An untitled work by Michael Stillion (2012, oil on canvas) will be part of an exhibit at the Birke Art Gallery on Marshall University’s Huntington campus until Sept. 14.
The slate of Marshall University’s Birke Art Gallery exhibitions for fall semester begins today with a display of artwork by Cincinnati-based artists/educators Michael Stillion and Kate Labmeier. The exhibit will feature oil paintings and drawings by Stillion, and embroidered “animal portraits” by Labmeier.
A reception with light refreshments will take place at the gallery from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 30. At 5:30 p.m., Stillion will lead students and patrons in an informal discussion of the work on display and his experiences as a working artist.
For the husband-and-wife duo, this kind of joint exhibition is a first.
“Katie and I are very excited to be displaying our work together for the first time at Marshall University,” Stillion said. “It will be interesting to see how our pieces work next to one another as we share many of the same experiences, yet our interpretations of similar subjects are very different. The overall theme of the show is portraiture, and we hope that the college community can see that there is more than one way to approach a portrait – in both subject matter and material.”
“We are excited to bring the work of these two talented artists to Marshall University,” Gallery Director John Farley said. “It will be a great opportunity for our community, students and local artists to meet, interact with and learn from two active, contemporary artists who are quickly making names for themselves in the field.”
Stillion received a B.F.A. in 2002 from the Columbus College of Art and Design and an M.F.A. from the Indiana University Graduate School of Fine Arts in Bloomington, Ind., in 2007. He has been represented in numerous solo, group and juried exhibits, including a recent solo exhibition at Linda Warren Projects in Chicago. Stillion has been awarded several residencies, fellowships and grants, including a unique one-year, full fellowship as a Roswell Artist-In-Residence (R.A.I.R.) in Roswell, N.M. He currently is an instructor at the Columbus College of Art and Design.
“Big Hat Bird” (2009, embroidery floss and aida cloth) by Katie Labmeier will be on exhibit at the Birke Art Gallery on Marshall University’s Huntington campus until Sept. 14.
Labmeier received a B.F.A. in 2002 from the Columbus College of Art and Design and an M.A. in art education and an M.F.A. in visual art from the University of Cincinnati in 2009. She has exhibited extensively in Cincinnati, Columbus and throughout the Midwest. She has received several awards, including a Reneé Steidle Award from the Columbus Foundation. Labmeier currently works at ArtWorks Cincinnati as a public arts manager.
The exhibition will remain on display until Sept. 14. Gallery hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and Monday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. The gallery experience is always free and open to the public.
