Upcoming Exhibits

Zoologia Fantastica

Works by Christine Baeumler, Brian Burkhardt, Catherine Chalmers,
Kelli Scott Kelley, Mary Kenny, Amy Ross and Karl Unnasch

Curated by Cristi Rinklin
Organized by the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery

January 28 – April 5, 2008

The Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Art Gallery will present Zoologia Fantastica this coming January 28 through April 5, 2008. The exhibition, curated by assistant professor Cristi Rinklin, will focus on esthetic and critical observations of our natural world, specifically in relation to the animal kingdom as the subject of painting, sculpture, drawing, and video by seven contemporary artists. The exhibition’s title is drawn from the book first published in 1957 by Jorge Louis Borges, entitled Manuel de Zoologia Fantastica or Book of Imaginary Beings, in which Borges elaborates on the descriptions of creatures which sprang from the imaginations of such luminaries as, Homer, Shakespeare, Lewis Carroll, Kafka and Confucius. Like the subjects of Borge’s book, the exhibition will display the often surreal or fantastic images that can be found in the current artistic output of many contemporary artists. The Cantor Gallery exhibition Zoologia Fantastica will bring together the work of the following geographically and visually diverse artists: Christine Baeumler, Brian Burkhardt, Catherine Chalmers, Kelli Scott Kelley, Mary Kenny, Amy Ross and Karl Unnasch.  These seven artists have created critical bodies of work over the past several years that share, at times, similar sources of inspiration, but perhaps more importantly, all use the representation of animals to express some mysterious but compelling connection to us all. Some of the common ideas or source materials may include the animal imagery found in children’s literature or children’s picture books, to critiques on the ethical and moral treatment of animals as the subjects of biomedical research, cloning, genetically modified (GM) animals, and man’s competition with animals for natural habitats that support biodiversity.

In conjunction with the exhibition Zoologia Fantastica, the gallery will host a series of artist’s talks and forums on the themes explored by these seven artists, as well as other contemporary artists working with animal imagery.

 

Please note: Exhibition dates are made in advance and are subject to change.