Spring exhibits open at McDonough Museum of Art
February 12, 2021
The McDonough Museum of Art has announced that four new artists will be featured in exhibits opening at the museum beginning Friday, February 26, and running through Friday, April 2.
The exhibitions will display the installation work of Zac Benson, the figurative realistic paintings of Max Markwald, and the skiagrams of Amy Theiss Geise. The museum will also feature the paintings of new Emerging Visual Artist James Shawn Crum.
Crum will open an exhibit titled “Our Blood-soaked Land Is Haunted by My Muses.” It explores the very real possibility that as a gay black male, Crum exists within several realities. Painting and this exhibit are important to Crum because he feels that the practice of art is his refuge and serves as a record of his existence. He will present a virtual lecture on his exhibit Monday, March 1, at 6:00 PM via the McDonough’s YouTube channel.
Giese’s large-scale, silver gelatin skiagrams (Greek for "shadows written") will be featured in her exhibit titled “The Absence of Light Within These Walls.” The project is an exploration of how the inherent properties of darkroom paper capture and hold elements of a specific time, place, and moment. Giese currently serves as the director and a lead faculty member of the New Hampshire Institute of Art. She will present a virtual lecture on her exhibit Wednesday, March 10, at 10:00 AM via Zoom.
Markwald’s exhibition, titled “Skin,” fragments the human form, creating obscured portraits that seem to be hiding in full view. As part of the museum’s Scribe Literary Collaborative, the exhibit will be accompanied by journals created by YSU students and community members. The booklets will contain written and visual art inspired by themes presented in the artist’s work. Students in professor of art Dana Sperry's digital media class will also create works that will be featured on Instagram. Markwald will present a virtual lecture on his exhibit Tuesday, March 16, at 12:30 PM via the McDonough’s YouTube channel.
Benson's work ranges from installations and sculptures to performance art and has been shown in Taiwan, Bulgaria, and throughout the United States. Benson also serves as an assistant professor of studio art at Anderson University, where he teaches sculpture and ceramics. He will present a virtual lecture on his installation exhibit Tuesday, March 23, at 9:00 AM via the McDonough’s YouTube channel.
Entry to all of the exhibits is free and open to the public. Face coverings and social distancing are required in the museum and there is a capacity limit of seven people per gallery. The museum is open 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM Tuesday through Saturday.