New eye candy for the art enthusiast
For students at the College of Eastern Utah, a new exhibit at Gallery East means new eye candy for the art enthusiast to chew on. But with this week’s opening of Audioptic Art, students will be able to please much more than their eyes. This is the first showing of a new genre called “sound art” that was created by BYU students Jason Metcalf and Conrad Nebeker.
This archived article was written by: Kylee Bird
For students at the College of Eastern Utah, a new exhibit at Gallery East means new eye candy for the art enthusiast to chew on. But with this week’s opening of Audioptic Art, students will be able to please much more than their eyes. This is the first showing of a new genre called “sound art” that was created by BYU students Jason Metcalf and Conrad Nebeker.
Sound art paintings are created with ink and paper using sound rather than a brush to manipulate the paint, thereby creating unique and individual images. Paintings, sculpture, and video installations are physically created through sound frequencies, therefore giving the viewer a literal of something otherwise intangible.
This exhibit literally gives every one something to see. When entering your eyes are first drawn to what appears to be white gift boxes hanging on the wall that have had bright colors thrown on them, the way an inkblot made over by Jerry Garcia would look. In actuality they are watercolor paper stretched over a wood frame and the color is placed horizontally on a table, then sound vibrations move the ink into art.
Also included in the exhibit are slide shows showing the way it is created. And if that is not enough, the artists have included a live visual of Audioptic Art at work. In the center of the gallery is a large table with water on top and underneath sound instruments pumping their waves up into the water creating different patterns on the water.
“It’s really unlike what we’ve seen before at the gallery,” says gallery director Robert De Groff. “I think it will challenge viewers on what are really is.”
If your looking for something completely innovative and unlike almost anything you can find in an art gallery then you will not be let down by this exhibit.
The exhibit will be displayed March 5-30 at the Gallery East from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. located in the northwest corner of SAC building on campus. There is no cost to view the exhibit. And if you are really interested in the art, you can meet the artists in person at a reception held on March 23rd from 6-8 p.m. in the gallery.
