by Savannah Hayward | Staff Writer
Seven seniors were given the opportunity to exhibit their own unique styles at the Bryan Oliver gallery, from oil paintings and digital work to murals and bongs. The Senior Art exhibit, featuring Sophia Lizberg, Kyle Smithgall, Zach Ross, Michael McIntrye, Daly Derwenskus, Sean Jonas and Emily Coy, opened April 13 and will be available until May 22.
Artist Emily Coy said that when she came into college as a freshman and throughout her four years at Whitworth, she knew that she wanted to exhibit her work. Coy’s piece is a colorful multi-dimensional mural filled with everyday objects. As the first artist to install her work, she had the place to herself and said that she had a lot of fun putting her mural together.
“I felt like this is where I’m supposed to be right now, and that I’d been waiting to do it for so long,” Coy said.
In addition to Coy’s mural, artist Zach Ross showcased a series of nature oil paintings. Ross said that it is cool to see how much his paintings have improved since the beginning of college, as well as the other seniors’ work.
“It’s awesome being in the senior art exhibit and seeing my hard work from the last four years come together in one series and to be able to show some of the work I am most proud of from these years,” Ross said.
A diverse range of work also comes with a unique set of creative processes from each artist.
Coy said that her piece is a personal diary of quarantine and it is “simply a recording of everything that I was experiencing in this unique time.” She said that time and memory are intertwined in her mind and this piece.
“I think it requires the viewer to think about what location each of these objects would be found in within their own memory,” Coy said. The experience of each object in the piece is unique to the viewer.
For example, the bobby pin and painted blue rectangle remind Coy of when she was embroidering in her living room while she and her housemates discussed which Harry Potter movie they were going to watch next. She recalls noticing multiple bobby pins in her carpet and being “so present with [her] surroundings.”
“I think a lot of this is also about pace, about slowing down and being still within a space,” Coy said.
To make the mural, she took images that she had printed and embroidered on fabric, and she then laser cut them onto wood. The first layer is filled with splattered paint and images.
Ross has a much different process. First, he spends time in nature observing animals and their surroundings. Ross also takes multiple photos which he uses to “arrange a composition that will be visually engaging.” He pays special attention to the proportions of the animals and makes many changes along the way while painting them in their scene.
Ross said he wants the viewer to be inspired by the beauty of nature when looking at his work.
“I often use color and expression in order to evoke an emotional response from the viewer; a sense of life in the animal is very important in the painting because without it, the viewer will have a hard time connecting with the piece,” Ross said.
For future exhibits at the Bryan Oliver Gallery visit https://www.whitworth.edu/cms/academics/art/bryan-oliver-gallery/.