Thanks to SBCC Channels for the great review on ANNEX: Student art showcased in ‘Alchemy of Light and Space’

Santa Barbara City College student artists displayed their work during the exhibit, “Alchemy of Light and Space,” on Monday, April 7 in the John Dunn Gourmet Dining Room. The sculpture, “Ride,” by Charles Starr, out of metal and plastic, is one of a series that features a very small astronaut as the main subject in the piece.

SKYLAR SERGE, Channels Staff
April 8, 2014
Filed under A&E, Arts & Entertainment, Local

The new exhibit, “Alchemy of Light and Space,” features 10 student artists who use their imagination to unravel the synergetic relationship between light and space.

On Monday night, in The John Dunn Gourmet Dining Room, intern for the Atkinson Gallery, Lia DeWit curated her second show.

Vibrant acrylic paintings and original sculptures take on the task of defining and helping us understand the parallel between light and space, as well as how they come together to create something beyond our realm of consciousness.

The acrylic painting, “Wingspun the Blade Wearer,” created by student, Natalie Millan is like fire from a dragon’s mouth. The dramatic painting is of a human face in various shades of orange paint. The expression on this characters face makes many stop to look a little longer, it is as if you are looking straight through someone’s eyes. The way Millan incorporates deep red tones into her work is seamless. The white light hinted in her eyes fills the viewer with a captivating feeling.

Fast brush strokes in the background, along with her color palate, create a visual conception of how emotion affects the human soul.

In a cutout lime green box, sits a wire configuration that is somewhat architectural. Hot pink color fills the border of the box in clean lines. Student Ben Eckert created a refined and interesting perspective in his sculpture.

In the middle of the dining room stands a white pedestal, holding the metal and plastic sculpture created by student, Charles Starr. In his piece titled, “Ride,” a small astronaut has landed on a unique brown surface, resembling what a planet’s surface might be like. Starr molded pieces of plastic and metal to create a ball like shape. The tiny, yet, not unnoticed astronaut stands on top of the surface, seemingly waiting for adventure.

In a statement about the show, DeWit said, “Space may be defined either by presence or absence as when the interior volume is revealed, while light defines an environment giving depth, perspective, and volume.”

Seeon Kim, a graphic illustrator also had a unique approach for her piece, titled “Matryoshka,” where elements of volume and light are clearly perceived. On a stretched canvas, Kim created an un-human like face that is recreated at different levels of depth, almost like evolving into deeper levels of consciousness.

The ten artists to have their works displayed featured a collection of different mediums, yet all flowed with the concept of “Alchemy of Light and Space.” This exhibit also allows a chance to see original and innovative student concepts coming to life in different artistic forms.

“Alchemy of Light and Space” will be open to students from now until May 16.