Guilford College Art Gallery

11/30/2023

Permanent Collection Spotlight
Joyce Treiman (May 29, 1922 – June 2, 1991).
(photo courtesy of icollector.com)

As the fall 2023 semester comes to a close, let's take a look at one of the artists in Guilford College’s permanent collection: Joyce Treiman.

Here’s a great excerpt from the Bates Museum of Art on the artist (bates.edu).

“Treiman was known for injecting nineteenth-century French painting into twentieth-century Modernism. She was influenced by Edgar Degas’s steep planes, Pierre Bonnard’s use of color, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s theatricality. Treiman worked against the grain of the popular 1940s American form of Abstract Expressionism to instead reference the hazy brushstrokes and realism of French Impressionism. Her paintings reveal her acute observation and attention to human behavior, humor, compassion, anger, fear, and despair.
Treiman’s paintings of Jokers became a recurring motif once she received a diagnosis of lung cancer, shifting from portraits of the bourgeois to morbid and perverse scenes of death. In Joker and Me, she paints herself as a leading performer on stage while her co-star, The Joker, dances front-and-center. The contrast in mood between the two figures could not be more pronounced with Treiman’s child-like frown. Her work is psychological and autobiographical while also containing elements of the surreal and whimsy.
Treiman attended Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, and then the State University of Iowa under influential painter Philip Guston. During World War II, she worked as a commercial artist until she became successful enough for gallery exhibitions and later moved to Los Angeles. Today her work is owned by prominent institutions such as the Whitney Museum of American Art and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and Los Angeles County Museum of Art.”

The Guilford College Art Gallery has a few works by Treiman that showcase more of her abstract skills as well. We're very grateful to have works from a renown female artist of the modern era. If you're interested in seeing these specific works, please send us a message!

06/29/2023

NEW POP UP ALERT. The Guilford College Art Gallery is proud to exhibit student work made over the past 30 years. The works include printmaking and painting in a variety of techniques. Stop by the first floor at Hege to take a look at the selections.

04/05/2023

Instructor Tamara Vaughn’s Modern Art History class journeyed to Hege for 2 viewing sessions this spring semester. Their selections included inspirations from Modern Art History in a Hege Library alcove. Students were assigned to visually analyze the pieces in groups, think about conceptual interpretations, and discuss conclusions with the class. Here are some feedback comments from students:

“I enjoyed hearing the different perspectives and background knowledge and the broad range of art styles.”

“I really liked the pairings, I think they were good [pieces].”

Make sure to make one final trip over to Hege Library to see the other works in alcoves before they are replaced next semester!

03/30/2023

Mark your calendars for the Guilford College Art Department's 2023 Thesis exhibits! Ezra Wilson's and Julian Stokes' work will be open for viewing from 8 am - 10 pm on campus from April 7 - May 12th in Founders Hall. The opening reception will be held on April 7th from 5 - 7 pm. Come support our students and their work.

03/22/2023

Join us in supporting the Guilford College Art Gallery and Permanent Collection for Guilford Madness!

Through Permanent Art Collection and exhibitions connected with courses and student curricular engagement across the disciplines, the Art Gallery supports the academic endeavors of Guilford College by enhancing creativity, critical thinking, and visual literacy through art. Connecting art collections to campus teaching and learning in support of meaningful and inclusive visual encounters. The Art Gallery is valued as an interdisciplinary intellectual and visual campus resource.

Go to go.guilford.edu/give2artgalend to contribute to this enriching and uniquely Guilford space.

03/14/2023

Here at the Guilford College Art Gallery we were thrilled to host the centennial meeting of the Guilford College Art Appreciation Club. The organization’s original founder: Helen Binford made an “appearance” with her portrait sitting in on the meeting as well as examples of work from the collection used for education. Special thanks to Theresa Hammond and Judith Weller Harvey for speaking about the collection, its history, and its contributors. Another special thanks to the Art Appreciation club for coordinating the meeting as well as refreshments.

