'Images of Home' on display |
Jason Rogers |
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Painting graduate student Tim Waldrop's "Images of Home" will be on display through Friday in the Morris University Art Gallery. Originally from Biloxi, Miss., Waldrop is finishing up his master of fine arts in painting. A master of fine arts thesis exhibition, "Images of Home" is an expression of Waldrop's memories of growing up as a child. A year after Waldrop's birth, his father began construction of a new home. All the bedrooms were upstairs in the two-story building. Shortly thereafter, his family moved into the house and he spent much of his young life there. Fond childhood memories have led to the desire to share these experiences with others. An initial obstacle stopping him from expressing his memories through exhibition was his apprehension about opening up to the public. He reached a personal compromise through locating ambiguous symbols in many of his works, which expresses both his personal issues and common sights among many homes. While these symbols do hint on Waldrop's personal issues, the commonality can be used to draw parallels with the institution of the family. And though he does accomplish his goal of sharing his early memories, the focus of the exhibit is to make a connection with the audience through these parallels. "The exhibit is an installation, meaning a exhibit designed for the space," Waldrop said. "I covered the walls with white and lined one side of the wall with a fence material to resemble a yard. My ultimate goal was to create a space like the ones in my paintings." In "Porch," mixed media on panels, he divides the work in half. On the left side, a stepless porch staircase is foreground to a flower wallpaper background. The right side exhibits a floral arrangement of several potted plants. When viewed as a single piece, the exhibit visitor will be rushed back to memories of running onto the porch, as a child, and walking past the plants before stepping inside. "Registry," mixed media on panels, continues on this theme over a three-section series. "Part A, Registry/Pieces," is a view of blocks sprawled about on the floor. "Part B, Registry/Block," is the overlying memory of the flower wallpaper. "Part C, Registry/Popper," fashions the popular push toy that pops balls when it is moved forward. "Images of Home" brings out early memories that many will be able to relate to. Information on purchasing all of the exhibits is available by contacting the artist through the University Museum at 650-2996. The exhibit is in the Morris University Center Art Gallery on the second floor of the MUC. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. | |