The Sordoni Art Gallery at Wilkes University will welcome two new photography exhibitions this spring: Why Am I Sad and Formal / Informal: Innovations in Portraiture. On display from March 24 to May 15, the exhibitions examine internal emotion and external presentation, inviting viewers to reflect on how personal experience and identity are expressed through art.
Why Am I Sad by Dana Stirling uses landscape as a mirror for emotion, treating physical spaces as reflections of inner states. “Maybe it’s a deflated happy-face balloon that’s stuck in the trees, or maybe it’s a roadside sign from a motel in the desert,” says Heather Sincavage, gallery director. “There is a sense of life lived and the highs and lows that go along with that.”
Stirling’s work personally resonates with viewers like Melissa Carestia, assistant director. “I always thought I was the only person that got sad when I looked at things,” says Carestia. “But knowing that someone else also feels that way is reassuring and makes you feel less alone.”
An Art in Context gallery talk with Stirling will be held at 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 26.
Sincavage selected this exhibit with cross-curricular learning in mind. Nursing students will visit the gallery to complete an observation exercise, analyzing the artwork and discussing within a team to build clinical observation skills. Sincavage also anticipates visits from psychology majors studying mental illness, as well as English majors who will engage with the exhibition through reflective writing.
“I always say we’re a different kind of classroom because we’re a way you can approach your academics through the lens of art,” says Sincavage.
Formal / Informal: Innovations in Portraiture from the Syracuse University Art Museum brings together a range of portrait styles including both staged and spontaneous images. While the exhibition features work by many well-known photographers, SAG will spotlight late artist Larry Fink who lived in Martin’s Creek, just one hour from the gallery. Over the course of his career, Fink photographed a wide range of subjects from residents of Martin’s Creek to famous figures like Jay-Z, Lady Gaga and Andy Warhol.
An Art in Context screening of the documentary Fink will be held at noon on Tuesday, April 14, followed by a talkback session with Fink’s spouse, Martha Posner, and filmmaker Lisa Schiller.
Additional programming includes an Artventurers session from noon to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 11 where young visitors and their families can create cyanotype prints, a photographic process that uses sunlight, and self-portrait collages. Events for current Wilkes students include picture-frame decorating at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, April 21, and an archiving activity at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, April 28, where students will be invited to reflect on and document the past academic year.
All events are free and open to the public. Reservations are required for the Art in Context Screening of Fink. Please RSVP to melissa.carestia@wilkes.edu.
For more information, visit wilkes.edu/sordoniartgallery.
The Sordoni Art Gallery is located in the Karambelas Media and Communication Center, 141 South Main Street, Wilkes-Barre.
Hours:
Tuesday-Friday | 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Saturday-Sunday | Noon – 5 p.m.
Closed on Monday and University holidays.