Exhibition of Artwork by Faculty Opens Feb. 6

Sponsored by the Plattsburgh Art Museum, the exhibit features works by Diane Fine, Rick Mikkelson, Don Osborn, Berry Mathews, Norman Taber, Peter Russom, David Powell, Carol Vossler and Sue Lezon.

Edward Brohel, director of the Art Museum, said he was excited to showcase work by Plattsburgh State's art faculty in this exhibit.

"Faculty must reach deep into themselves for the renewal of energy which keeps their classes alive and endlessly new - new for the experience presented by each and every student," said Brohel. "Students are taught twice by each faculty - first for the development of their specific abilities and second by association with an evolving artist. Here in this exhibition is the visual evidence of the on-going conversations of our substance into art."

Fine, professor and chair of the art department said, "This exhibition is an educational and a celebratory experience. Our work in the studio, our life as artists, is central to our contribution to the College and our classrooms. I am proud to work with colleagues who are immersed in their art practice. Each voice is unique."

Fine works primarily in two related art media: printmaking and the book arts. She exhibits her work regularly and is represented in a number of important collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the New York Public Library and Yale University Art Gallery. Her work in the exhibition is a two-plate intaglio print titled, Lucky Again .

Mikkelson joined the art faculty in 1969 and is a professor of drawing and painting. He works in oils and watercolor and a variety of drawing media. His subjects consist of landscapes, figures and allegorical still lifes. Originally from the Red River Valley in Minnesota, his work has been exhibited throughout the United States and Canada and is in numerous private and public collections. His work, Trinity: IBSTE , will be featured in the faculty exhibition.

Osborn, a member of the Plattsburgh State Art Department since 1985, teaches 3/D Foundation and all levels of studio sculpture. His personal work has evolved through various mediums in past years. His most recent efforts have been directed toward monumental outdoor sculpture, which are primarily fabricated in steel. Some of his most recent exhibitions include the Chicago Navy Pier Exhibit on  "Pierwalk '99" and a permanent installation at Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Michigan. His piece, Ghost Poet's Chamber , will be featured in the faculty exhibit.

Mathews has taught ceramics at Plattsburgh State since 1994. She has moved around a lot, living in Southern California and on Martha's Vineyard for several years, earning a living half the year in Massachusetts and studying ceramics the other half in Southern California. The experience of driving back and forth across the country gave her a wealth of visual information, a source for her ceramic installations, which utilize fencing and thousands of small clay pieces. She also makes elegantly whimsical teapots from thin slabs of porcelain. One of these teapots will be part of the faculty exhibit.

Taber, an associate professor of art, has worked as a designer and instructor in Georgia, Oklahoma and currently New York. He began his career primarily as an illustrator, working for publications such as Yankee, Smart Money and AARP. In addition to editorial illustration, he also works on children's books with his wife, Tory Taber. At Plattsburgh State, Taber is focusing on combining aspects of traditional and digital illustration, as well as designing and illustrating a book for children. His piece for the exhibition is titled, A Nice Household .

Russom received his undergraduate degree from the studio art program at Plattsburgh State in 1985 and received his master's of fine arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After graduating, he lived and taught in New York City for five years before returning to Plattsburgh State to teach drawing and painting. His most recent works are a synthesis of images, forms and geometric systems suspended in fields of color. His piece, Monolith , will be featured in the faculty exhibit.

Powell, an assistant professor of art, received his bachelor's of fine arts in painting from the University of Georgia. Following his graduation, he became a partner at Wonder Graphics in Athens, Ga., which later launched a twenty-some years career managing creative businesses in New England. His work for the exhibition is a collage titled, McMoney .

Vossler, an adjunct professor of art, concentrates her artistic efforts on sculpture. She received her bachelor's degree from Plattsburgh State in 1990 and her master's in fine arts from Syracuse University.  Her piece for the faculty exhibit is titled, Artomatic .

Lezon is an adjunct professor who teaches photography. She received her bachelor's degree from Emerson College and her master's of fine arts from the University of Massachusetts/Hampshire. Her work for the exhibit is titled, ...that you may behold the moon .

"On behalf of the art faculty, I want to thank Ed Brohel, David Driver and Marge Couglin and the rest of the Plattsburgh Art Museum staff for their help on this project," said Fine.

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