Located in the project space of the Schmucker Art Gallery is a new exhibit curated by a member of the senior class. Entitled Bodies in Conflict: From Gettysburg to Iraq, opened last week and welcomed over 90 guests to the semester’s first gallery talk and reception. The exhibit features pieces from Musselman Library Special Collections and pieces which are on loan from outside our immediate campus community.
Image via https://www.facebook.com/SchmuckerArtGallery/photos/a.196092907072998.60…
The pieces help to illustrate the human form at the time of war through the battle of Gettysburg to Iraq. The exhibit forces the viewer to question the role of the photographer. What were or are the intentions of the photographer? Was it to gain sympathy, fund a source of nationalism, or to simply report the event? Pieces of the collection range from stereoscopic cards taken by Civil War Photographer Alexander Gardner, a Vietnamese propaganda poster from 1965, and personal scrapbooks and photos of American soldiers from World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War. There is a variety of images that help to define the power of the human form during a time of war. Student curator, Laura Bergin wrote in the exhibit’s gallery catalog, “Photography must be understood as both art and document, with as many entitled artistic liberties as any other form of artistic expression.” What the artist witnesses and feels may be completely different from what the public may be witnessing. The indirect or direct relationship between the artist and the specific war allow the viewer to gain an inside look into the artist’s own beliefs and emotions during this specific time. Each viewer will respond differently to the images and cause her or himself to question the role of the specific artist at that time period.
This exhibit also features an interactive website that extends the gallery space to the home. A virtual model of the space is available to view at your own convenience. It is a great way for people who are unable to visit the gallery space.
Schmucker Art Gallery is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-4pm. For more information, go to Schmucker Art Gallery, and follow the Gallery on Facebook.