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Written by Don Laur Wednesday, 24 June 2009 12:35

News - Faculty News and Awards

Exploring landscape, society, and the environment at the Southern Illinois Art Gallery

Whittington, IL ñ The Grammar of Landscape: Photographic Visions of Illinois, the Southern Illinois Art Galleryís newest exhibit, will be on view through October 4, 2009. The Grammar of Landscape: Photographic Visions of Illinois looks at the land around our state in terms of building blocks: wetlands, prairies, forest, plains, agriculture, the lake, the city, and industry. In a healthy environment these ìunitsî function symbiotically to create a viable ecobiotic system in much the same way that parts of speech combine to create effective language for communication. The way we talk about the land reflects how we feel about it ñ and, ultimately, the kinds of stewards we are of our specific landscapes and our larger community, the earth.

One of the ten photographers whose work is included in the exhibition is Gary Kolb, who has photographed the Shawnee National Forest for almost thirty years. Five landscape photographs and three digital montages of the Shawnee National Forest represent Kolbís work in the exhibition. Gary Kolb currently serves as the Dean of the College of Mass Communications and Media Arts at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Also included are photographers Art Sinsabaugh, one of the late masters whose iconomic panoramas changed Midwestern photography; mature mid-career artists Barbara Crane; Gary Kolb; Rhondal McKinney, and Bob Thall; a newer generation including Michelle Keim; Jin Lee, Michael McGuire; and Bill Sosin; and the late David Avison ñ all of whom have made commitments to their individual landscapes, rural, urban, or industrial.

A scholarly foundation exists which connects the experience of art with the human experience in the environment. The world famous scholar E. O. Wilson introduced the term ìbiophiliaî to address the humanís natural affinity for the environment. The Canadian/Japanese biologist, writer, and filmmaker David Suzuki speaks of the necessary re-integration of people into the environment. Wilson, Suzuki, and others feel that if we do not address these issues and educate people to live in ways that will not destroy the environment, we doom ourselves to being the last animal on the planet ñ ecocide.

The Grammar of Landscape maps the terrain of our state through the eyes of artists with unique visions. As part of the mapping concept inherent in the exhibit, United State Geological Survey Maps are placed by each artistís work to show where he or she found inspiration. Wall labels based on the ideas of important environmental philosophers of our day complete the exhibit. The exhibition is curated by Judith Lloyd Klauba, Associate Curator of Art, Illinois State Museum Chicago Gallery.

The Illinois State Museum Southern Illinois Art Gallery is located at the Southern Illinois Art and Artisans Center, six miles north of Benton just off I-57 at Exit #77. Open daily 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, please call 618-629-2220.