Department of Art Faculty and Alumni Exhibition (Fall 2021)

After a year and a half of limited viewing, Miami University Art Museum opened its doors fully for this quadrennial exhibition without the need to make a reservation so that art lovers can again freely engage with art in person. Also without reservation, faculty (current and emeritus) along with alumni had been busy creating new works and conducting original research for their contributions to this exhibition. Some artists and scholars responded to the world-wide pandemic, while others sought refuge through an introspective lens or reflected on the impact of other external forces. Not only does this represent the diversity of featured works, but also the very nature of artistic and scholarly creation – a response. 

The 55 individuals featured in this exhibition were given the opportunity to freely express themselves without the requirement of responding to a predetermined theme. Sixty-four pieces in this exhibition deliver an array of topics and meanings, through diverse forms, materials and presentation. As a result, the assemblage of work offers great depth. Each piece invites the viewer to look deep into personal and collective interpretations, and what it may say about the artist or scholar and the time in which it was created. 

In organizing this exhibition, submissions by current faculty, emeritus faculty and alumni are not paired by the artist’s affiliation with Miami University. Pieces are interwoven and arranged according to known or perceived contexts, as well as evident imagery, thus playing pieces off one another to inspire viewers to see connections. Arranging an exhibition of this format is akin to taking 64 puzzle pieces, each from a different puzzle, and assembling them to make a composite image. The result is an artistic and exploratory investigation of the creative spirit by the diverse and talented art faculty and alumni at Miami University.    

Special appreciation is extended to Robert Robbins, Chair of the Department of Art, for his commitment to this collaboration. Additional recognition goes to Logan Bowers, Curatorial Intern (Spring 2021), for her assistance in developing this exhibition. Final acknowledgment to Cassidy Gebhart, undergraduate Communication Design major, for the wonderful contemporary design of this exhibition catalog. 

VIEW ONLINE EXHIBITION HERE

Featured Artists

Current Faculty:

Stephanie Baer | Stephanie Danker | Tracy Featherstone | Della Reams | Geoffrey Riggle | Robert Robbins | Dana Saulnier | Michael Stillion |Todd Stuart | Roscoe Wilson | Jennifer Yamashiro | Jon Yamashiro

Emeritus Faculty:

Larry Winston Collins | Susan R. Ewing | Jeannie Langan Heins | Robert Wolfe

Alumni:

Lorene Anderson | Andrea Barone | Erin Beckloff | Gary Beeber | Jeremy Blai | Jan C. Boone | Eric Scott England | Katherine J. Fries | Ann M. Gorbett | William E. Greene | Lucille A. Hautau | Tara Hayes | Pamela L. Hignite | David B. Johnson | Sarojini Jha Johnson | Kristen I. Ledbetter | Travis Linville | Susan Lynn Mahan | Thomas Maltbie | Michael May | Kim McAnnich | Robert Lee Mejer | Marjorie Morrow | Todd Mosley | Tim L. Parsley | Carrie E. Pate | Joseph Paushel | Julia Marie Pawlowski | Jill Sarver | Michael Seeley | Billy Simms | Alison A. Smith | Sherry Rogers Stoffer | Nicole Trimble | Jean Brandow Vance | Austin Wieland | Mark Williams | Ben Willis | Stephen Wolochowicz