Annual Juried Student Awards Show
April 15 - Friday, May 2, 2008

Thomas C. Jackson -Juror's statement

When John Graham, WIU Curator of Exhibits, called to ask me to serve as this year’s juror, I had many questions. I remembered my experience at WIU (36 years ago) as one where I learned a great deal about traditional processes and techniques and grew to respect the achievements of others throughout art history. I always thought this preparation served me well. I wondered if some of the art movements active in the past four decades had changed the student experience drastically. Had ongoing accomplishments in neo-conceptual art, minimalism, post-modernism, neo-expressionism, performance art, environmental art, and installation art as well as the popularity of photography, video, and other new-media/technology based art, etc. completely changed the current students’ experiences and output?

This year’s show continues to represent artists mastering processes and techniques. While the content of some artworks refer to subjects often used through art history, other works are based on today’s popular culture. It is obvious that the students took the work seriously and worked diligently on it. I’m happy to say that I found the work entered in the 2008 Annual Juried Student Awards Show to be diverse and of high quality. The best work in this show could compete well in national shows.

During the judging process I was very aware of decisions that had been made. Each artist made decisions when making their art. For example, some pieces were highly finished while other pieces were less finished, less refined, or sketchy. Both directions can work to the artist’s advantage if used well. When making my decisions I considered many criteria including concept, composition, mastery of the medium, and presentation.

The decisions artists made on the content of artwork were striking. Some pieces depict traditional art content such as figures, urban landscapes, and abstractions. Some exhibit a whimsical, light-hearted point of view. Others are more narrative, or include social commentary, or political commentary. These, perhaps, are a reflection of society’s preoccupation with media saturation, 24-hour news, celebrity watching, and constant revivals of styles. At least one piece begins to break out of traditional media into art installation, perhaps referring to past cultures or ritual.

It has been a pleasure to return to Western Illinois University to view and judge current students’ work. I congratulate everyone who entered this year’s competition whether your work was selected or not. Your participation is vital to your development and to the Department of Art. I also congratulate the art faculty for your successful work with these students.

First Place: Seven figures by John Zielinski, clay

More than any of the other works in the show, Seven Figures made me think about the work.

My first thoughts were of an archeological dig or a ritual or alter. This created a timeframe of thinking that encompassed centuries or millennia.

The proportions of the figures were not lifelike. The figures are more symbols of man than depictions of man. They made me think of containers, perhaps sarcophagi; they made me think of mummies. It was interesting to note that the clay figures were modeled in a simulated-naïve manner. I knew from the artist’s other entries that, had he wanted to, he could have modeled the figures much more lifelike. The crude modeling and intentional disfigurement of the figures made me wonder about their purpose.

The fact that they were painted or glazed in different colors made me wonder if they were intended to represent the various races of the world. The fact that there were seven of them, reflecting the number of continents of the world reinforced this.

I also wondered about the platform covered with burlap resting on sawhorses with their own history displaying an accumulation of paint drips. It is apparent that John wanted a rough, rather than polished feel to the “table” support. I wondered what the effect would be if the burlap had been whitewashed or painted with tar or covered with melted wax. This piece exudes a mysterious feeling and untold story.

This piece was presented as a single entry meant to be considered as a single artwork. This is the only artwork submitted that begins to become an art environment or installation.

Second Place: Conform / Emerge by Jordan Morrell, alabaster

This piece obviously involved a lot of hard work. The artist envisioned the final sculpture and removed stone from a larger block to reveal his ideas.

The elbow and hand emerging from the alabaster block are reminiscent of the more unfinished works of Michelangelo and Auguste Rodin. The rest of the work is suggestive of Isamu Noguchi, who did a long series of sculptures using quarried stones, which left many natural surfaces contrasted to man-made cut and sometimes polished surfaces.

Third Place: Details by Emily Wehling, oil paint

This painting is deceptively simple. There is no dramatic subject matter, no deep symbolism. There is a very simple composition, yet each dividing line is placed to create an interesting shape and proportion. This simple composition makes me think of the golden mean and the divisions of space in Richard Diebenkorn’s Ocean Park Series. The limited color palette and fluid paint quality make me think of some of Jasper John’s paintings. The few straight lines and numerous drips create a positive tension between control and spontaneity.

