The William King Museum is currently housing 15 ETSU Art and Design students’ artwork in the “What is Appalachia?” exhibit. The exhibit primarily focuses on each student’s experience and definition with the rich culture of the region. The exhibition is available for public viewing during regular museum hours until Oct. 24, 2021.
The exhibition includes various art forms such as sculpture, painting, photography, digital prints and other forms of crafts. The variety in art forms truly pushes the commentary of the exhibition further, creating a shared sacred place that brings forward the question: “What does Appalachia mean to you?”. Each piece focuses on the artist’s rendition of what the region means to them, and through this, the combat of stereotypes is found.
“Tonight is a result of a lot of students’ hard work,” Michael Fowler, assistant professor of Art History, said.
The exhibition, primarily put together by Fowler, has been worked on for seven months. The students, ranging from undergraduates to graduate and masters students, all put their heart and the soul of Appalachia into their art. The exhibition originally stemmed from an Art in Appalachia course during a semester.
“The students actually were studying a lot of art and craft produced in the region, and one of the museums actually figured into the students’ coursework was the William King museum as an important collection of historical art,” Fowler said.
Hanna Traynham, who is currently pursuing her masters in ceramics at ETSU, and Laree McMurray, a bachelor of Fine Arts student, both created pieces for the exhibition.
“It was a learning process for me. I felt really engaged in the process. Learning about this firing technique called pit firing, which is a traditional Cherokee firing style, made me feel really connected to the way they used to fire,” Traynham said.
Traynham’s sculpture is comprised of numerous pieces of clay to create a spiraling art piece that draws you to its center through texture, color, and size. The firing technique pays homage to Cherokee ceramicists. McMurray’s turtle shell sculpture is Traynham’s colorful counterpart, with the design of the shell being similar to a patchwork quilt. McMurray’s shell reflects upon the folkways of the Appalachian region.
“I’ve realized through this project that there’s so much, so many layers and levels and individual personalities, and so many individual responses to what Appalachia is,” Traynham said.
“Mine is really a gathering of everything Appalachia is to me, because it has sentimental value, and a connection to nature. It’s basically a physical embodiment of what Appalachia is to me,” McMurray said.
The “What is Appalachia?” exhibition can be viewed at the William King Museum in Abington, VA during regular museum hours.
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