Seeing the way young people interpret the world around them helps you realize their clarity of vision. This exhibition exemplifies how these students fit themselves into their world and how well they can express that fact via art, craft work and graphic design.
This is an excellent exhibition of well considered, constructed and presented works not one of which can be faulted. The exhibits mentioned in this review are ones that caused me to stop and think about the art work, they are not necessarily nominations of the 'best' of the bunch. For example, most of the self-portraits deal with the 'portrait' side of the assignment while few actually explore the 'self'. Of the former approach, Julia Koffel's Self Portrait is a fine example of going beyond capturing the likeness to show a concern for making a painting. Her application of the medium provides as much interest in the surface as the subject. However Drink Me by Kira Goodney reminds us that it is life's experiences more then physiognomy that identifies the person. Her 'through the looking glass' sketches on well constructed textile panels create a complex image that delves beneath the surface into the self.
Textile skills and drawing ability come together again in an impressive exhibit by Jessica Mitchell. Yawning is a Reflexive Highly Contagious Act offers six delightful portraits drawn by machine stitched lines. Each of these well sketched faces offers a different open mouthed face that takes the subject far away from boring. Another work in textile design that suggests lateral thinking and decided hand skills is the modern dress by Alyssa Jenaway. Although all the clothing exhibits exemplify imagination and skill, Jenaway's offering looks like it can, and will, be worn in public.
Three dimensional works are beautifully represented in wood craft. Chris Kalb's The Uber Box is excellent, Shaun Mechielsen's turned wood vessel Santalum 1 is finely carved at the rim and Elise Hobba's Eloquence is aptly named. Photography too is very well represented by Blair Hewitt. His triptych The Apprentice involves well composed images printed on unstretched canvas cloth and cleverly presented on unfinished wall board so as to be in tune with this subject. Very good.
Congratulations to all the students who have participated and to their teachers. Here is an exhibition that should be seen by young and old alike as it reveals there are imaginative and talented thinkers and creators ready to burst onto the scene. Look out for them!