Merit Award: Dignity by Scott Lenaway, lithograph

This print makes good use of the white space of the paper. The image is bold and the black contrasty shapes outlining the building remind me of the work of the French painter Georges Rouault. The use of a limited color palette simplifies this scene and flattens it to produce a powerful abstract composition. At the same time, the subject matter and dark, contrasty detail produces a feeling of power.

Merit Award: Untitled by Michael Pisula, charcoal drawing
Merit Award: Life Drawing by Jack Crouch, charcoal

It is instructive, perhaps, to consider these two drawings together and compare and contrast them. They appear to have been made at the same time with the same model. Both are excellent renderings of the model and the difference is in the details.

Michael chose to use a white paper while Jack chose a cream paper. The very choice of paper begins to distinguish these two drawings. The white paper allows for bright, shining highlights and a broad range of values between white and black. The cream color eliminates the bright highlights and flattens and softens the drawing.

Jack has drawn a skeleton on the left side of the composition. Was it present during the modeling session? If not, why did he add it? If it was, why did Michael remove it?

Whatever the reason for these choices, the resulting compositions take on different feelings. Michael’s is simpler, with the light background shapes leading the viewer’s eye toward the model. The angles of the background shapes create a strong vertical that starts at the top of the drawing and continues down through the model’s arm, the drapery, and chair all the way to the bottom of the drawing. While similar in Jack’s drawing, the line is broken two thirds down the page by the angles of the skeleton.

The geometric shapes in Michael’s drawing create an angular feel while the added details in Jack’s drawing and use of thick and thin lines soften the result. In general, Michael’s drawing is more dependent on shading and Jack’s is more dependent on line. Michael uses dark shading to fill the top right quarter of the drawing. Jack uses several lines to fill this space in a more minimal way.

Merit Award: Ice Cream Ring by Emily Grothus, silver and bronze

While this piece does fit on a person’s finger, it is obviously not designed to be highly functional. It is too big and too heavy to wear for any length of time. I view this piece as a very creative small metal sculpture based on the idea of a ring. It is very well crafted with creative use of different colored metals.

Honorable Mention: Sewing Queen by Michelle Page, silkscreen

This silkscreen interests me by making me think about the changing roles of women over the decades. The title, using the word “Queen”, makes me think of the Queen for a Day TV show that ran from 1956 to 1964. On this show, the person who described the most troubled life experiences won prizes like a new washer and dryer. The figure in the back is striking a fashion pose bringing to mind all of the marketing telling women how they should look. The woman in the foreground looks so happy about her sewing machine and the words “My sewing machine kicks ass” lends a contemporary expression that ties the old with the new.

Honorable Mention: Stomach Ache by Shannon Gallagher, duct tape and wire

This whimsical sculpture, made from non-traditional material, cannot help but refer to the work of Claes Oldenburg. It is very well executed and raises an interesting question. Compared to other materials, such as bronze and alabaster, this piece won’t last long. How permanent does a work of art need to be to be good? It will be important to have good photo documentation of this work.

Honorable Mention: Walking Man by Josh Zielinski, bronze

This is a well-executed depiction of a walking man cast in bronze. The most striking thing about it is that the top of the man’s head has been sawed off with a straight cut. The resulting brainless, incomplete figure and head-forward, somewhat stooped posture may make the viewer a bit uneasy and leave her or him wondering about the intent of the artist. It is this open-ended question that is intriguing rather than the proficiency of the modeling.

Honorable Mention: The Runaway Bunny by Katie Thompson, graphite

This whimsical graphite drawing shows an impossible, imaginary combination of bunny and fish. The animal parts are rendered with a precise, delicate touch. The resulting animal floats in space surrounded by a current of quotes from various sources. The handwriting provides a soft feeling of movement and adds a verbal layer of meaning to the imaginary animal.

Thomas C. Jackson