Inside Iowa State

July 19, 2007

MU exhibit reflects the people who work there

The staff at the Memorial Union is proud to present an exhibition of artwork chosen by them. MU Staff: Our Favorite Images will run through Aug. 27 in the Gallery.

Letitia Kenemer, fine arts coordinator, invited MU employees to submit their favorite artwork for inclusion in a group exhibit. Fourteen people loaned a total of 20 pieces. Works include pieces created by staff members, family heirlooms and even refrigerator art. The common feature is that each piece is meaningful in some way to the staff person who loaned it for this exhibition. Each artwork has an accompanying statement that explains the significance of the piece to the person who loaned it.

For example, Larry Huisman, assistant director of business services, loaned a print titled "Potlatch-Ketchikan." He explains:

"This is a print we purchased in Sitka, Alaska, a few days after visiting Ketchikan. In Ketchikan, we learned the meaning of a Potlach from the local Native Americans. Potlatches are social events that mark passages in life, record oral history and maintain the status of families. They were the gathering of family tribe for a feast and the giving of gifts.

"This was a cruise that my wife, my two children, my parents and I took together," he wrote. "Not long after this trip, my mother's mental health declined. It reminds me of the good time we had on this last family potlatch when the entire family was healthy and it marked a passage of life in my family."

Huisman also loaned artwork he created, as did marketing coordinator Kathy Svec. Svec's "Would You Do It?" is a mixed media collage. She said her process for creating "always starts with the words.

"I often find meaningful phrases as I am reading -- something will strike me as being 'so true.' Then, I hunt for images among things I have saved that will illustrate the words," she said. "It's a pleasure when all the elements come together in a pleasing composition."

A public reception will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. Thursday, July 19, in the Gallery.

The Gallery, on the third floor, doubles as a meeting room. For viewing times between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., call 6-6848.

MU Staff: Our Favorite Images will run through Aug. 27 in the Memorial Union Gallery. The Gallery, on the third floor, doubles as a meeting room. For viewing times between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., call 6-6848.