The Gallery at UT Arlington celebrates 25th anniversary with retrospective exhibit
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Gallery at The University of Texas at Arlington celebrates 25 years this month with an extraordinary exhibit featuring 25 nationally and internationally noted artists.
The group represents the nearly 500 previous exhibiting artists who have been influential in the history of the gallery, said Benito Herta, curator of the exhibit and director of The Gallery since 1997.
“This anniversary exhibition is an important milestone not only for the gallery but also for the art community in North Texas,” Huerta said. “We celebrate this time, this gallery and all who have participated in this endeavor – in creating our history.”
The public is invited to experience the free presentation, “Silver: 25th Anniversary Exhibition,” Sept. 6 through Oct. 15, 2011 at The Gallery in Room 169 at the north end of the Fine Arts Building, 502 S. Cooper Street.
The exhibit includes artists Tre Arenz, Connie Arismendi, Frances Bagley, Ed Blackburn, Julie Bozzi, Margarita Cabrera, Mel Chin, James Drake, Vernon Fisher, Linnea Glatt, John Hernandez, Annette Lawrence, Hung Liu, Manual: Suzanne Bloom and Ed Hill, César Augusto Martínez, David McGee, Vicki Meek, Celia Alvarez Muñoz, Robyn O'Neil, Tom Orr, Jim Pomeroy, Linda Ridgway, Philipp Scholz Rittermann, Ann Stautberg and Vincent Valdez.
Huerta said the selection process began by reconstructing exhibition history, which he described as “no minor task.”
“We examined the list of artists who had exhibited here and selected ones who were included in multiple exhibitions under different directors,” he said.
Other artists were relatively new on the art scene when they first exhibited at The Gallery but since then have made an impact on the national level.
Chin, for example, started the national artist-driven education project, Operation Paydirt/Fundred Dollar Bill Project, which involves three million elementary and secondary students, to bring attention, engagement and solutions to the lead-contaminated areas of New Orleans. He is working with Andrew Hunt, a UT Arlington assistant professor of environmental science, to test a unique method for lead abatement in soil.
Other exhibiting artists, including Liu, have paintings and installations in the permanent collections of renowned institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
The Gallery at UT Arlington’s 25th anniversary celebration includes a catalogue funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts that will be circulated nationally.
Two former directors, Jeff Kelley (1986-90) and Al Harris-Fernandez (1991-94) will join Huerta in a panel discussion illuminating their curatorial process while recalling the illustrious 25-year history of The Gallery. The symposium is scheduled from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13. The location is to be announced.
The exhibit, “Silver: 25th Anniversary Exhibition,” is free and open to the public. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. Read more at www.uta.edu/gallery.
The University of Texas at Arlington is a comprehensive research institution of nearly 34,000 students in the heart of North Texas. Visit www.uta.edu to learn more.
###
Media contact: Bridget Lewis, Blewis@uta.edu, 817-272-3317
The University of Texas at Arlington, www.uta.edu
Tags:
