Northwestern Oklahoma State University’s visual arts program welcomed California artist Joe Gegan on March 1 as its March artist-in-residence.
Gegan will develop a body of work in the Jesse Dunn Art Annex, room 323. He will assist in teaching visual arts courses and provide feedback to visual arts students. A culminating exhibition of the work he has created while here will be displayed on Friday, April 7, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Graceful Arts Center in downtown Alva during the April First Friday Art Walk.
On Saturday, April 1, from 1-2 p.m. at the Graceful Arts Center, Gegan will present a lecture and slide presentation discussing his paintings and influences. This event is free and open to the public.
Originally from Santa Cruz, California, Gegan earned a Bachelor in Studio Art degree from the University of California in Davis, California. In 2013 he earned a Master of Fine Arts in painting from Boston University in Boston, Massachusetts.
Gegan’s interest is in building paintings from intuition, by breaking down old paintings, both those of other artists, then repurposing them through collage techniques. He believes the action of this decay allows for interesting new associations, both personal and formal.
“My painting has become increasingly sculptural, possessing a physicality that ripples with texture and moves in muscular patterns that add layers of depth,” Gegan said. “The paintings are very much about my own reach and the movement of paint, my own physicality and touch as I endeavor to make paintings with a complex psychological presence that tries to capture the soul of a place.”
Kate Mothes, founder of Young Space, describes Gegan’s work as “a mix of the old and the new and a flurry of collage of expressionist painting technique.”
Young Space is a blog and nomadic project platform with a mission to support and collaborate with emerging contemporary artists, students, and the community by engaging in meaningful dialogue through unique content.
To view pieces of Gegan’s artwork online visit www.joegegan.com.
The artist-in-residence program in visual arts at Northwestern was established in January 2014 to invite emerging and established artists to campus and Alva. The program provides the gift of time for the artist, allowing them the opportunity to create their works in a quiet environment, while also exposing the community to new and interesting ideas.
For more information on the artist-in-residence program, how to apply or about the visual arts program, please contact Kyle Larson, director of the visual arts program, at (580) 327-8108 or krlarson@nwosu.edu.