Walking through The University of Memphis Art Building is asensory experience. A maze of strange smells tickle the nose, whileeyes and ears are bombarded with wild color and unfamiliarsound.
The product of the sense-awakening work is the subject of animpromptu art exhibit open to The University community today in theArt Building, Room 108.
"It's a great opportunity to get our work seen by people otherthan our peers in the art department," said graduate art studentVirginia Overton, 31, a sculpting student.
The work on display at the free art exhibit will be presented bygraduate students like Overton. Visitors will view a broad scope ofart from traditional to conceptual, said graduate student mikewindy(sic).
mikewindy, 28, changed his name in an effort to acknowledge hiscreativity.
"We're calling it the Icebreaker Exhibit because it's a chancefor new graduate students to get to know the other graduatestudents, and it's a chance for the rest of The University to getto know what we do," he said.
They create art. Graduate students in the art department choosea concentration and focus on improving techniques and creatingunique, individual art pieces.
Overton and mikewindy's focus is sculpture, however the workexhibited will also include paintings, photographs, ceramics andprint making.
The Icebreaker Exhibit wasn't scheduled as part of the artdepartment's fall semester activities, mikewindy said.
"We thought we needed a chance to bring everyone together," hesaid. "We make art on a continuous basis, and not many people knowwhat we do...that we're creating art."
About half of The University's 17 art graduate students willparticipate in the exhibit, Overton said.
The most famous of the bunch is the creator of The WeddingChapel, Tony Foster. The Wedding Chapel was located in the TigerDen near the north exit until this semester. It was filled withElvis memorabilia and wedding-related objects, Foster said.
More of Foster's "found object" art will be on display in theexhibit.
"Everyone is invited," mikewindy said. "We know it's a largeuniversity and people don't really know what's going on outside oftheir usual thing. We just want people to realize we're herecreating art."
