Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 22, 1999)
:"'TV;-V JMENT :.i Monday, November 22,1999 ~~ Page 9 HONG-YOUN KIM, a textile clothing design graduate student, proposed her ideas for her thesis show in January* The show is a combi nation of American and Asian designs. UNL alum featured at Sheldon By Jason Hardy Senior staff writer In a fast-paced world of technological innovation, the phrase “stop and smell the roses” has never been more relevant. Lincoln artist Judith Burton has creat ed 20 paintings to illustrate this sentiment. Her work will be featured as part of the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery’s ongoing “Sheldon Solo” series, which features nationally recognized contemporary artists who’ve contributed to the spectrum of American art. As a lifelong Lincoln resident, Burton’s inclusion in the series also demonstrates the Sheldon’s devotion to showcasing local and regional artists whose work transcends the local commu nity. The exhibition, which runs Wednesday through Jan. 16, 2000, Js titled ?Visual Nuances,” a name chosen to illustrate Burton’s approach to painting. “The composition is very subtle. The color is subtle. The drawing is subtle. You might not notice the object right away, so you have to look very closely,” said Daniel Siedell, curator and interim director of the Sheldon. “She’s an object painter, but she’s also an abstract painter, so the objects are there, but she’s interested in more than just ** the -object birt how'the Objects come together. “You don’t evaluate die success or fail ure of a picture of hers by how closely it resembles the object.” In some ways, Burton’s works can be described as still lifes, but because she delves deeper into the development of the objects and their relation to the space around them, Siedell said, classification of her woik can’t be limited to just being still lifes? “The object is just the starting-off point,” he said. “They don’t jump out at you."They make you go into them.” , Burton said her worSTgrew out of an 6t The object is just the starting-offpoint. They don’t jump out at you. They make you go into them.” Daniel Siedell Sheldon curator interest in the more subtle aspects of every day life. “I guess I’m just interested in objects that I can see anywhere,” she saijd. “Just insignificant pieces of things lying around, and some of them have personal meaning to me, some of them don’t “I try to give them some significance because they’re something that would maybe be overlooked by people.” Burton received an undergraduate degree in art from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1955 and completed a master of fine arts degree at UNL in 1989. She said she made a conscious effort to combine mimetic as well as expressive elements intothdr work. “I’m not interested in painting the object exactly as it is. I’m interested in paint and the quality of paint and how I can move it and manipulate it,” she said. “I don’t have a lot of splashy colors because I’m interested in small contrasts, things that are tonal and subtle, but I like the structure, too.” Siedell said much of Burton’s work portrays such things as a ceramic egg, a cheese grater or a jug. These things ordi narily wouldn’t have much significance, Siedell said, but when painted by Burton, they seem to carry a different meaning Please see PAINTINGS on 10 Courtesy Photos TOP: Burton’s emphasis on subtlety in (<Same But Different” contrasts the visu al overload of today’s society. ABOVE: In “Four-sided Grater,” Judith Burton painted an ordinary cheese grater, bringing attention to the artistry in everyday objects. res iDEr Textiles exhibit blends nature, American and Asian cultures together By Josh Krauter Senior staff writer Hong-Youn Kim knows about succeeding in two separate and unique cultures. She’s had to do it herself. Kim graduated from Yonsei University in Korea, where she studied textile clothing design. Now a gradu ate student at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, she is bringing Asian and American culture together in an exhibition of her original clothing designs, “East Meets West.” r— ■ Kim said her clothing exhibit was inspired by the American designers H a 1 s t o n , Bonnie Cashin and Claire McCardell, as well as the Japanese designers Yohji Yamamoto, Issey Miyake and Rei Kawakubo. Kim said these designers have a lot in common. “They had very similar philosophies,” she said. “Their designs were for the ordinary woman and her work and her needs.” Kim said each designer i m—■ ii — i in i imii Heather Glenbosh/DN TWO PIECES FROM the Water por tion of Kim’s exhibit show the com bination of fabrics she chose. The shownpens tonight at 6 in the RobertHillestad Textiles 6allery in the Home Economics Ruilding on East Campus. maue cioines for the independent career woman, stressing comfort and a natural feminine aesthetic. Kim said she patterned her work after these design ers. “I picked the design lines they used, the fabrication, the color of the clothes, the drape of the body,” she said. Kim’s combination of Asian and American designs creates a new look that can’t be geographically placed. She said this was intentional. “We live in a multicultural society now,” she said. “It doesn’t look either Eastern or Western, but it com bines the two.” . Even the fabric is multicultural. Some of the fabric was made in Kansas City, Mo., and some in Korea. Besides the Eastern and Western combination, the exhibit is also connected to the environment. The pieces ~.r ~i~:___i • ^_ i v/x vxi/ixixxxg aiw tutu iUUI ocuiu, Earth, Wind and Water. Sand and Wind have a more traditional Eastern look, with Earth and Water harder to place geographi cally. Sand is more casual, with light brown hnd white colors. Earth is a diverse mix of colors and styles. Wind is composed of a singular white and green outfit, “Eastern Visions,” and Water features lighter yellows and blues. Kim said Japanese designers are inspired by nature and use a lot of it in their work, but she said she didn’t notice the nature themes in her own work until niter she completed the designs. Kim will wear a traditional Korean dress made with Western fabric she created especially for the exhibit opening. “East Meets West” was a long time in the making, Kim said. She proposed the idea and started sketching designs in January and started putting the fabric togeth er in May. Kim said she received a lot of help along the way from her adviser, Barbara Trout, an associate professor Please see CULTURES on 10