The Faculty Art Show is an opportunity for the Art Department, and Mercyhurst alumni, to showcase their talents and skill in various forms of media.
It showcases faculty members Daniel Burke, Gary Cardot, Tom Hubert, Peter Stadtmueller and Jodi Staniunas–Hopper.
It also showcases alumni Bethany Krowsoski, ’09 and Mark Nowak, ’77.
There are different types of art such as photography, ceramics, mixed media and painting.
Each form of art is very unique to the artist.
There are ceramics mixed with wood pieces; some photography that grips the viewer and sends chills down their spine; and recycled materials formed into works of art. Other paintings make everyday objects look exquisite.
It was evident that the people I spoke to love what they do. Each viewer will probably like something more than the other, as not everyone likes all forms of art. The exhibit has a variety of artworks and they are all powerful in their own way.
Burke has several mixed media pieces using recycled material.
He said he does not need inspiration—it just kind of happens. Some of his pieces were humorous. At least one was movable, and they were all related.
He does not always use recycled materials for his art, and he thinks doing artwork is not about getting ideas, but about the work itself.
Peter Stadtmueller has some scenic photography in the show. He likes to take pictures of “an awe inspiring and historical value location.”
He uses minor cleanup in Photoshop and hates the idea of an altered reality.
His idea is trying to take you to places you have never been before.
His first career was a woodshop teacher, and you will see that paid off because he made his own frames for his pictures.
He prefers locally owned, traditional businesses where he can bring the old to the new.
“If I give money to my neighbors, it will come back to me,” Stadtmueller said.
Stadtmueller creates has artwork to satisfy himself, not others.
His art is done for himself. “Just do what you want, do what makes you happy,” Stadtmueller said.
Hubert creates his masterpieces in his spare time and has for the past 38 years.
He brings unique elements of woodworking to his ceramic pieces, using trial and error to find the best techniques.
He likes to play with art and takes time with his art because of his classes. He always graces each piece with a title.
Cardot has an interesting relationship with photography. He was originally a history teacher but ended up working for an Italian man who taught him everything he knows.
It all began when he was 25 and the studio assistant of his mentor. In his late 20s, he began formal schooling in the discipline of photography.
For his photography subjects, he looks for content that has atmosphere to it.
He edits all his photos, sometimes very simply and other times with a lot of thought.
“If I shoot color infrared, I like to try as many different colors as I can but I normally go towards the cool blues, silver and grey tones,” Cardot said.
Staniunas–Hopper describes her work as “driven by a message she wants to reveal to her audience to consider.”
Her past works are “feminist in nature.”
She has a couple of pieces about Donald Trump and his offensive language.
Staniunas–Hopper said, “Many find the language or work ugly and to that says, yes, ugly indeed.” She has another piece about Trump that shows him as this year’s freak.
Nowak does a lot of ceramic work. “I like to form a little to the limit,” Nowak says.
He was originally a painter and when he first took ceramics here at Mercyhurst, he hated it, but then after two weeks you could not even get him out of the studio.
He has had an on–and–off relationship with ceramic since he retired a couple of years ago.
He was helping a friend and decided to start back up with his pottery.
For Bethany Krowsoski, her pieces are more focused on her studying objects in the environment around her.
She actually finds her pieces very dull or “mundane.”
Her paintings are from her everyday life like her houseplants, books and a coffee mug.
She find most of her names hidden amongst the books she reads and the audio books she listens to.
The gallery is open from Aug. 15 to Sept. 25 in the Cummings Art Gallery located in the Performing Arts Center.
The hours are from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and from 2 to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.