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Contemporary art exhibit opens at Sterling College
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Three works in the “Forms of Visibility” art exhibition at the Sterling College Gallery include (left to right): “Bird Song” by Levente Sulyok; “Wrapping Form” by Scott Jones; and “Hair: The American Tribal Rock Musical” by Jennifer Ray. The exhibition runs through March 22.

STERLING — “Forms of Visibility: Contemporary Art in Central Kansas,” an exhibition arranged and curated by Sterling College art professor Brian Prugh, opened last week and will be on display in the Sterling College Gallery through Wednesday, March 22. 

According to Prugh, the main theme is that contemporary art uses a wide variety of formal devices, techniques, and technologies to make invisible forces, ideas, or concepts visible in some way. The exhibition includes photography, printmaking, sculpture, video, and painting-like objects.

The artists are all from Wichita State University, three professors and three graduate students. Prugh reached out to Wichita State Art professor Bubp and met with him in a studio visit. Prugh got to know his work and organized this group show. 

Besides Bubp, “Forms of Visibility” features the work of Jennifer Ray, Levente Sulyok, and others that use a wide variety of visual media to interrogate the invisible and bring it into view.

“One of art’s most important functions has been to approach those social and cultural forces that are invisible, amorphous, and yet powerfully formative of the world we inhabit and to create visual forms in which these forces coalesce into something that becomes visible,” Prugh said.

“This is a great way to see a challenging contemporary art exhibit right here in Sterling. These artists are going beyond ‘traditional’ artistic media like painting, drawing, studio photography, and carved sculpture and incorporating ready made objects, found imagery, and video documentation to create thought-provoking visual ideas. It’s the kind of work that you would see in contemporary art galleries or major museums, produced by artists working locally.”

“Forms of Visibility: Contemporary Art in Central Kansas” will be on exhibit from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays through March 22 in the Sterling College Gallery, 306 West Washington, Sterling. There is no admission charge for the exhibition. 

Prugh also wrote the catalog essay which is part of the exhibition and will be giving a “Gallery Talk” on the exhibition at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 7 in the Gallery, which is also open to the public free of charge.