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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 15, 1994)
Arts ^Entertainment Thursday, September 15, 1994 Page 9 Keith Jacobshagen, who is known for painting vast Nebraska landscapes, stands before one of his works-in-progress. Micneiie rauiman/UN Artist draws inspiration from reality ay Joei airaucn Senior Reporter University ofNebraska-Lincoln Art Professor Keith Jacobshagen gets more out of a beautiful sunset than most observers do. Jacobshagen is a landscape art ist who captures the beauty of na ture and then enhances that beauty. “A great deal of my paintings are compilations of direct observa tion, memory and invention,” he said. “Nature is the catalyst, but t once I get into it, the painting is the catalyst. “I’m drawing inspiration from reality, but the finished product comes from my struggle with real ity — inventing, moving things around — and my memories.” Jacobshagen said that people often would point at a painting and ask him, “Is that real?” He invari ably responds, “No, it’s a paint ing.” “I’ve observed nature,” Jacobshagen said, “but I've changed it, and sometimes it's bet* ter. “I’m not saying that I’m better than nature. I’m just another part of nature.” Jacobshagen said that he was drawn to painting the landscape for a variety of reasons. “The most simple reason is that I have a 30-year romance with the landscape,” he said. “I like being out there and have the luxury of going out there and looking at it.” Jacobshagen also spent much of his childhoodwith a bird’s-eye view of the landscape. “I grew up spending a lot of time flying with my father, who was a test pilot.” he said. “I spent a lot of time in the sky at an early age and by my early teens was begin ning to fly myself. “My love of flying has informed my work. It gives you a sensibility of the space that you are flying through and the relationship that you have with the horizon and the ground.” In his work, Jacobshagen brings out the emotional and the psycho logical beauties of a landscape as well as the natural ones. “The idea of a pretty picture is still there, but l‘m Interested in taking it farther than that,” he said. “The sunset is an easy beauty— an unearned kind of beauty. It takes someone of almost no brain power not to enjoy it. “I’m interested in the way the horizon rides just below the sky — the segue between earth and sky.” The earth, below the horizon, is almost all human-controlled and is no longer truly natural, he said. “I am more interested in hu man-altered land than the wild places, if you can even find them anymore.” The sky above the horizon seems to still be given over to the winds of nature, he said. “Some of it is man-generated, like the condensation trails from jets, and the luscious sunsets that we see are often a result of air pollution. “It’s ironic that it is poisoning us and at the same time presenting a visual delight.” Jacobshagen has been at UNL since 1968, even though he has had offers from other universities. “I came here and saw the Sheldon Memorial Gallery. I felt that if I would be here for a couple of years, I could see all that the Sheldon had to offer and be a part of it. The very next year, Jacobshagen had his first one-person exhibition at the Sheldon. “I also liked the idea of staying on the plains,” he said. “I’m a Midwesterner. I grew up in Kansas and thought I should pay attention to things close to home.” Jacobshagen earned his bachelor’s degree from the Kansas City Art Institute and his master’s from the University of Kansas. Even though he is an estab lished artist who has participated in numerous exhibitions both in the U.S. and Europe, Jacobshagen doesn’t use his work in his class room. “Students don’t see much of my paintings in my class,” he said. “1 use my experience and knowledge that I’ve acquired as a painter for the last 26 years and share my opinions and ideas with them.” Public Enemy “Muse Sick-N-Hour Mess Age” Def Jam Rating: 13 Guess who’s back? Yep, it Chuck D and his revolution through music. You have seen the un-al bum “Greatest Misses” in 1992 and probably missed the rip-off live album in 1993, so in all this mess, where is the knight in shin ing armor. Chuck D? Apparently, Public Enemy has been storing up the mess since “Apocalypse 91...The Enemy Strikes Black.” It is evident that “Muse Sick-N-Hour Mess Age” is PE’s attempt to reaffirm its hold on rap. It may not be quite that easy, though, in the 9-4. Rap has become a little funkier and changed its viewpoint toward consciousness. This is not to say that PE could not evolve to the new state of funki ness but more to say that PE has not changed its method in their Mess Age. On the funky side, the glory days of the Bomb Squad, PE’s pro duction team, has come and gone. Although the Bomb Squad Pro duction is credited on many tracks, Chuck D and Keith Shocklee are the last remnants of the original team. Veteran producer Gary G Wiz and Easy Mo Bee add their r “ ‘ > Chuck and Fla It almost seemed that PE was trying to re-live its glory days since many of the tracks were reminis cent of its older work, or in other cases, just had an old school flavor. r “Live and Undrugged, Part I” had an eerie bass line and a con stant hum which might remind listeners of the JMJ remix of “Louder Than a Bomb.” “I Ain’t Mad at All” was on of Flav’s solo joints, but sounded a lot like the nonsense in “Cold Lampin’ With Flavor" except with a chorus that sounded something like Us Girls from the movie “Beat Street.” And the list goes on. “Race Against Time” was similar to “White Lines” by Grandmaster Flash, “What Kinda Power We Got?” uses the classic “soul power” chant, and “Ain’t Nuttin Buttersong” seems most like clas sic PE with the layered sound ef fects, drums and percussion, sound bytes and scratches, but Mo Bee produces it with a bouncy, electro funk that sounds like its from the ’70s. The main problem here is that fans like to remember PE's reign in the rap kingdom, but secretly hope for PE to come back with something fresh that will blow their minds. And while proving it can still rock that style as well as ever, Public Enemy’s “Muse Sick-N Hour Mess Age” is not all that fresh. — Greg Schick Hoodoo Gurus “Crank” Praxis International Grade: B+ The Hoodoo Gurus are weaving a certain brand of magic on this disc. Emphasizing a serious post punk sound combined with Dave Faulkner's wierdly cool vocals, their sound is a spellbinding mix ture. Intelligent, thought provoking lyrics that force the listener to stop and take notice, permeate the al bum. Several cuts are of a spiritual nature, leaving the listener to de cide what message the Gurus are transmitting. The Gurus are obviously a tal ented band who grab the listeners attention with their tight playing style. Overlapping guitars with an excellent, synchronized rhythm section provided by Rick Grossman on bass and Mark Kingsmill. Brad Shepherd's backing vocals and rhythm guitar add to the diversity and depth of the band’s repitoire. This Australian import is one of the better groups sounding off from down under. Considering their abil ity, heading into the heartland would probably meet with a wild and favorable response. Consider ing the bands combined talent, a crowd in this area would not be disappointed. The Hoodoo Gurus are an unusual act when compared to other bands in this area, and the normally laid back midwestem audience may be forced to sit up and take notice. Look out for this band, their combination of musical, lyrical and unusual vocal talents create quite the spellbinding mixture that makes one want to consult the Gurus, and see what they have to say. — Chad Johnson