By Lake DiStefano
Arts & Entertainment Editor
The College presented its 2024 Biennial Faculty Exhibition, entitled “RE/NEW,” on Sept. 4. The exhibit was carefully curated by the many members of the studio art, interactive multimedia and graphic design faculties. The many works now displayed in the AIMM art gallery are all meant to encompass and display the theme of renewal, with each faculty member interpreting this theme through their preferred medium of choice.
The exhibit features pieces from Anita Allyn, Chung Sum Chak, Quinn Collins, Belinda Haikes, Kenneth Kaplowitz, Kyle LoPinto, Elizabeth Mackie, Sorraya Brashear-Evans and Liselot van der Heijden.
A discussion panel was held prior to the opening of the gallery where the many members of the faculty discussed the intentions and processes behind their pieces, each tying in the theme of renewal into the specific benefits of their particular medium. The discussion was facilitated via interviews by students who are also members of the art and art education department, with their questions allowing the artists to provide insight and context into the motive and intentions behind the pieces.
Many discussed their choice to explain or not explain their piece fully, and why they decided to leave or not to leave their pieces up to interpretation — all of which decided with the theme of renewal in mind.
“I took it as my own personal journey with renewal, so speaking specifically to that evergoing process of creative block and inspiration — kind of that ongoing off and on renewal process that I go through intermittently,” said Evans, when asked how her work identifies with the theme of renewal. “So in that creative spark, as it makes its way back around, I found myself falling in love with going back to the basics of why I chose to be an artist.”
“I guess there’s two different connections that I make with renewal,” said Mackie about the inspiration behind her pieces. “During the pandemic, I started looking more at the Delaware River and bodies of water. I became really fascinated by the fact that all route shifts had been renewed by waters, natural weather, rain, and became these beautiful ponds that became recreational areas and places for a lot of the wildlife. They are also a little bit secluded, which was also very interesting, that there are these sorts of beautiful places that not many people knew about.”
The exhibit is now open and available to experience for anyone interested. It is open from noon to 7 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, and from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays. It will be open until Oct. 20. The exhibit can also be opened via appointment if needed by contacting margarep@tcnj.edu.
