The family road trip. Highway billboards. A daily commute. Roadside cafes.
Chet Susslinr / The Citizen
Kurt Pfeiffer's piece “Unleaded Plus.”
Kurt Pfeiffer's piece “Unleaded Plus.”
Few things connect the American experience like the country's roads and highways. Over the next two months, visitors to the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center will be able to experience the meaning of those routes through the eyes of artists from around the country.
“Highways & Byways: American Road Culture” opens Sunday at the center. The multi-genre exhibition features pieces from 18 artists who submitted work focusing on America's roads.
“This is an important part of American culture,” said Stephanie Schuster, the Schweinfurth's assistant director, during the exhibition's installation. “(The road) is such an important part of what we do every day.”
The show features paintings, photographs, video art, multimedia and more, with subject matter ranging from vast landscapes to bright, kitschy signs.
Some of the pieces drive home a point, like a bright painting called “Patriotism” depicting a raccoon turned road kill in front of a row of brand new cars flying American flags.
Others are a bit more ambiguous, with paintings of rusted-out trucks and mint condition, classic motorcycles. One artist, Willson Cummer, has a series of photographs depicting urban parking garages.
A video piece by Bill Klingensmith features an entire road trip from Rochester to St. Louis, Mo. with time-lapse photography.
Visitors will be able to hear two artists discuss their work at gallery talks during the show's run. Photographer Barbara Conte-Gaugel will speak on Sept. 7, and collage artist Keith MacLelland will stop by Oct. 12. Both events will start at 2 p.m.
While many of the artists featured in “Highways & Byways” come from upstate New York, the show exhibits many works from around the country. Artists from Illinois, Washington, Pennsylvania and North Carolina sent in work for consideration, Schuster said.
She added that it is “unusual” for the Schweinfurth to show works from such diverse locations.
“It's kind of a good mix, and we're happy to have all these new artists,” Schuster said.
The end result is a variety of unique perspectives on a common theme. And since the theme is one with which most people are very familiar, it makes for a very accessible art show, she said.
“I think overall, this is an extremely entertaining exhibition,” Schuster said. “It is really going to be engaging for people.”
Christopher Caskey
253-5311 ext. 282
christopher.caskey@lee.net
A closer look at the work of Kurt Pfeiffer
“Highways & Byways” features a handful of bright paintings depicting scenes that seem much older than they really are. Kurt Pfeiffer's images of price signs at gas stations serve as a harsh reminder that there was a time when gas was less than $2.50 a gallon, and that time was not that long ago.
In his artist statement, Pfeiffer reveals that he first started his series in 2005 while he was in Los Angeles. At the time, gas prices in the city were around $2.49 a gallon, a good 50 cents higher than the rest of the country, he wrote in his statement.
“In such a short time,” Pfeiffer writes, “these old prices have become nostalgic rows of cheery number.”
If you go.
What: “Highways & Byways: American Road Culture”
When: Sunday, Aug. 30 through Oct. 18; opening reception 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center, 205 Genesee St., Auburn
Cost: $3 suggested admission for adults; children 12 and younger free
Info: Call 255-1553 or visit www.myartcenter.org
“Highways & Byways: American Road Culture” opens Sunday at the center. The multi-genre exhibition features pieces from 18 artists who submitted work focusing on America's roads.
“This is an important part of American culture,” said Stephanie Schuster, the Schweinfurth's assistant director, during the exhibition's installation. “(The road) is such an important part of what we do every day.”
The show features paintings, photographs, video art, multimedia and more, with subject matter ranging from vast landscapes to bright, kitschy signs.
Some of the pieces drive home a point, like a bright painting called “Patriotism” depicting a raccoon turned road kill in front of a row of brand new cars flying American flags.
Others are a bit more ambiguous, with paintings of rusted-out trucks and mint condition, classic motorcycles. One artist, Willson Cummer, has a series of photographs depicting urban parking garages.
A video piece by Bill Klingensmith features an entire road trip from Rochester to St. Louis, Mo. with time-lapse photography.
Visitors will be able to hear two artists discuss their work at gallery talks during the show's run. Photographer Barbara Conte-Gaugel will speak on Sept. 7, and collage artist Keith MacLelland will stop by Oct. 12. Both events will start at 2 p.m.
While many of the artists featured in “Highways & Byways” come from upstate New York, the show exhibits many works from around the country. Artists from Illinois, Washington, Pennsylvania and North Carolina sent in work for consideration, Schuster said.
She added that it is “unusual” for the Schweinfurth to show works from such diverse locations.
“It's kind of a good mix, and we're happy to have all these new artists,” Schuster said.
The end result is a variety of unique perspectives on a common theme. And since the theme is one with which most people are very familiar, it makes for a very accessible art show, she said.
“I think overall, this is an extremely entertaining exhibition,” Schuster said. “It is really going to be engaging for people.”
Christopher Caskey
253-5311 ext. 282
christopher.caskey@lee.net
A closer look at the work of Kurt Pfeiffer
“Highways & Byways” features a handful of bright paintings depicting scenes that seem much older than they really are. Kurt Pfeiffer's images of price signs at gas stations serve as a harsh reminder that there was a time when gas was less than $2.50 a gallon, and that time was not that long ago.
In his artist statement, Pfeiffer reveals that he first started his series in 2005 while he was in Los Angeles. At the time, gas prices in the city were around $2.49 a gallon, a good 50 cents higher than the rest of the country, he wrote in his statement.
“In such a short time,” Pfeiffer writes, “these old prices have become nostalgic rows of cheery number.”
If you go.
What: “Highways & Byways: American Road Culture”
When: Sunday, Aug. 30 through Oct. 18; opening reception 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center, 205 Genesee St., Auburn
Cost: $3 suggested admission for adults; children 12 and younger free
Info: Call 255-1553 or visit www.myartcenter.org
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