Art exhibit allows seniors to show off their best

Held in the Lower Gallery of Meyerson Hall, the exhibition will extend to February 12. This weekend's opening of the Senior Major and Minor Fine Arts Exhibition displayed some of the University's finest, as Fine Arts students showed off their best artistic pieces. The exhibition, held in the Lower Gallery of Meyerson Hall, will run through February 12. Though the Fine Arts Department has often been overshadowed in the past, University President Judith Rodin has given a direct "mandate" to Undergraduate Fine Arts Chairperson Julie Schneider to build one of the best -- if not the best -- art programs in the country, Schneider said. "You expand the numbers and solidify the program, conceptually and technically," Schneider said. "Build critical mass, update facilities and find the best professors and the best students." Although a number of majors and minors chose not participate in the exhibition due to shyness, modesty or disinterest, Schneider said she was "incredibly proud" of her students and the work they produced. College sophomore Abby Feldman was impressed by much of the work, especially the artwork of Fine Arts minor and College senior Yoona Lee. "Yoona's work is the strongest I've seen," Feldman said. Schneider also praised Lee, who was continually stopping by the students and faculty milling around the exhibition. Lee entered 11 pieces of art into the exhibition, including two paintings entitled "Blue Vase on Carrot-Like Surface" and "The Languorous Gesture of Decadence." One of the pieces Lee took the most pride in was "Dickensian Self-Portrait," a portrait using symbols to represent the self. The work expressed the "strong element of Victorianism in my aesthetics along with the 1880's notion of degeneration and ruination often dealing with my fascination of the macabre," Lee added. Other students Schneider commended were College seniors Christina Kim, Amy Slutak, Charles Kim, Anne Katzen, Nye Warburton and Patty McCole. McCole presented a piece of mixed media artwork made up of circular decorations that were thrown out after the rally for President Clinton last October. The piece's red, white and blue circles represent people of different ethnic races in society and the height of the circles represent leadership, McCole said. The entire work symbolizes white males' monopoly of power. "Art is what I enjoy. I would never use it to make money," McCole added. "It's more like a creative process -- an outlet for me. Without art, something is really missing in my life." Schneider noted that the growing success of the Fine Arts exhibition shows the developing strength of the department. "I am really delighted because we are building the foundation where soon, in two years, the seniors will be grounded and the exhibition will be fabulous," she said. The foundations Schneider hopes to build upon include the renovation of the Asbury Church near Hill Field, which is being renamed Adams Hall. In addition to increasing the department's space, the building will house a state-of-the-art photography area. But at the present time, Schneider noted that the exhibition is an excellent opportunity to display work from students of all levels. "Penn art students produce work and discussions that are extremely thoughtful with the quality that one would expect to find at an institution solely for art," she said.