02/15/2023

Celebrating Black History Month
In celebration of Black History Month, the Guilford College Art Gallery has pulled works from the permanent collection showing black joy to be displayed for the month of February inside the main gallery. The selections are from Susan Mullally Clark and Margaret Boylan Smoot.
Susan Mullally has photographed multiple faculty and alumni of the past here at Guilford College. She is also the portrait photographer of "Hope & Dignity, Older Black Women of the South" by Emily Wilson, published by Temple University Press in 1983 and 1993. Her work addresses ideas of class, race, value, ownership, cultural identification and faith.
Margaret Boylan Smoot partnered with her husband Alex Smoot, in the photography series titled 1937 Bostians Alley series. The Salisbury Post described the photographs as “The [photographs]...reflect the people and the way of life of Bostians Alley, an impoverished community in downtown Salisbury bordered by North Main and Church streets and Franklin and Cemetery streets, which was torn down in the late 1940s. The overall tone of the photographs is not the somber one, one might expect during the depths of the Great Depression, instead children are laughing and dancing, young men and women are captured with an air of pride and enthusiasm, and the elderly look on with caring and contentment. It is apparent from these pictures that Bostian's Alley was a vibrant and dynamic place in spite of the challenges faced by those who called it home.” – Salisbury Post

02/09/2023

02/09/2023

Permanent Collection Spotlight
Hiroshige (1797 – 1858)

Guilford College’s collection of Hiroshige’s work, as well as other Ukiyo-e artists, is on display for the Spring 2023 semester in the center atrium gallery of Hege Library’s first floor.

Utagawa Hiroshige, born Andō Tokutarō, was considered to be the last great master of Japanese Ukiyo-e printmaking. Ukiyo-e is a Japanese tradition of woodblock printing that was prolific from the 17th-19th centuries. Ukiyo-e was an entire production, with the artist creating the original artwork, the carver carving, the printer transferring the work onto paper, and the publisher distributing and advertising the works. The main subject matter of Ukiyo-e was that of the bustling pleasure districts of Japan that the merchant class newly afforded. The pride of Japanese landscapes was also a featured subject matter of the prints.

Hiroshige’s most famous works focused on Japan’s natural landscapes, a distinct choice in subject matter for the time. Some of our personal favorites come from the series 53 Stations of the Tokaido in which Hiroshige depicts the Tokaido, or Eastern Sea Road, once the arterial highway of Japan connected the Shogun’s seat of power in Edo (current day Tokyo) with the imperial capital of Kyoto.

Originally working as a fire marshall, Hiroshige pursued art during his leisure time, eventually apprenticing under the artist Toyohiro. As he began his artistic career outright, he developed his signature soft, romantic style of landscape printing. He also acted as a mentor to a few young printmakers who took on his name. Though he had an extremely successful career and produced hundreds of prints, he struggled financially his entire life. He eventually left society to become a Zen Bhuddist monk in 1856, a couple of years before his death.

01/12/2023

Permanent Collection Spotlight
Josef Albers (1888-1976)

Josef Albers is one of the artists from the permanent collection whose work will be on view for the spring semester in Hege Library’s atrium galleries. Learn more about Albers’ impressive career and lasting impact on art education here.

Born in Germany, Albers began his career as an elementary school teacher. In 1920, he joined the Bauhaus art school and excelled in creating assemblages. In 1925, he married Anni Albers, a fellow revolutionary artist and his longtime collaborator. In 1933, the Aberses made the decision to flee Germany as Na**sm grew; Anni was a Jewish woman. They made their way to the United States where Josef was offered a job at the newly founded Black Mountain College in North Carolina, despite him speaking very little English. The experimental school offered Albers a chance to bring his unique artistic perspective to a new generation of artists. In 1950, after Black Mountain had closed its doors, Albers began teaching at Yale University, where he began his famous Homage to the Square series.

Albers worked in many different mediums, including painting, sculpture, and printmaking. He is most known for his mastery and knowledge of color and use of simple shapes to create dynamic abstract images.

"As basic rules of a language must be practiced continually, and therefore are never fixed, so exercises toward distinct color effects never are done or over. New and different cases will be discovered time and again.” - Josef Albers

“...Good teaching is more a giving of right questions than a giving of right answers.”
― Josef Albers, Interaction of Color

A majority of the selections of Josef Albers in the Guilford Art Gallery were donated by the Benfey family. A great reference for context of how the work connects with both Albers, and Guilford is detailed in Christopher Benfey’s book Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay. Linked here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/303776/red-brick-black-mountain-white-clay-by-christopher-benfey/

01/10/2023

Robin Wall Kimmerer is an amazing author, artist, and ecological advocate and was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2022. If you will be on campus March 1st please register and stop by Dana to hear this wonderful artist speak about their work "Braiding Sweetgrass."
ttps://www.guilford.edu/news/2022/11/common-read-author-robin-wall-kimmerer-speak-march-1

Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, will speak at Guilford College in 2023.

