eInside Events

Downtown Art Gallery Opens “In Her Closet,” Works by Clare Murray Adams on Aug. 29

Exhibit focuses on metaphorical interpretations of the physical architecture of clothing

The Downtown Gallery presents the
exhibit "In Her Closet" by Kent State
alumna Clare Murray Adams, from
Aug. 29 – Sept. 29.

Kent State University’s School of Art Galleries presents “In Her Closet,” works by mixed media artist and Kent State alumna Clare Murray Adams, from Aug. 29 – Sept. 29 at the Downtown Gallery. An opening reception will take place on Thursday, Aug. 30, from 5 – 7 p.m., and is open and free to the public. The Gallery is located at 141 E. Main St. in downtown Kent. Free parking is available behind the gallery. For more details, visit http://galleries.kent.edu.

The title, “In Her Closet,” references the way in which individuals often keep hidden certain aspects of their personality. The exhibit features manipulated digital prints on cotton with stitching and embellishment, as well as dresses made of silk organza with stitching and found object embellishments. This exhibit challenges the viewer to interpret the dresses, shadows and the deeper meanings that clothing can suggest.

"Ideas of family, feminist concerns, elements of time and universal emotional issues are continual themes for exploration. Earlier work was strongly rooted in quilt making and surface design. More recent work relies on the processes involved in making 3-D constructions, in collage and in encaustic painting or working with wax. My long interest and attraction to fibers is still evident in my work, if not in process, then certainly in concept," says Murray Adams in a description of her work on her website, www.claremurrayadams.com.

“This body of work challenged me structurally and conceptually as I interpreted emotional qualities of identity metaphorically in the physical architecture of the clothes I created,” says Murray Adams.

Murray Adams currently serves as a professor of art and is former chair of the visual art department at Malone University. She received her Bachelor of Fine Art in 1993 from Kent State University, and a Master of Fine Art with a concentration on fibers and mixed media from Vermont College of Norwich University in 2001. Her artwork has been exhibited regionally and nationally in fiber and mixed media exhibits where she has often taken home honors or awards. During the past two years, she has had five one-person exhibits in Ohio, Indiana, New York and California.

The Downtown Gallery’s hours of operation are Wednesday – Friday, noon - 5 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. The gallery is located at 141 East Main St. in Kent. For more information, call 330-676-1549.

Starner Distinguished Speaker Series Features Barbara Knapic, ’79

Former Kent State gymnast and partner at Oldham Kramer set to speak Sept. 5

Kent State alumna and former gymnast
Barbara Knapic is the 2012 Starner
Distinguished Speaker. Knapic will deliver
hey keynote address on Sept. 5 at University
Auditorium in Cartwright Hall.

Barbara Knapic, a former Kent State gymnast, has been selected as the 2012 Starner Distinguished Speaker. The 2012 event is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 5, at 7 p.m. at University Auditorium in Cartwright Hall. Her keynote address is titled “Integrity. They Can’t Take Your Birthday.” Admission is free and open to the public.

A 1979 graduate of Kent State, Knapic participated in gymnastics during the 1976-77 season. That year, Kent State posted a 14-2 dual record and captured the OAISW State Championship, the third of four consecutive state titles. The Golden Flashes went on to advance to the Midwest Regionals that season.

A partner at Oldham Kramer in Akron, Ohio, Knapic is a member of the Stark County, Akron, Ohio and American Bar Associations. Since 1991, she has been a certified workers’ compensation specialist in the Ohio State Bar Association. In practice since 1986, Knapic has earned multiple honors and awards; she has been cited as an Ohio “Super Lawyer” since 2004 and has been included in The Best Lawyers in America since 2010. In 2011 she was chosen as one of the Top 50 Women Lawyers in Ohio.

An active member of the Daily Kent Stater, Knapic graduated from Kent State with a degree in journalism in 1979. After a brief journalism career, Knapic returned to school and earned her law degree from The University of Akron School of Law in 1985.

The Starner Distinguished Speaker Series began in 2001 thanks to the vision and support of Buzz (’67) and Marilyn (’71) Starner. Both former education majors, the Starners endowed the speaker series to showcase successful former athletes and to serve as a source of education and inspiration to current student-athletes.

For more information, contact Alicia Gaffney at alongst1@kent.edu or call 330-672-8399.

Kent State University School of Art Gallery Features Authentic Japanese Prints

The exhibition "Japanese Prints & Japonisme," curated by
Sharon Divell, will be featured from Aug. 28 – Oct. 5 at the
School of Art Gallery.

Kent State University’s School of Art Galleries present the exhibition "Japanese Prints & Japonisme," curated by Sharon Divell, from Aug. 28 – Oct. 5, at the School of Art Gallery at 400 Janik Dr. on the Kent Campus. Hours are Tuesday – Friday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. For more information, call 330-672-7853. There will be an opening reception on Aug. 30 from 5 - 7 p.m. that is free and open to the public.

“The exhibit features over a dozen Japanese prints and two Japanese sword guards on loan from the Kent State University Museum,” says director of galleries Anderson Turner. There are also additional works that represent the influence of Japanese art on the rest of the world.

In the second half of the19th century, the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists found inspiration in Japanese prints. The obvious flatness of these prints and the placement of complementary colors next to each other caught the attention of Edouard Manet and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. Depictions of the changing moods of weather influenced Claude Monet and other Impressionists. Line and shape are basic elements of all Japanese prints and as Paul Gauguin moved away from optical realism, line, shape and color came to dominate his paintings. Printmakers and painters such as Mary Cassatt and Edgar Degas created bold new compositions.

In Europe and America, all things Japanese were avidly collected and Japanese arts and crafts were admired in world fairs everywhere.

“The collection of the School of Art at Kent State University boasts a selection of pieces representing this important conversation. We are excited to be able to share them with the community, says curator Sharon Divell.

Divell served as assistant to the curator of Asian art at the Cleveland Museum of Art under the directorship of Sherman E. Lee. She has taught Asian art history for many years at Ursuline College and, more recently, at Kent State University. She earned her master’s degree in art history from Case Western Reserve University.