ica : schedule of exhibitions

Send: Conversations in Evolving Media

Meggan Gould, Alex Kahn, Jason Lewis, Carlo Pittore, and YOUNG-HAE CHANG HEAVY INDUSTRIES

June 11 – August 10, 2008

Opening reception: June 20

An exhibition that examines the nature of changing communication systems, focusing on exchanges that are simultaneously public and private. From letterpress and the postal service to search engines and cell phones, the artists in SEND re-invent the uses of information technology to uncover how methods may alter the meaning of interpersonal correspondence.

YOUNG HAE CHANG HEAVY INDUSTRIES TRAVELING TO UTOPIA: WITH A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TECHNOLOGY; Flash animation, screen capture

Ruminants
Adriane Herman, Ling-Wen Tsai, Yumi Janairo Roth, Yoonmi Nam

August 27 – October 19, 2008

A ruminant is an animal that chews its own cud. Rooted in this process, ruminating has become a metaphor for thoughtfully digesting information. The artists in this show follow a ruminating path: finding subject matter, absorbing it, meditating on it, and then reprocessing it in a new form. To this end, Adriane Herman borrows and adapts the discarded objects and lists of strangers. Ling-Wen Tsai finds contemplative views in the reflections of a puddle. Yoonmi Nam reconstructs imaginary architecture in a meticulous series of drawings. Yumi Janairo Roth carves masterpieces into shipping pallets, police barriers, and other familiar objects. Each of these artists creates contemplative transformations, drawing from their familiar surroundings to create something new and significant.

This is the ICA’s first Faculty Selects exhibition. Faculty Selects is a juried exhibition series, for which MECA faculty are invited to submit a proposal of their work paired with the professional peer of their choice. For Ruminants, MECA professor Adriane Herman selected Yumi Janairo Roth, who is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Colorado, while MECA professor Ling-Wen Tsai invited Yoonmi Nam, who is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Kansas. This year’s exhibition was juried by Alison Ferris, Curator, Bowdoin College Museum of Art, and Carol Wilson, Architect.

Out There: The Mediated Landscape
Christina Bechstein, Gail Spaien, Phillip Brou, George LaRou

Nov 19 – December 21, 2008

The notion of Landscape can refer to a variety of terrains: an expansive view of scenery, a genre of painting, an emotional plane, or a social context. The artists in this year’s MECA faculty exhibition draw attention to unique landscapes and renegotiate them to bring change. Christina Bechstein defines the landscape as a community and collaborates with the public to mend worn fishing nets. Phillip Brou defines the landscape through the lens of pop culture, drawing from icons like The Wizard of OZ and Stephen Spielberg to contextualize important scenes from his private emotional realm. Gail Spaien creates a hermetic archive of natural samples and George LaRou uses software to design fantastical virtual realities. Out There: The Mediated Landscape traverses landscapes that are public, introspective, invented, and historically re-imagined to tell the story of four individuals making meaning in a changing world.

Out There: The Mediated Landscape represents a new vision for The Maine College of Art’s faculty exhibitions. While in the past, faculty exhibitions have taken form as large salon style shows featuring 20-30 faculty members, the new format will include three to six faculty in juried thematic exhibitions. This new format will allow artists to display larger more focused bodies of work in a thoughtfully curated context. This year’s exhibition was juried by Alison Ferris, Curator, Bowdoin College Museum of Art, and Carol Wilson, Architect.

Twilight
January 21 – March 8, 2009

Eerie landscapes, omnipotent forces, images of death, and curious terrors are all common features in the Gothic Romantic tradition of the 18th and 19th centuries. One goal of this genre was to place man in meaningful context, which was often achieved by comparing the frailty of the human condition to the overwhelming and uncontrollable world. Attaining the sublime was an important ambition in Romanticism, often only achievable through horror or morbid excitement. The artists in Twilight take on Romanticism from a 21st century vantage point. Using diverse media including painting, photography, installation, and video, these artists express issues of humanity, identity, and spirituality with an elegantly sinister touch.