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Outdoor Sculpture:
Two sculptures were commissioned by the NIU Foundation and funded by special donors who understood the significance of having art specially created for this historic project. An alumnus was selected to represent the achievements of NIU alumni and their lifelong connection with the university, and an emeritus faculty member was selected to recognize the extraordinary contributions of faculty in making NIU what it is today.
Jerrold and Carol Zar Library Terrace
Professor Emeritus Bruce White
Celebration
Artist statement: My intention was to create something visually exciting for the area which holds the sculpture named Celebration. I work with a feeling for the space—what happens I can never be sure of, as I am always working for the unique. Many of my works are influenced by “chaos theory”—the unpredictable patterns of natural systems, or an orderly disorder. I seldom begin with a preconceived drawing, but rather force accidental arrangements by manipulating material, from which I select and compose unique compositions. The sculpture Celebration is a composition of a cluster of independent units exploding outward, expressing energy and excitement. The result seems to express an enthusiasm for the fulfillment of a common purpose.
Donors
Dorathea and Richard Beard
Richard and Thecla Cooler
David and Doris Driesbach
Christa and Robert Even
HKM Architects + Planners
Olive Kimball
Jerry and Miriam Meyer
Bill and Jo Monat
Friends of Jordan Schwarz
Lester Smith
Sally Stevens
Bruce H. and Gail White
Elizabeth and Joseph Wood
Northeast Corner (Annie Glidden and Stadium Drive)
Bruce Niemi, B.A. Art, 1981
Living the Dream
Artist statement: Through visionaries and generous donors, the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center has been built as a result of a dream. We are a people born to dream through faith and perseverance and the encouragement of our family and friends; we come to college full of excitement and hope to fulfill our quest. Through many trials and tribulations, armed with the knowledge and wisdom that we’ve gained over the years, we return to our alma mater and the Barsema Alumni and Visitors Center “Living the Dream.”
Donors
Bob and Yvonne Bovinette
HKM Architects + Planners
Tony and Carolyn Kambich
Bruce and Suzi Niemi
Elizabeth and Harvey Plotnick
Jaymie and Harry Simmon
Mallory M. Simpson and Gregory E. Schatzle
Richard Ryan Sculpture Garden — works on loan
Contact information: Niemi Sculpture Gallery & Garden www.bruceniemi.com or (262) 857-3456
Richard Taylor
Caressed by the Moon
Rob Lorenson, M.F.A. 1994
Eclipse #5
Beth Sahagian
Fossa 1
Mark Chatterley
Human Monoliths
John Verl McNamara
Recombinant
Interior Art:
First Floor – works by faculty
Sally Stevens Conference Suite
Charlotte Rollman, Professor, School of Art
Lake Superior Turnout
watercolor on paper, 37” x 29”, NFS
Gifted by the artist in honor of Sally Stevens
Artist statement: I am a student of nature. The more I look the more I see. My eyes and hands are trained and then my heart makes work become art.
Frank Kulesa, Associate Professor, School of Art, M.F.A. 1980
Altgeld Hall
oil on watercolor board, 14” x 19”, NFS
Altgeld Hall Fall Morning
oil on watercolor board, 13 1/2” x 18 1/2”, NFS
Cory House
oil on watercolor board, 13 1/2” x 19”, NFS
Davis Hall
oil on watercolor board, 14” x 18 1/2”, NFS
Glidden House
oil on watercolor board, 13 1/2” x 19”, NFS
Lowden Walkway
oil on watercolor board, 13” x 19”, NFS
Still House
oil on watercolor board, 14” x 19”, NFS
Swen Parson Hall
oil on panel, 13 1/2” x 17 1/2”, NFS
Artist Statement: My goal was a painterly representation of campus structures while trying to capture the essence of morning sunlight falling across the buildings and trees. The fun part of doing the paintings was attempting to put down what I hope the viewer may find visually interesting about the campus.
