Artists-in-Residence host dual exhibitions exploring technology, Latin American culture

"Ojo De Dios," by Alex Rubio. (On the home page: "Memorial Bust," by Sophie Khan.)

The Connecticut College Department of Art presents two exhibitions by the College’s current Dayton Artists-in-Residence. Sophie Kahn’s “Shards” and Alex Rubio’s “Abstract Experiment” will be on display in the galleries of Cummings Arts Center from Monday, Oct. 28 - Friday, Dec. 6.

“Shards” owes its fragmented aesthetic to the collision of the body with new imaging technology. It encompasses a range of digital and analog inputs and outputs, from 3D laser scanning and 3D printing to bronze and ceramic casting. Kahn is also exhibiting a new series of prints created using Japanese origami software, which subject faces to a process of flattening and unfolding. Shown alongside colored busts created with students of Connecticut College, these works treat the photograph as semi-sculptural, something to be cut, pasted and rearranged in three-dimensional, virtual space.

As a studio artist, Alex Rubio illustrates and describes past and present life in San Antonio, Texas, documenting both cultural and personal experiences in his drawings and paintings. Rubio utilizes iconic imagery in an effort to preserve the cultural bond that connects and promotes intergenerational dialogue within and beyond our communities. As part of “Abstract Experiment,” Rubio will create one large-scale work on site with the assistance and collaboration of Connecticut College painting and drawing students.

The Connecticut College Studio Art faculty are hosting Kahn and Rubio with the support of the Dayton Artist-in-Residence Program, which enables students to encounter and learn from artists and performers who are not typically accessible in an academic setting, giving them the opportunity to explore a wider variety of artistic approaches and techniques.

As part of the exhibition, Kahn will speak on Monday, Oct. 28, and Rubio on Tuesday, Oct. 29. Both talks take place at 4:15 p.m. in Room 308 of Cummings Arts Center. A public reception for both artists will be held in the galleries on Tuesday, Oct. 29, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

The Cummings Arts Center Galleries are open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1-4 p.m. The galleries will be closed Tuesday, Nov. 26 – Sunday, Dec. 1 for the Thanksgiving break. For more information, contact the Art Department at (860)439-2740.


October 22, 2013