“Other Worlds”: Schneider Museum’s Newest Exhibit

On January 16th, Southern Oregon University’s very own Schneider Museum of Art held a grand opening for its newest art collection. The opening gained an excellent turnout, with many enthusiastic artists and patrons flooding into the museum to glimpse the latest exhibits.

The artists featured in this month’s collection were Alex Ito, Ben Buswell, Heather Lee Birdsong, and Stacy Jo Scott. Their pieces ranged from a variety of media types, each one expressing the artist’s unique vision.

Alex Ito’s work primarily consisting of a variety of sculptures, many of which used a variety of metals and natural materials. Within these sculptures were ideas of our natural world, organic and man-made shapes, and contrasting uses of light and dark. In addition to these sculptures, the short film Half Life by Ito was also featured in a segment of the museum. This film consisted of a variety of digital techniques, with a running narrative on themes of memory, life, and what it means to live in this world.

The works displayed by Ben Buswell were embellished emulsion prints, which added an interesting skill of craftsmanship to the collection. Various prints were exhibited throughout the gallery, with one very intriguing work spanning across the space of an entire room. The piece was titled I Do Not Belong to the Sky (Horizon), and was created out of an embellished lambda photograph.

Heather Lee Birdsong added more traditional works of gouache paints and watercolors to the collection, which added delightful pop of vibrant colors to the exhibit. Much of her work featured elements of nature, the contrast of light and shadow, and geometric shapes to create the feeling of a liminal space outside of our world.

Image of The Need for Kindness No. 1, 2023 by Heather Lee Birdsong

Stacy Jo Scott brought another point of interest to the collection, with her sculpture works that were primarily made of ceramics, plaster, and cotton. Her work brought another natural element into the exhibit, in quite a contrast to Ito’s metallic practices. Scott’s pieces also featured primarily organic shapes that constituted faces, bodily features, or abstract depictions of otherworldly creatures.

Image of Satyr and Hermaphrodite: I Have Arrows, 2024 by Stacy Jo Scott

It was a fun night filled with conversation over complimentary beverages and hors devours, as visitors mingled through discussing the collection. The exhibit’s opening was quite successful, bringing in dozens of art enthusiasts to the Schneider Museum.

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