October Issue 2001
Spartanburg County Museum of Art in Spartanburg, SC, Offers International Exchange Exhibition & Work by Hong Pei Ho
In a bow to the city's rich international flavor, two shows with multicultural appeal will be on view through Oct. 28 at the Spartanburg County Museum of Art, in Spartanburg, SC.
Winterthur Meets Spartanburg, a photographic essay on Spartanburg and its cultural
exchange partner city of Winterthur, Switzerland, is featured
in the Milliken and Parsons galleries. The Burwell Gallery hosts
the surreal oil paintings of Hong Pei Ho, a native of China who
now lives in Charlotte, NC.
Featuring the work of Spartanburg photographers Jane Nodine, Mark
Olencki and Thomas Tucker as well as six of their Swiss counterparts,
Winterthur Meets Spartanburg is among the final offerings
in a cultural exchange program between the cities.
The partnership was a natural from the start. Not only does Spartanburg boast more Swiss investment per capita than any other area in the US, most of the Swiss businesses in Spartanburg are headquartered in the region around Winterthur. Like Spartanburg, Winterthur is also a center for textiles and textile machinery - a city near Zurich with a rich cultural heritage that includes 17 museums as well as a conservatory of music.
In the two-plus years since the program began, several teams of musicians and visual artists from Spartanburg have presented programs, exhibited their works and completed residencies in Winterthur. In exchange, Spartanburg hosted similar groups of visiting artists.
Winterthur Meets Spartanburg showcases the experiences abroad of both groups of photographers. "It's a chance to see our city through their eyes," Exhibition Coordinator Scott Cunningham says of the work of Siegfried Neumayer and Ulrich Gugger, who will be present for the opening, as well as Peter Bailer, Borivoj Trunec, Lothar Moser and Edith Zimmermann.
Many of the photographs depict such familiar landmarks as the statue of Daniel Morgan, the downtown Clock Tower and The Beacon. The American photographers focused their lenses on architectural sites, as well: grand cathedrals, quaint city scenes, and landscapes.
But not all of the subject matter is predictable - something Cunningham describes as one of the most interesting aspects of the show. "Some of the things each group of photographers found interesting obviously reflect cultural differences," he said. An example is a series of drain covers captured by Spartanburg photographer Mark Olencki. While the subject matter might be mundane in Switzerland, the intricacy and variety in the covers design isn't usually seen in America.
The cultural exchange program was developed by The Arts Partnership of Greater Spartanburg and is funded by the County and City of Spartanburg with additional support from Sulzer Textile and the Rotary Club of Spartanburg County. Swiss participation is funded by the City of Winterthur.
The museum's international theme continues in the Burwell Gallery with the delicate, surreal paintings of Hong Pei Ho. Although the inspiration for many of her works are such 19th century masters as Ingres, the execution of Ho's work is haunting, dreamlike and distinctly her own. The artist has described her work as "being like silent poems. They echo in the viewer's mind and sound stronger and stronger."
For more information check our SC Institutional Gallery listings or contact the Spartanburg County Museum of Art at 864/583-2776.
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