Conversation XIV: Water

Exhibition

Exhibition Overview

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Conversation XIV: Water
Kris Ercums, curator
Kate Meyer, curator
March 23, 2013–July 28, 2013
Gallery 405, Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas

Water is timeless…or is it? This installation of works from the Spencer’s collection explores contemporary artists’ perspectives on the elixir of life: H₂0. Many of the works assembled for this installation take a critical approach to the subject matter, exploring pollution and scarcity, whereas others address water symbolically, as a cleansing or destructive force. From this selection of 20th- and 21st-century works, a visual dialogue emerges between the Kaw River of Kansas and the Yangtze of China.

Exhibition images

Works of art

At the Well, Jean-Claude Severe (born 1950s)
Jean-Claude Severe (born 1950s)
At the Well, circa 1970
86 Bends of the Kaw, Lisa Grossman (born 1967)
Lisa Grossman (born 1967)
Alpha-Omega: Water Tower #5, Richard Mawdsley (born 1945)
Richard Mawdsley (born 1945)
Rain Table, Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Rain Table, 2000
Rain #2, Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Rain #2, 2000
Rain, Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Rain, 2000
Dust Bowl Rain, Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Tony Fitzpatrick (1958–2025); Big Cat Press
Above the Water, Josef Albers (1888–1976)
Josef Albers (1888–1976)
Place Defined by Lack of Water, Wanda Hammerbeck (born 1945)
Wanda Hammerbeck (born 1945)
A Portion of the Largest Desert Civilization Still in Existence, Wanda Hammerbeck (born 1945)
Wanda Hammerbeck (born 1945)
Ocean Surface, Vija Celmins (born 1938)
Vija Celmins (born 1938)
Free Element, Plate XXIX, DoDo Jin Ming (born 1955)
DoDo Jin Ming (born 1955)
Yangtze Dam in China, Chesley K. Bonestell (1888–1986)
Chesley K. Bonestell (1888–1986)
Yangtze Dam in China, circa 1949
Lamb I, Ernesto Pujol (born 1957)
Ernesto Pujol (born 1957)
Lamb I, 2009–2010
Lamb 2, Ernesto Pujol (born 1957)
Ernesto Pujol (born 1957)
Lamb 2, 2009–2010
长江行走－晶体 Changjiangg xingzou—jingti (Yangtze River Walk—Crystals), Zhiyuan Chen (born 1985)
Zhiyuan Chen (born 1985)

Events

February 22, 2013
Conference
Beyond the Long Hot Summer: The Future of Water in Kansas
4:00–7:30PM
The Commons
April 6, 2013
Workshop
World Environment
9:30AM–3:00PM
The Commons
April 6, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
10:00AM–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 7, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
12:00–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 12–April 13, 2013
Conference
Global Water: Drought, Conservation and Security in the 21st Century
9:00AM–6:00PM
The Commons
April 13, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
10:00AM–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 20, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
10:00AM–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 21, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
12:00–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 26, 2013
Talk
An Errant Line
12:00–1:00PM
Gallery 317 Central Court
April 26, 2013
Activity
Final Friday
6:00–8:00PM
April 27, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
10:00AM–4:00PM
Gallery 405
April 28, 2013
Activity
Water Transformations
12:00–4:00PM
Gallery 405
May 9, 2013
Talk
Watershed
5:00–7:00PM
Gallery 405, Gallery 317 Central Court
May 28–June 1, 2013
Conference
Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment (ASLE) Tenth Biennial Conference: Changing Nature: Migrations, Energies, Limits
May 28, 2013
Workshop
Association for the Study of Literature and the Environment (ASLE) Pre-conference Seminar on "Ecocritical Art History"
1:00–6:15PM
307 Reception Room
June 8, 2013
Talk
Walking on "Water"
1:00–2:00PM
Gallery 405

Resources

Documents

Media Release