BARBARA FUGATE Drawings And Paintings

Siena College Article on Exhibition

The Promethian, Siena College's school newspaper recently printed the following review of my opening reception and exhibition.  The following is the text of the article and images of the newspaper itself.

THE PROMETHEAN

OCTOBER 6, 2005

VOL. 9, ISSUE 3

The Student Voice of Siena College Since 1938

email:  [email protected]

ARTIST CAPTURES COMMUNITY

by Sanjay Henry, Staff Writer

   On September 29, amidst a throng of Siena students, professors and colleagues, Barbara Fugate, a world renowned visual artist unfurled an art exhibit that she had been working on for over six months.  The piece is titled, “Twenty-Two Portraits, One Community” and it features the portraits of twenty-two members of Siena’s faculty and administrative staff.  For Ms. Fugate, this project is another much lauded effort in her career as a distinguished and respected artist.  In her brief discussion of the project, Ms. Fugate described her visit to the campus last year and her willingness to commit to the endeavor after her visit.  She spoke of the feeling of community that Siena inspired and the need she felt to capture that.  The well sung praises at the opening event reflect the capturing of that essence of community.  Art students Sara Moss and Nick Vegas also reiterated that fact by pointing out how well subtle choices made the piece even more striking.  Nick, for example, spoke of the location.  He spoke of the effect that the piece has at night when one crosses the academic quad and looks up at the portraits, beautifully lit and with a seemingly enduring presence.  Sarah pointed out the fact that the portraits have no borders and how that fits in with the idea of community, a point that Ms. Fugate did not hesitate to mention.  To capture, the essence of community, Ms. Fugate wanted to create a paradox.  It was important, she said, to capture the aspects of the individuals in the paintings that make them unique and also, to create a complimentary presentation so that each individual portrait fits perfectly into the unique mosaic, a representation of the diverse, and unique Siena College community.

    Dr. Barbara Reeves-Ellington, a participant in the project, described her participation in the project as an ordeal that was well worthwhile.  Another participant, Brother Brian Belanger, also expressed his gratitude in being able to work with the project and he also said, “It was the perfect welcome for the community to a new and exciting school year.”

    All members of the Siena community are encouraged to stop by the Yates Gallery and view the presentation which will remain up until October 27, 2005.

Opening Reception! Siena College, Albany NY

When you're giving an artist talk at your own exhibition reception things are mostly a blur that are going on around you...however from what I'm told there was a "record number" of people attending the opening reception for my exhibition at Siena College yesterday afternoon!  My perception of it was a loaded gallery of students, friends, professors, Friars, administration...all engaged, all talking, all looking and asking questions.  To me this was the biggest success of it all.  I know every other artist would agree with me that we don't make these pictures for us, we make them for everyone else...So, to see all these people engaged with this series of drawings that dominated my past year was the best that I could hope for.

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Patricia Trutty-Coohill eloquently introduced me and she has even provided it to me to post on my blog for others who weren't able to attend to share in the evening.  I'm afraid my "artist talk" never made it in print...only onto a few scraps of paper that were stuffed in my pants pocket before the reception and forgotten about after that.  Tom Coohill took these pictures during the reception--please click on the images for larger versions.  More pictures will soon follow.

PATRICIA TRUTTY-COOHILL'S INTRODUCTION SPEECH:

AN INTRODUCTION TO BARBARA FUGATE’S INSTALLATION
TWENTY-TWO PORTRAITS, ONE COMMUNITY

We are fortunate indeed that last fall John Caputo invited Seattle artist Barbara Fugate to have an exhibition in Yates Gallery at Siena. We are fortunate that when Barbara Fugate saw the gallery, she was flooded with memories of her profound experience of the Munich Glyptothek, the sculpture gallery of ancient portraits. We are fortunate that she envisioned bringing such an experience to us where we live.

Barbara began her training as an artist at the Art Department at Western Kentucky University where she was one of our best artists. I remember when she was in the midst of the BFA the buzz that went around the department because a Lexington collector had come to the department to buy one of her paintings. I was sorry that I hadn’t gotten it myself as I saw it being taken into the elevator! I made up for that mistake later, though, when Barbara was a colleague for a year after she had earned her MFA from Miami University of Ohio.

What has always been obvious is Barbara’s commitment to making art. She thrives on it; art is the focus of her life. Her energy, her intensity, her concentration are apparent in what you see here. And what you see here is the result not only of the individual drawings, but the fact that she  presents, not just an exhibition of her work, but a site specific installation that takes into account the ambience of the gallery, the Franciscan ideal of the college, and of the temperament of those who devote themselves to its call. Her goal was to re-present that strange sense of community over time, the sense that, despite everything and everyone, we in the deepest part of our hearts have a singular seriousness of purpose.

As we sat for the portraits – 3-4 hours – we hardly felt the beauty of her goal; we felt achy, tired, bored, itchy, long-suffering. When would she ever finish? “I can’t hold this face another minute.” This in spite of the fact that she provided ample snacks and drinks (no alcohol, it would break our concentration), and pleasant breaks. Even bubbly Fr. Dan would go completely meditative when he sat in the model’s chair. Only Brother Brian was able to smile throughout; he said he felt lucky to be part of it. Now, I think, we all share that feeling.

We are proud to be part of this window into community life. We are proud to be shown as strong, handsome individuals who have contributed something of ourselves to an ideal. We are proud that you have captured some part of us in artist’s chalk and watercolor, and built us up on that beautiful, fleshly ivory Fabriano Rosapina paper with its luscious texture and weight.

I know the effort and planning this installation took. I saw you worry about how to hang the show. I saw your joy when, just in August, a University of Washington sculptor invented the system we see here. And lastly, I saw how appreciative you were to those who installed the show, Margot Stavros, Jamie Downs & Bob Grace.

