The Gibbes Museum of Art is pleased to announce its schedule of special exhibitions and class of Visiting Artists coming to the museum in 2023. The lineup of exhibitions explores a vast array of topics, encouraging visitors to engage and learn about new art forms and genres and advancing the museum’s four themes of health and wellness, social justice, innovation and conservation and the environment. The 2023 class of Visiting Artists features eight artists who, as part of their residency, will engage museum visitors through free, public studio hours during which guests will have the opportunity to learn about their artistic practices.
“The Gibbes aims to introduce new art forms, promote creativity and connect the community with art in new and exciting ways, and our special exhibitions and Visiting Artists program both promote that goal,” says Angela Mack, executive director of the Gibbes Museum of Art. “We are excited for another year of engaging exhibitions and talented artists for our guests to experience in 2023.”
Special Exhibitions:
Un/Natural Selections: Wildlife in Contemporary Art, Feb. 3 – April 16, 2023
Wildlife images from the last two decades dynamically confront categorizations and speak to the significance of wildlife in art in unconventional ways. Organized by the National Museum of Wildlife Art, Un/Natural Selections: Wildlife in Contemporary Art considers the diverse ways contemporary artists use animal imagery to address humanity’s interconnectedness with the natural world, exploring themes of tradition, politics, science and aesthetics to investigate the ways we use this imagery to tackle human concerns. Galleries 8 & 9.
Damian Stamer: Ruminations, March 17 – Oct. 15, 2023
Damian Stamer: Ruminations showcases new work by North Carolina-based contemporary painter, Damian Stamer. Stamer depicts barns, abandoned buildings and other vernacular structures of the rural South often in large scale, and his heavily layered canvases blur the line between abstraction and representation as they seek to express the solemn beauty of the old and overlooked. Galleries 2 & 3.
Beverly McIver: Full Circle, April 28 – Aug. 4, 2023
Presenting the career arc and continued ascent of contemporary artist Beverly McIver, this survey features nearly 50 works from the last 25 years, demonstrating McIver’s bold, thematic approach to portrait painting. From her early self-portraits in clown makeup to portraits of family members and friends that provide glimpses of intimate life moments, McIver’s poignant large-scale paintings reveal her personal journey. Galleries 8 & 9.
Something Terrible May Happen: The Art of Aubrey Beardsley and Edward Ned I.R. Jennings, Oct. 20, 2023 – March 10, 2024
Something Terrible May Happen: The Art of Aubrey Beardsley and Edward Ned I.R. Jennings will expand upon the lasting influence of “aesthetic fever” and the British Aestheticism Movement on the Charleston Renaissance. Focusing on the work of Charleston Renaissance artist Edward Ned I.R. Jennings, this exhibition will examine the stylistic affinity of his work to British Aesthete and famed illustrator, Aubrey Beardsley. Something Terrible May Happen will open new doors for exploring the LGBTQ influences on the Charleston Renaissance and one of its most original artists. Galleries 2 & 3.
Visiting Artists:
Session I: Feb. 20 – April 2, 2023
Austin Norvell refers to himself as a custodian of stuff. Wandering flea markets, thrift stores and storage units, he finds seemingly unimportant stuff and preserves its heritage and safeguards its legacy. Currently, Norvell is developing several series of glass sculptures and installations dealing with the concept of nostalgia in objects.
Reuben Bloom has been exploring fine art photography for more than 12 years. Following a residency program, Reuben’s longtime practice of street photography led him to a sculpture and found-object-based studio practice that explores themes, materials and motifs generated by his images.
Session II: May 1 – June 11, 2023
Using space and movement as materials, Robin Howard’s sculptures explore the intersections of motion and stillness, something-ness and nothing-ness and striving and contentment. Intentionally non-representational, her sculptures give the mind a place to rest. Howard uses wooden geometric shapes to construct assemblage sculptures and then adds kinetic elements with glass, clay and wood beads on wires.
Ransome’s practice originates with the story of his grandparents, who were sharecroppers in North Carolina. While the pictorial narratives he creates are personal, the symbols are universal and interplay with larger social, racial, economic and political realities. All of his works are abstract, even when figurative, and he creates collages with acrylic paint and found, made and purchased papers.
Session III: Aug. 28 – Oct. 8, 2023
Javonte Jenkins describes his art style as, “very surreal with cartoonist flares expressed to display the personality within each individual piece.” This ramifies through a series of powerful imagery, whimsical perspectives and compelling truths that will surely redefine modern art through new, stylized aesthetics.
With a background in children’s book illustration, Nathan Durfee now uses that aesthetic to convey the nuances and complexity of the human experience. Many of his whimsical characters are faced with tough yet universal decisions, conveying a sense of security in an unsure world to the viewer.
Session IV: Oct. 23 – Dec. 3, 2023
Alice Colin’s creative process aims to express emotions and thoughts through colors and patterns in a constant search for balance between shapes and shades. Colin’s inspiration comes from her travels, countries of adoption and people’s facial expressions, ultimately capturing the emotional charge, background and experience a figure can exude in her numerous portraits.
Using a range of painting and drawing mediums, Elizabeth Williams combines figurative realism with expressive abstraction on oil-lined linen, panels or paper. In blending traditional portraiture with conceptual storytelling, she connects the “who” with the “why” and establishes how the figure fits into each composition.
Published January 10, 2023
Top image: Installation shot of Beverly McIver: Full Circle. Photo by MCG Photography