An AK-47 hangs on a wall, black as space and soft as a pillow.
Instead of a cold, metal firearm, Bethany Taylor decided to make hers out of fabric. Its barrel droops downward, seemingly sad, like something out of a cartoon.
Inspired by the political debate that Americans are being “soft” on guns, she interpreted this idea literally and fashioned a piece to spark a discussion about it.
“I wanted to call attention to this fetishization of violence in our culture,” said the UF assistant professor of drawing. “Velvet is kind of a memorial sort of material. It makes me think of something that has a ritual to it, and I think guns can be seen as kind of a ritual.”
Taylor put her work on display for the School of Art + Art History 48th Annual Studio Faculty Exhibition, along with many of her colleagues.
Through Sept. 27, a collection of work gathered from professors of UF’s College of Fine Arts will be on display for the public to see in the University Gallery’s newest exhibition. The exhibition’s opening reception is Friday from 7 to 9 p.m.
Another section of the gallery tells a story of the opening of the John Erickson Museum of Art in Berlin. The “museum,” which is a small torpedo-shaped object, was placed underground near the abandoned Teufelsberg Spy Station that the U.S. used for espionage during the 1960s.
UF assistant professor of sculpture Sean Miller shows what was found when he was there.
“All of the listening equipment was housed in these geodesic domes that are really beautiful and strange and sci-fi looking. But now they are falling apart, and there’s this graffiti collective that’s taking over and painting them and cutting them open,” Miller said. “Even though they are messing the site up, they are kind of reimagining the site in interesting ways.”
One of the photos in his collection is a graffiti image of Iron Man drawn by the vandals. Miller also included rubble and a piece of nylon fabric from the spy station in his presentation. He wants people to know about the site and hopes that his piece inspires people to become familiar with it.
The show will display most of the mediums taught by the school of fine arts, some of which include painting, video, mixed media, print, photography and sculpture. One piece in particular sits on a small white table near the front of the gallery. People are shouting and clapping from inside a UPS package. A recording plays voices of another language inside the Amazon.com taped box and draws attention to this normal, everyday object.
“It’s a really tasteful show. It’s a little toned down compared to past years, and I think that’s a reflection of the art world now,” director of the University Gallery Amy Vigilante said.
For this exhibition, Vigilante didn’t curate the show. She let the faculty members present what their most current exploration is.
“What we would like people to do,” Vigilante said, “is look, like it, don’t like it, have your own personal reactions and don’t feel bad about your reactions.”
More than 500 people are expected to attend the opening reception Friday night. Selected works will be available for purchase, and the artists will be there to talk about their pieces.
“The faculty likes to show their work once a year to the students so that they can see the work that we do,” Kelly said. “To have some actual work to show the students, I think, is kind of nice for them.
“It’s nice for us to see each other’s work, too.”
A version of this story ran on page 7 on 9/5/2013 under the headline "Fine Arts faculty puts work on display through Sept. 27"
“Rue The Day” will be on display at University Gallery’s 48th Annual School of Art and Art History Studio Art Faculty Exhibition through Sept. 27. The opening reception is Friday.