Dean and Linda DeBiase Board Room
Frank Kulesa, Associate Professor, School of Art, M.F.A. 1980
Milan School House
oil on watercolor board, 13 1/2” x 18 1/2”, NFS
Winter Morning
oil on watercolor board, 13” x 16”, NFS
Castle Faculty Library
Yih-wen Kuo, Professor, School of Art
Untitled
Ceramic, NFS
Charlotte Rollman, Professor, School of Art
Shagawa Sunset 2004
watercolor on paper, 29” x 37”, NFS
Second Floor - Alumni invitational
Margaret Mary Florio Gallery
Peggy Dee, B.A. Art, 2002 (pegsdee@aol.com)
Blue Slip
acrylic on canvas, 24” x 24”, $575
Braided Figure with Artichoke
acrylic on canvas, 24” x 24”, $575
Leaning Figure with Red Brassiere with Watermelon Rinds
acrylic on canvas, 36” x 48”, $1,300
Artist statement: I celebrate the figure as a powerful and sensuous metaphor. I’m interested in visual opposites coexisting, and the fine line between order and chaos, tension and release, and the visual play between three-dimensional form and abstraction. A rough line defines a soft breast, a soft line defines a chiseled profile, and a solid body seems light and ethereal while a moving gesture is caught in time like a stone statue. The female form is a metaphor for all that is real that seems unreal, ugly that seems beautiful, innocent that seems provocative and unfinished that seems complete.
Cynthia Hellyer Heinz, B.A. Art, 2000 (chheinz4@comcast.net)
Flight of Time, Memory’s Delicate Balance
color pencil drawing, 34” x 23”, $800
Reflection on a Passing Moment, Life’s Ability to Regenerate
color pencil drawing, 34” x 23”, $800
That which was Lost is Reflected, What Remains is Eternal
color pencil drawing, 34” x 28”, $1,200
Artist statement: The intension of the work is to create a dialogue with the viewer. These pieces do not sit passively on the wall. The subject is about time, perception and the vitality of humanity’s connection with its own internal truth and the natural world.
Peter Olson, Preparator, Curatorial Assistant and Collections Manager, NIU Art Museum, M.F.A. Printmaking 1993 (polson@niu.edu)
Black-throated Blue Warbler
mixed media collage on paper, 29” x 20 1/2”, $1,000
Kentucky Warbler
mixed media collage on paper, 29 1/2” x 21 1/2”, $1,000
Mourning Warbler
mixed media collage on paper, 29 1/2” x 21 1/2”, $1,000
Northern Parula
mixed media collage on paper, 29” x 21”, $1,000
Artist Statement: What humans know about any bird is a “collage”
of bits of information compiled over time from many different sources—books, photographs, dreams, TV shows, field guide illustrations, verbal information and personal experiences in the field.
Jesse Payne, M.F.A. 2004 (www.jessepayne.com)
Blueberry Shortcake
oil on canvas, 21” x 19”, $800
Strawberry Shortcake
oil on canvas, 32” x 25”, $1,200
Artist Statement: I am interested in a world that hovers between abstraction and representation, one that both encourages discovery and demands viewer interpretation. What propels my work forward is the tension created between what is, and the longing for what is possible in the imagination, and what it may hold. In each of the paintings it is necessary to create a unique but complex relationship between abstraction and representation, and an even more complex one between itself and the world.
Barbara Stewart Thomas, M.F.A. 1989 (barst@comcast.net)
Bubbie’s Braid
pigment inkjet print, 24” x 20”, $300
Charm
pigment inkjet print, Size: 20” x 24”, $300
Fur Piece
pigment inkjet print, 24” x 20”, $300
Jennie’s Shoe
pigment inkjet print, 20” x 24”, $300
Artist Statement: These photographs are part of an ongoing series of photographs and handmade books about the members of my family.
The books and photographs reflect different memories and different
aspects of both the personality of the person and my relationship to them.
Special thanks to the following for their assistance with the exhibition:
Harold Kafer - Dean, College of Visual and Performing Arts
Adrian Tio - Director, School of Art
Larry Gregory - Assistant Director, School of Art
Peter Olson - Preparator, Curatorial Assistant and Collections Manager, NIU Art Museum
Mark Hopkins - HKM Architects + Planners
Bruce Niemi – Niemi Sculpture Gallery & Garden
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Barsema Alumni and
Visitors Center
231 N. Annie Glidden Rd.
DeKalb, IL 60115
815.753.1534
815.753.0278 (fax)
Located on the campus of
Northern Illinois University |
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