01/05/2023

CVA is closed right now but we wanted to plant this seed for the New Year.

We will be having a final sale of all the Holiday Invitational artwork starting January 4th through January 7th, 12pm - 5pm each day.

All purchases will be 25% off!

note* this percentage will be deducted from CVA's commission NOT the artists.
You can also opt to pay full price and support the CVA if you feel so inclined or simply make a donation :)

So if you cant stop thinking about that piece you saw and wished you'd bought it or maybe you were out of town or just couldn't make it in for the show.... HERE'S YOUR CHANCE!! 🥳 Happy New Year

12/30/2022

Take a look at the different majors that viewed the permanent collection in class sessions this fall!

12/22/2022

Permanent Collection Spotlight
Abraham Rattner (1895-1978)

Abraham Rattner was one of the artists from the permanent collection that was selected for multiple class sessions this fall. Here is more about the artist and his legacy.

Abraham Rattner was originally from NY but traveled through Europe, mostly France. He was a Jewish American during the height of antisemitism around both World Wars. He was a camouflage expert in the military during WW1 in which he was able to use his art skills. He often explored religious subject matter, exploring the feelings surrounding his faith during a time of oppression for Jewish people.

He was mostly an expressionist who worked with bright colors, and stained glass. He was also inspired by cubism and impressionism.

From: SacredArtPilgrim.Com: “Rattner sought to achieve a “symphonic totality and unity,” suggesting “that greater reality of nature created by God and intuitively sensed by man.”

“I pray every night before I close my eyes; I pray every morning upon opening my eyes, and talk to God and ask for his guidance, direction, clarity, that I may be able to perceive and feel something of that which becomes beauty.” For Rattner, art-making became “a medium of prayer and praise.”

12/16/2022

Quotes from students in Class Session ENG 372 Modern Poetry.

"The discussion was wonderfully mediated and context of the paintings and history of the artist and time period was given in detail.

"I enjoyed the variety of different art pieces, they were each different from each other but also in ways similar. We explored these differences and similarities in the discussion and it allowed more time to contemplate each piece as well as more input that may inspire more interpretation"

"There was a really awesome variety of art mediums!"

"I enjoyed the description and analysis. Providing more context to write about was appreciated. Providing sculpture next time would be nice as well!"

12/15/2022

Fall 2022 Semester in Review

This semester the Guilford College Art Gallery held over 10 private class sessions during the initiate 3 week and 12 week courses of the fall semester of 2022!

Each class contained hand selected pieces from the permanent collection in coordination with the Art Preparator and Instructors. Students were able to view the pieces and reflect on how they related to their courses, with a visual analysis, conceptual analysis, and class discussion.

Take a look at some of the moments from the semester!

12/10/2022

In Memoriam
William R. Rogers
(1932-2022)

The Guilford College Art Gallery is saddened by the loss of former President William R. Rogers. In tribute, we showcase a selection of his work here in the Hege entryway. We hope that students, faculty, and the public might be able to understand not only his impact on education, but his love and practice of art.

Rogers was Guilford’s 6th College president and acted in that role for 16 years. He was a convinced Friend (Quaker) and held a deep respect for faith, earning a Divinity Degree from Chicago Theological Seminary and The University of Chicago. He also taught religion and psychology at Earlham and Harvard. He actively supported service efforts on campus and was very interested in the intersection between Quakerism and service. This outlook greatly influenced his role of pedagogy and the reality that teaching has on impacting the present.

From his inauguration speech: “We live in a climate that is increasingly cynical about anything really worth believing, anything profound enough to build one's life around. We seem too often mesmerized by a kind of inertia of ennui— a boredom, a mummification of cheaply comfortable music and instant consumerism. Mass culture seems to be stultifying, perpetuating a myth of leisure… I hope it is obvious that I point to these issues not as a litany of woes, but as profoundly important realities to which thoughtful educational planning at Guilford must be directed. Each has important implications for our curriculum and style of learning."

William R. Rogers was also a proud supporter of the arts! His personal interests included wood sculpture, drawing, and furniture building. One notable project he completed was the restoration of a log cabin in the Guilford area. He also completed woodcuts and drawings of scenes on campus, which are included in the display. He was very proud to help found the Guilford Art Gallery during his tenure.

He mentioned the role and outlook of artists : “Like an artist, all of us who attempt to portray serious dimensions of the life of faith have only imprecise imitations and imperfect words to reflect the color and dynamic form of the spiritual pilgrimage.”

