April 9, 2008

Scorpion Chair

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Works by three University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) bachelor of fine art students will be on show April 18-May 9 at the UAB Visual Arts Gallery, 900 13th St. S. The exhibition opens with a reception 5-7 p.m. Friday, April 18, at the gallery. Admission to the gallery is always free. Call 205-934-0815.

UAB Visual Arts Gallery hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and 1-5 p.m. Saturday. The gallery is closed on Sundays and holidays.

This exhibition features works by students Adam Stoves, John Butler and Courtney Peterson, all graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Each student approaches their media in unique ways.

Stoves describes his works as taking subjects out of their usual contexts and reconstructing imagery in unexpected or unfamiliar grounds. Working with collage, digital media and drawing, his works create unexpected relationships in almost completely blank, neutral backgrounds.

Butler works in a more physical space. His pieces explore the shared relationships between furniture and sculpture, challenging expectations of both. His interpretation results in pieces such as the "Voyeurism Lounge" or "Scorpion Chair."

Peterson's works consider ideas of pattern and movement in nature. In works such as "Koi Pond" and "The Day the Birds Came," Peterson makes evident the seemingly random nature of the spaces each subject inhabits. Working with collographs, which are prints created from collaged elements, allows her to reflect the ways in which textures and layers are created in nature.