moreno, of Shelton, Mass., is working with multiple media from pastels to masks to painting on the body, as she examines the range and complexity of surfaces upon which an artist can create. Annie Reardon, of Needham, Mass., is sewing dresses and examining questions relating to "what is art?" and "how is fashion art?" as she draws and creates pieces she will ultimately wear.

Chamlin noted the students have focused on developing their own work within the context of reflecting upon their own responses to historic and contemporary art.

The Walsh Gallery offers the perfect space to showcase such varied pieces. "The Quick Center for the Arts and the Thomas J. Walsh Gallery are thrilled to host the SoloCollective exhibit featuring Fairfield University student-artists," said Quick Center Executive Director Gary Wood. "The Walsh Gallery is known for showing contemporary art from around the world; however, it is an important art space for young and emerging artists, too. I know that our many, many patrons will be enriched by their exhibit featuring the creativity, hard-work, and talent."

The Thomas J. Walsh Gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. The gallery is also open prior to scheduled performances. For more information, call (203) 254-4010.