Eclectic BC art exhibit
Katherine J. White
Issue date: 4/22/09 Section: News
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"Troubled Egg," reads a placard near a huge egg that seems to be suffering from a fragmented, shattered psyche.
"Choose Life," reads a placard near a car exhaust-sized spent cigarette.
These displays were all a part of Bakersfield College's "Art Student Exhibition: 2009" held in the Wylie and May Louise Jones Gallery located in BC's Grace Van Dyke Bird Library. The exhibit will run April 16-May 7. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 1 p.m-7 p.m.
According to Janeen Villaion, BC art student, who designed the sculpture "Queer," by forcing the observer to peer deeply into the puzzle boxes to perceive the multi-colored pencils, the work will cause the observer to probe more deeply into the human psyche.
Villaion said that her work is meant to cause people to look beyond mere appearances and the surface of things.
"It goes against superficiality and makes people look into what people really are. Hence, the title 'Queer,'" Villaion said.
"Troubled Egg," a sculpture by Nelson Gutierrez, 19, BC art major, consists of thousands of glued broken eggshells. The sculpture was initially meant to be some type of testament against alcohol abuse, but Nelson said that as he worked on the piece, it took on a different meaning connected with the egg itself.
"It's like a baby that's troubled," Gutierrez said.
Of Elvia Pequeno's sculpture "Choose Life," art reception attendee Edwin Munguia, 18, East High School senior, said that the sculpture reminded him of his personal need to stop smoking.
In addition to these sculptures, there were displays of bulging-eyed dendrites, dripping balls of alien lights, "Yield" signs warning of deaf children crossing and a figure rising from the ashes of his past via a pewter funeral urn while spewing typed maxims. All were rendered in sculptures and drawings as well as photographs. Some displays were more sedate than others according to attendees. Such old-school displays include Don Pritchard's drawing of a twist of autumn leaves titled "Leaves."
Most displays were originally assigned projects for art classes. Leila Kravarik, 40, BC liberal arts major, painted her work "Chillin'" for Ruth Santee's art class. The exercise was to go from big to small, and Kravarik's seated jeans-wearing figure has monstrously huge legs and a tiny, fading head.
"He seems to be in motion," Kravarik said of her figure. "Maybe it says something about me."
"I liked the black and white photographs the best," said Guillermo Martinez, 31, deliveryman for Mission Foods in Bakersfield.
"They're good," said Dennis Ullrich, 46, self-employed contractor.
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