We are proud to be able to share his educational and artistic legacy with others at Guilford. We encourage you to take a moment to observe his work thoughtfully and consider the impact a single person can have on an entire campus of friends.

12/05/2022

https://ncartmuseum.org/events/art-of-the-state-book-signing-with-author-liza-roberts/?fbclid=IwAR2ixefUZt-gbyISjFVTiDy5rS_52HXexgm-qPXUg-KOjlU9t4TOXAl2Lok

Exciting to see local artists featured in this North Carolina art review!

Liza Roberts, journalist and founder of Walter magazine, signs copies of her new book, Art of the State: Celebrating the Visual Art of North Carolina, at this Museum Store event.

11/30/2022

The Center for Visual Artists (CVA) announces the 5th annual Holiday Showcase & Sale of regionally created art and fine craft goods, just in time for the holidays.

From November 22 - December 22, the CVA Gallery will be transformed into a retail shop featuring exceptional gifts and fun holiday workshops and events. (You can even have your photo taken with the Grinch on December 10!).

The CVA Holiday Showcase will include a wide array of art and fine crafts by more than 75 artists, including: painting, pottery, jewelry, soaps, greeting cards, photographs, prints, textiles, and much more. Everything will be priced for holiday gift-giving.

You can find out more info on events and workshops by visiting our website
www.mycvagreensboro.org or by heading to the link in our bio if you're viewing this on instagram.

Please come out and support these local artists with a purchase or registering for a workshop or just simply telling all of your friends! :)

Stay tuned to our social media's to hear more about all the magic we are planning to sprinkle on your holidays AND to learn more about these amazing artists.

Thank you to Arts Greensboro and Creative Greensboro for their support without which we couldn't do what we do.

and

11/30/2022

Permanent Collection Spotlight
Remembering James C. McMillan

Guilford College is proud to honor the life and legacy of James C. McMillan with pieces from our collection purchased with funds provided by Friends of the Art Gallery and gifted by Susan Mullally Clark. Susan Mullally Clark is also the photographer of the original photograph of James that was taken in 1995 and was later used for his solo retrospective exhibition with the Guilford College Art Gallery.

We are happy to have: "Macon Street, Greensboro" (1959) a sketch in pen and ink on paper made by James while participating in activism during the civil rights movement, and "Windsor Composite" (1977) made with conte crayon on paper created during James’ later years of tenure at Guilford as the art department chair.
James’ life was that of making, travel, and teaching. Graduating high school at 15 in 1941, his first recognized pieces were made at Howard University as portraits depicting famous figures from African American history. His education was temporarily interrupted when he was drafted into the Navy during WWII. He still practiced drawing while in service and this earned him a position in the United States Armed Forces Institute. It was here that he taught other armed forces officers art and became a regarded portrait artist on the Hawaiian Naval base. James eventually came back to Howard after being honorably discharged and received his Bachelors of Arts in 1947. Soon after he was awarded a scholarship Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, began teaching at Bennett College, and travelled to Paris. His time in Paris impacted him tremendously, he experienced a place without segregation, conversing with other Parisian artists freely. This time abroad inspired James to not only explore images of racial protest, oppression, and liberation in the U.S through his work, but also motivated him to participate in activism in Greensboro. He participated in the Greensboro sit-in movements during the 1960s and was jailed with other peaceful protestors. When he was asked why he later decided to teach at Guilford in 1969 as the college’s first African American faculty member and art department chair, he said that Guilford’s center as an early abolitionist assistor in the South was one of the reasons why.
“…I can say that Guilford was—was a highlight of much of my professional growth as well as my interaction with the kinds of people and the things that we are talking about that are so significant beyond what you’re doing privately, you know? I really do.”
He created hundreds of figural and sculptural works while at Guilford, experimenting with styles and mediums, and became a master figural artist. He continued travelling abroad and was inspired artistically by many artists and movements from late cubism to African sculpture, his own work evolved into masterful expressions of introspection. James described his work as an outlet for reflection he felt he could not otherwise express during the political climate of the civil rights movements. He continued his teaching and artistic career at Guilford until 1988, when he retired. He also continued his art practice and exhibited long after retirement earning national recognition.
Please feel free to stop by see the Remembering James C. McMillan post-homecoming pop up exhibit in the entrance hallway of Hege Library on Guilford College's Campus.