February 2015: Landscape Beyond

The Harrison Center for the Arts presents Landscape Beyond, surreal and abstract landscape paintings by Benaiah Cusack. Cusack is a contemporary landscape painter in Indianapolis who emerged on the art scene in 2012. His surreal and abstract paintings embody dramatic color, texture, mixed media elements and his unique view of nature, fantasy and the mystical.

In Gallery No. 2, a collaboration between Joel Dart and Kathryn Dart bridges their respective creative worlds: the technical and the visual. Joel has written a series of poems in JavaScript, a programming language, and together they have created art to further represent the concepts in the poetry. Using the pixel as a building block, these works map out the words and symbols, giving the viewer a visual window into the technical poetry.

HCA artist and elementary school art teacher, Amy Reel’s show, Colossal, in the City Gallery, features larger than life portraits. Reel says, “Unlike traditional to-scale portraiture, these works share the role of art and art-observer with those who view them. The viewer is confronted with the presence of the person and forced to see them. The subjects were chosen because they are people around us. They are portraits of my community: The Oaks Academy. Relatives, friends, colleagues, and students are familiar and usually comfortable, until they are staring back larger than life size.”

Hank & Dolly’s Gallery features the PhotoVoice Project. Because of their ability to quickly learn English and understand Western systems and customs, Burmese adolescents are often the liaisons between their families and the greater Indianapolis community. This Photovoice Project gives us an opportunity to glimpse into their lives. By giving the adolescents cameras and discussing the photos they capture, we have a better understanding of their role in the Burmese community, and in particular, the barrier faced by the Burmese in regards to health and medical care."

Work by artists Chad Campbell, Hector Del Campo and Kandi Jamieson will be on display in the Gallery Annex.

The Ballet Theatre of Indiana will give a series of short performances in the gymnasium. Ballet Theatre of Indiana is a professional classical ballet company based in the greater Indianapolis area.

With support from: the Arts Council of Indianapolis, the Indiana Arts Commission, INHP, Christel DeHaan Family Foundation, Allen Whitehill Clowes Foundation, the Indianapolis Foundation, Sun King Brewery and Amy McAdams Design.

Member, IDADA (Indianapolis Downtown Artists and Dealers Association),www.idada.org