"The Physical Structure of Organisms" Premiers at Johnson

Author: Suzanne Mozes

DJ's Jimmy Jung '03 and Micheal Silberman '03 dictated the relaxed atmosphere with techno house music for North Chandler '03 and Zach Hefferen's '03 art opening. This intimate gathering gave both artists an opportunity to exhibit their talents for friends.

Transforming Johnson 403 into a gallery on Thursday, Jan. 23, the two seniors circled the small classroom with their most recent photos, prints and paintings.

Boldly titling the exhibit "The Physical Structure of Organisms," neither artist chose to give names to their pieces.

Only a nameplate revealing ownership and the media accompanied each piece of artwork. Chandler explained, "When you start naming, you think in one line."

Emphasizing the idea that "art is a personal experience," she did not want to influence her audience's imagination or perceptions of her work.

As a result, the students wandered around the small room with glasses of wine, occasionally nibbling on cheese, simply experiencing their peers' work, uninhibited by designations or titles.

While a little unsettling, this philosophy forces the viewer to analyze the picture relying only on his/her own intuition.

No right.

No wrong.

Both clearly appreciate vivid color.

An element of humor unifies all of Hefferen's digital photography.

Kate Fitzpatrick '03 comments, "I think he's playful. I think he has fun with [his art]." And this is true. A pill dribbles from the side of a mouth.

A woman's hand slithers upward. The artist watches himself in the side of a building.

And while these descriptions may not seem entertaining, the subtext of each photograph implies the dry humor inherent in the artist himself.

Hefferen's "organisms" of choice seem to be Homo sapiens. One photo depicts a black, blurry figure abstracted and framed by streams of yellow, orange, and blue light.

Another portrays a row of people sitting, waiting, dulled by time, reducing their colors to blocks of solid areas.

Hefferen included one painting within his collection. This large work of art presided over the exhibit with a terrifying gaze.

A woman, indiscernible if she is in pleasure or pain, in a white dress stands against a black background and yells with her mouth ajar.

A hand reaches from outside of the picture plane toward her neck. The lines are sharp, yet unpolished; the piece screams with emotion and yet that emotion is unidentifiable.

Much of his collection relies on a relationship between form and light. Meanwhile, he claims, "I like to keep it simple."

Chandler's work breaches an even greater span of variety, and her "organisms" tend to be more abstract.

While she currently prefers printmaking, her photographs and paintings reflect her prior favored medias.

A particularly evocative black and white print reveals an overhead angle staring down the body of a thin, young woman with a cross of white paint between her breasts.

This angle coupled with the white paint subtly implies the holiness of her body as a temple.

A cluster of vibrant paintings, swirled in form and color and usually rounding and pregnant in shape, brightened a far wall. In one, I perceived a woman hunched in pain, doubling over the child inside of her.

An intaglio of a mermaid with back and wings arched embodies freedom as she reaches for her tail in muddied, subdivided colors.

When asked if any particular artist or concept influences her, she refers back to her work and replies, "Well not really. I hope not. I hope the show shows that!"

Hefferen, an International Studies major with a focus in Art History, plans on traveling through Italy following graduation and still is trying to decide what kind of job will suit him in the future.

Chandler plans on moving to Aspen to "play" for the time being.

As the first Senior art opening of the year, both Hefferen and Chandler have set the bar for their peers with their small and intimate show.