Art Appreciation in Academia

The University of Iowa preserves a rare body of artwork, dubbed the Graduate Thesis Collection. This collection originated in the 1930s and is comprised of over 6,000 works donated by graduate students completing their studies at Iowa. Departments around campus rent the artwork for their office spaces. Some of the works, due to controversial or explicit content for instance, are never rented and therefore never see past the storage vault in which they are kept. The works can never be officially purchased, or at least have never been in the past. What if you could buy this work? Owning such unique work would give you a critical glimpse of the academic art produced over the past century. Private ownership of any works from the Thesis Gallery would be a one-of-a-kind opportunity that a patron from Iowa could not possibly resist. Erasing the line between the art market and academia would increase the value and awareness of the art created by students.
Pretend that permission is granted to purchase art from the Thesis Collection. A group of works that particularly interesting is chosen. The selected works include four paintings that vary in content and media, but still seem to work well together as a group. The pieces seem to have great “conversation.” Each piece also has different influences evident from the time period in which each was produced. Each piece also helps represent the academic art experience, particularly here at the University of Iowa. A few of the paintings seem to be responses to popular ways of working, whether that be as an undergrad or, in this case, a graduate student.
The first piece chosen, Pieta, is the oldest piece of the four in the group, dated from 1947. Unfortunately this piece has been in storage of quite some time and needs to be cleaned up and restored, but until that can be done, the piece must be analyzed as it is.
This version of the pieta is less traditional and very contemporary for its time. The pieta has been a common portrayal of the Jesus Christ figure for centuries. The Virgin Mary is depicted here mourning her dead son, just as the traditional pieces do. This painting however has colors that are striking and unusual. Overall the color scheme seems to lean toward being complimentary red/green. The electric blue highlights are unexpected. If hung next to the other works in the group, the blue color would work well with those in the other works.
The sliver of the green moon hints at a background that is then contradicted by the line on the right, which leads the viewer to read that as a corner of a room. This abstracted special depiction forces the viewer to concentrate on the figures.
There is a lack of naturalism that may have been more common in earlier pietas. Here the figures are show in a more abstracted manner with thick, black lines to create shadow and form, almost in a cartoon-like style. This handling of the figures, space, and colors seems to almost mock the religious content of the traditional pieta
The next piece in the group, Target: Fan, happens to be the youngest piece. This painting tricks the viewer. The paint was applied so the textures appear so different, they almost looks like different materials. This piece is somewhat smaller than the pieta, but the sharpness of the edges and the smooth paint application helps to give it a loud voice.
An interesting use of text in this image helps suggest that it was produced in the past decade. Text was uncommon in art until contemporary artists began exploring it, especially with advances in technology and design. Connotations of the word “tender” seem to speak with the emotion of the pieta painting. The blue colors behind the bright yellow-green also reflect the colors chosen for the pieta. This piece draws the viewer in with the subtlety of the shadows and textures that create a dimensional quality that is not common in two-dimensional work.
Painting the studios and buildings in which artists study is commonplace in academic art. The Critique depicts the checkered space in the University of Iowa’s older art building. This space is often used to display works or performances. In the painting students are shown critiquing work. This painting’s inclusion is not only based on the common content, but also the immaculate skill in the art of painting.
The use of linear perspective in this painting is very evident and prominent. The hallway and windows lead the viewer’s eye toward the checkered space, which has been represented with great authenticity. The figures are slightly naturalistic and the shadows are consistent and seemingly accurate. This painting has a similar color scheme to the others, a toned done red that has hints of greens and blues.
The last painting included in this group of graduate works represents another common thread in art, particularly in academia. Often students work from nude models for traditional training in depicted forms and shapes and creating a naturalistic representation of a human body. In this painting, Half, it is not quite clear whether the artist was working directly from a model, a picture, or strictly from memory.
The background has been disregarded and turned into negative space. This is a common habit of art students. When dealing with a confined space on the canvas, young artists tend to forget to engage the whole space, foreground and background. They often depict the figure or object and leave the background solid.
The figure appears to be partly clothed. This was common in Greek and Roman nude depictions. This image however shows a shadowy silhouette of the female figure. The face is shadowed, which may also be what covers parts of the body, but that is unclear.
This painting raises questions to the viewer on intention and meaning. Is the body shadowed or draped? Is that a shadow? Is that a reflection? The connotations of a shadow versus a reflection can greatly change the feeling of the work, and being able to shift between the two interpretations creates a delightful tension and depth in the piece.
Overall this group of works from the Thesis Collection has been selected to best represent the experience in art academia over the past century. As a private collection, these works would be invaluable for any art patron to own. Student work is not often appreciated and is rarely ever collected for value. Creating an opportunity for these works to exist in the current art market would raise the value and awareness of all academic art. Unfortunately these works are not available for purchase, but for the next two weeks at least they can be seen at the show titled Regeneration in the third floor atrium gallery of the new art building.

Pieta, Dorothy Eisenbach, 1947
Half, Kenneth Wiley, 1968.
Target: Fan, Steven Wise, 1998.
The Critique, Claire Darley, 1982.