Did you know in advance, that our discomfort would read as endurance, did you know that the rhythm of the hanging would iterate the rhythm of the windows opposite, did you know that from the middle of the quad, our heads would look like a bright frieze across the library? Did you know that that frieze would read, like all friezes should, as a sign that noble causes demand the commitment of individuals, even random volunteers like us?

PATRICIA TRUTTY-COOHILL
Professor of Art History
Creative Arts Department

Siena Show Opening Today

Today, Thursday Sept. 29th at YATES GALLERY, SIENA COLLEGE LIBRARY at 4PM I will give an Artist Talk alongside the 22 Portrait Drawings I made of those who are a part of the community called Siena College.  Additionally, for today only, I will have running a video that documents the making of one of the sitters, Mahmood Karimi-Hakak (portrait drawing of Mahmood, click here: Download mport_emailed.jpg ).

It has been my pleasure to live with this community over the winter of 2005, meeting many new faces and drawing a few.  It has been a challenge, a joy and certainly a learning experience as I developed this series of work.  These are all things every artist wants and needs to further their art...And so, I consider myself very lucky.

For those reading this that are in the Capital District of NY--I hope you can make the show.  Your comments are appreciated, either in the show's guest/comment book or click on "comment" below this post and send it to me electronically.  I particularly am interested in how you experience the works as a whole--all the drawings together as a unit, as a community built of its individuals.   Thanks for visiting!

Here's the show's poster, with all twenty-two individuals (click on the image for a larger version):

Twenty-two Portraits, One Community

If you are in the Albany area, please join me for an artist talk this Thursday, September 29th at Siena College.  Here are specifics and postcard image.  Bring a friend!

Brief description of exhibition:

In this unique project, the figurative painter Barbara Fugate presents twenty-two portrait drawings of Siena Friars, Professors, Administrators, and Students as a single installation.  Developed in the winter of 2005, these portraits are meant to be seen together so that the viewer may experience many distinct individuals and at the same time, a community that is harmonious, diverse and lasting.

YATES GALLERY

J. Spenser& Patricia Standish Library

Second Floor, Siena College

515 Loudon Road, Loudonville NY

ARTIST TALK AND RECEPTION, THURSDAY SEPT. 29TH BEGINING AT 4 PM

postcard image:  Portrait drawing of Brian Belenger, Friar  (27.5"X39" sepia chalk and watercolor wash on ivory colored Fabriano Rosapina paper).

Installing Siena College Portrait Exhibition

I am back on the eastern side of the US--back in Albany, NY--to install the Portrait Project (as listed here on my blog) that I undertook this past winter.  It's been great to be back and see familiar faces here...along with meeting new ones, especially at the college as I pieced together the last minute details for the mounting of my show. 

Thanks to Jamie, Bob, Margo and John--Friday the show was installed in record time.  I will present an "Artist Talk" in the gallery this Thursday surrounded by these twenty-two portrait drawings that together present both the community of Siena College and community in general--that is, what comprises community. 

There will be more pictures soon of the reception and the exhibition as a whole.

Please click on pictures for larger versions.

Al Weatherwax Portrait

Associate Professor of Physics: Siena College, Albany NY

Al Weatherwax

Upper Atmosphere studies

Please click on images for larger versions.

Al sitting in his chair for the portrait session.

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Sepia chalk & watercolor on Ivory colored Fabriano Rosapina paper (27"X39")

The following shows two stages of the drawing above.  First beginning the drawing with the sepia chalk only, building the foundation of the head--finding its structure, mass, volume, proportions--before getting into details.  The second stage shown includes a water-wash (the chalk is water soluble), establishing the light and shadow shape patterns and beginning to build a great sense of space.  The watercolor washes and further development of details are made during the last stage which is shown above in the final work.

stage one--sepia chalk only

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stage 2--with initial wash

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Here are the Gesture drawings (charcoal on newsprint 24X36").  I make several Gesture drawings with the model's head turned in different postions for about 5 minutes/pose.  These Gestures give me a sense of the structure of their head, how the model holds their head, and to generally begin to "see" them.

Peter Allegretti Portrait

Siena College 2005 Graduate

B.A. in Classics with minor equivilent in Art History.  Peter will soon begin studies toward a M.A. in Conscious Evolution.

2-3 minute Gestures on Newsprint (24x36") with charcoal.

The Portrait Drawing is made on Ivory colored Fabriano Rosapina paper (27x39")

Please click on images for larger versions.

(detail)

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Dr. Hillary Hua Portrait

Dr. Hillary Hua, Assistant Organic ChemistryProfessor: Siena College, NY

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27.5" x 39"  Sepia Chalk & Watercolor on Ivory colored Fabriano Rosapina paper.

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Here are two details of Hillary's Portrait Drawing.

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These are the gestures I made before making the final portrait drawing.  The Gestures are drawn with charcoal on 24x36" newsprint paper in about 2 to 3 minutes each.

Self Portrait Drawing

05.04.05

Please click on images for larger versions.

sepia chalk and watercolor on ivory colored Fabriano Rosapina paper (27.5"x39")

After making nearly twenty portraits of folks here at Siena College for my installation project, I figured it was about time to put myself up to the test as well.  So, yesterday I set up my mirror and lights and gave it a go---here's the result.

 

Detail of Portrait

Portrait of Tom Coohill

Portrait of Dr. Tom Coohill, Dean of Science: Siena College, NY

Sepia chalk and watercolor on Rosapina Fabriano Ivory paper (27.5" x 39")

Click on thumbnails for larger versions.

 

(detail)