BETHANY CLANCY
Special to the Leader
With 170 pieces in the Marion Art Gallery, exceeding any other amount of work an artist has had in there, Nicholas Kahn and Richard Selesnick took the Visual Art and New Media Department students on their venture through the art world. On Sept. 19 in McEwen 209, the artists delved further into the process of their artistic ventures and the story behind their success today. The lecture was held as a part of the Visiting Artist Program on campus.
The two started off at Washington University of St. Louis in 1982. They met during their freshman year and realized they had a lot in common with each other, so the two began to work on their own art assignments together. They do work in photography, installation art and sometimes painting.
Both artists come from a British background and consider William Blake, an English poet, a big influence on their work. When starting off, the two were very interested in creating stories alongside their pictures. A lot of their photographs and installation works have fables or chants that go along with the concept of that piece. One that really stuck out to the students was a sculpture of a beehive with a horn coming out of it. When one would put their ear to the horn, they would hear a sing-songy chant.
For a lot of their pieces, Kahn and Selesnick would get influence from old paintings or installations that they liked, especially from the Renaissance period. Their paintings were very shape-orientated, it all to be inside this rectangular square and even then, the painting itself was in some type of shape.
During their lecture, the artists went through and kept mentioning some of their influences. One is the myth of the Green Man. They had a strong interest in fictitious animals along with “coming up with false history” for their photo projects, The two have an incredible sense of imagination together.
When discussing the history of their work, Selesnick had said that, after college, the two gave up on photography for a bit, but years after, the thought had changed, and he “felt trapped in the painting studio.” Both Kahn and Selesnick agreed that when talking about which media they like working with best, they like photography, painting and installation equally. In each project that they do, they find inspiration or an idea immediately. In that sense, each piece is interrelated.
Recently, they engaged the art students of Fredonia by bringing them to nearby Spiritualist community Lily Dale and having them be apart of their latest photo project. They showed previews of that at the end of the lecture.
Also at the end of the lecture, they gave out advice for those who are going to continue their college and future career in art: persevere, do work that no one else is doing, try to get into as many galleries as you can, research them first so you know where you’d fit in, and finally, don’t be shy.
After the lecture, Jimmy Scamacca, a senior art major, had a lot to say.
“I think that the artist’s work was very compelling. Their ability to create these images is astounding since they manage to create such encompassing worlds. The attention to detail is insane. It must be seen in person to truly appreciate the work,” Scamacca said.
Another student, Jessica Tompkins, a junior art major, actually got to be apart of the Lily Dale photo project. She mentioned how she “really enjoyed their work along with being apart of their creative process. They are very quirky and imaginative individuals. To actually see how they work on their projects was a great experience.”
These artists truly show their unique side in the gallery and throughout the lecture. Their work will truly engulf one’s mind with thoughts about contemporary art.