Ross Gallery
Humanity Through Environments
Tuan Mai and Ingrid Swanson
Exhibition Dates: August 14 – October 5, 2023
Recent graduates of the Associate in Visual Arts program, Tuan Mai and Ingrid Swanson, bring us an energetic and colorful exhibition, ‘Humanity Through Environments.’ The exhibition focuses on our environments as human being as in what ways we relate and conform (or not) to those environments.
“Every story has a setting. We as humans are creatures whose memories and experiences are so often compelled by our surroundings. The question this body of work asks is, “What are we if not part of something greater?” – Ingrid Swanson
No one stands unaffected by the external forces at work in our lives. To detach yourself from your environment is to lose your humanity. Your environment is your perspective: from seeing life as it is to seeing cities bathed in color. Whether examining a story up close or seeing the bigger context, this series of oil, acrylic, watercolor, and ceramics tells of the interactions between people and spaces. Each facet of the face, each loose or contained brush mark, each detail informs the viewer of the subject’s story.
Ingrid Swanson is a Latina artist, whose keen interest in the innermost parts of people’s hearts has led her to pursue fine art. Though it may be through oil, acrylic, watercolor, or clay- bold marks and color are signature in Swanson’s work.
Raised in Vietnam, Mai came to the United State in 2017 to look for a new chapter in his art career. Mai’s paintings are a series of art that try to capture the daily activities of communities. With different mediums such as oil paints, acrylic paints, ink, watercolor, Mai creates story-telling works of art.
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Overcash Gallery
The Thin Red Line
Mario Loprete
Exhibition Dates: August 14 – October 5, 2023
Italian artist, Mario Loprete brings to us a fresh look at the archaic artistic culture of Italy with hip hop vibe. Created during the lockdowns of 2020, Loprete the idea of street art and street performers, or lack thereof during the lockdowns, inspired him. Reversing the concept of bringing art to the streets, Loprete brings street to art.
Ancient Romans famously built and sculpted out of concrete. Using his own clothing as inspiration, Loprete created concrete sculptures formed out of shirts, hats, shoes and more. Using masks as a support medium, Loprete incorporates hip hop dance and graffiti into his exhibition, mixing both traditional and contemporary styles as his muse.