November Issue 1999
Book Artists to Lecture & Exhibit Works at Appalachian State University
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The Catherine J. Smith Gallery at Appalachian State University, Boone, NC, will feature an exhibit of recent works, as well as a lecture program by book artists Mary Hood and Tom Kregel. The exhibit will run from Nov.1 through Dec. 3, 1999.
The lower floor of the Catherine J. Smith Gallery will house the installation of recent works by printmaker and book artist Mary Hood, with sculptor Tom Kregel displaying his cast stone and rich colored works on the upper floor of the gallery.
The Visiting Artist Series, co-sponsored by the gallery and Appalachian's Department of Art, will feature a lecture by the artists on Fri., Nov. 12 from 3:30 to 5pm in 306 Wey Hall on the Appalachian campus.
As a printmaker and book artist, Mary Hood's work is most often presented in the installation format. Hood effectively combines her studio research with a careful installation plan tailored to the exhibition space, and the resulting powerful and intriguing experience nurtures a strong relationship between viewer and art. This gallery exhibit will consist of several pieces reflective of society and culture. The Book of Knowledge, Labyrinth, and The Self Titled all embody the artist's idea of the journey through human life, but at the same time encourage the viewer to attach their own meanings to each piece.
Hood studied Intaglio printmaking and painting for a Bachelor of Fine Art at the Ringling School of Art and Design in FL. She later earned her Master of Art in Intaglio Printmaking at the University of Dallas, TX. Hood has exhibited her work all over Texas, and has participated in several juried exhibitions, including the 500X Gallery's, in which she received an honorable mention. She has also exhibited her work in New York, California, Hawaii, Minnesota, Louisiana, and even Brazil.
Hood currently works and lives in Dallas, and often serves as a visiting artist at universities and high schools in the region. She teaches workshops on printmaking, bookbinding and papermaking as well as conducting slide presentations. Hood offered a 1997 book arts workshop at Appalachian State University and was commissioned to create an outdoor installation, White Noise, for An Appalachian Summer Festival that same year.
Tom Kregel employs colorful materials to create his juxtapositions of form, function, and narrative. Ranging from a poetic melancholy to a funky humor, this group of works challenges the viewer to connect on many levels. Kregel is a NC artist based in Durham.
Kregel received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Oklahoma, and his Master's at California State University in Los Angeles. He has done apprentice work in the field of classic bronze casting and has also worked extensively with welded steel. His work has been seen in exhibits all over NC, including Artspace in Raleigh, the Fayetteville Museum of Art and the Cedar Creek Gallery Sculpture Invitational in Creedmoor where he took an honorable mention in 1995. Kregel's work has also been exhibited in Maine, California, Oklahoma and Kansas.
Kregel teaches workshops and classes in photography, drawing, sculpture and other art related areas. He has also worked in commercial portrait photography and in construction, drafting blueprints and building houses, with a specialty in interior design and home remodeling.
Kregel's most recent works consist of sculpture created by a unique casting procedure which requires the mold to be broken for each piece. These one-of-a-kind creations are sealed and colored with oil and waterbased pigments, after being assembled on a steel armature. Some of them are composed of only four or five pieces while others have as many as 41 different pieces that can weigh up to 60 pounds each.
For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings or contact Hank T. Foreman, Director, at 828/262-3017.
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