2009 EXHIBITIONS:

November 21, 2009 - January 11, 2010
Opening Reception: Friday, November 20, 2009, 4-7pm
Recent Work from the
Northwest Missouri State University Art Faculty
   Participating Artists:
       Christopher Graves
       Laura Kukkee
       Philip Laber
       Armin Mϋhsam
       Kim Spradling
       Craig Warner
       Glenn Williams

The artworks in the exhibition now on view at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art, by the seven Art Faculty members at Northwest Missouri State University, represent multiple disciplines. These accomplished and international artists, from Canada, Germany and across the United States, are also educators preparing students as future professional artists or other careers in the arts.

For this exhibition, Professor Kim Spradling (PhD, art education) is exhibiting two-dimensional pieces of handmade paper in a nonobjective style. The work of Professor Philip Laber (MFA, photography and printmaking) includes prints utilizing digital photography, engraving, and etching, as well as acrylic paintings. In sculpture, Professor Glenn Williams (MFA, sculpture) has contributed large constructions of wood and welded steel. These are complemented by small abstract ceramic sculptures by Professor Laura Kukkee (MFA, ceramics). Professor Christopher Graves, graphic design (MFA, graphic design and painting), is exhibiting paintings and drawings where his “expressionistic mode of thinking and working” results in artworks exploring opposites: real, unreal; spiritual, physical; good, evil. Professor Craig Warner’s graphic design projects include digital printed works. Acrylic landscape paintings by Professor Armin Mϋhsam demonstrate his theme of the “relationship between the natural and the human-built,” where technology has rendered the land virtually “uninhabitable”.
Northwest Missouri State University:  Home Page   Art Department   Art Faculty Bios
Exhibition Press Release

November 21, 2009 - January 11, 2010
Opening Reception: Friday, November 20, 2009, 4-7pm
Infinite Perspectives: Prints by Bruce McCombs from the Albrecht-Kemper Collection
Bruce McCombs (American, born 1943) captures the indulgences and exuberance of capitalism on a grand scale. From eclectic urban architecture to frenzied foot traffic, the artist expresses nostalgia for the consumer culture of early to mid-20th-century America; yet McCombs says that he tries to be more eccentric than nostalgic. He records the minutiae of daily life with a rigor that turns the mundane into a spectacle. His combination of extraordinary detail, extreme perspective, and immense scale also gives the work a topographical quality. Although McCombs found success as a printmaker and exhibited his work both nationally and internationally, he felt burdened by the complexity of etching and the time it took to complete a plate. He was primarily a printmaker until a sabbatical in 1982, after which he turned to illustration and watercolor. The prints in the Albrecht-Kemper Collection reflect McCombs’s oeuvre through the 1980s.
Bruce McCombs Exhibition Brochure  (pdf)
      
Self-Portrait, 1988      Arcade, 1984         Marathon, 1981         Fossils, 1987          Parade, 1985
Photography by Phillip Geller
 

September 12 - November 7, 2009
Opening Reception: Friday, September 11, 2009, 4-7pm
Midwest Paint Group: Works From Perception
The Midwest Paint Group, (MPG), is an association of Midwestern US-based painters working under varied processes defined as Post Abstract Figuration. This type of painting is built on configurations and conceptions that evolved out of the past great traditions of art and of 20th Century modernist painting. It is the group’s position that emotive and expressive abstractions are at the core of their images. Each member of the group individually interprets the perceptual-observational process into a pictorial format that evokes the strongest sense of abstract plasticity. Painting is the power of two-dimensional space reaching into the representational visceral aspect of three-dimensional reality. In this sense, to be an MPG painter is a quest to becoming highly aware of nature’s complex beauty balanced against the nature of unifying human vision and deep emotion. When painting utilizes the energy of plasticity expressed in its drawing and color all the subjects that humanity can express as art may be realized. In such painting there are few limits to the range toward which painters can aspire. MPG advocates a significant 21st Century movement vital to the continuation and development of new, visually intelligent and emotive works of perceptual art. http://midwest-paint-group.org

September 12 - November 6, 2009
Opening Reception: Friday, September 11, 2009, 4-7pm
Judith Mackey: Prairie Soul
Kansas native Judith Mackey has been a professional artist for over 40 years. She is a self taught artist who prefers being on location to paint, especially in the early stages of a painting. Residing in the Flint Hills of Kansas, she paints what she is most familiar with—the prairie, working cowboys, and ranch life that surrounds her rural Chase County home. Her artwork features landscapes, sunsets, sunrises, work, and the seasonal glory of her home and region. Her work captures the colors and tells the story so familiar to this part of the country. Mackey was inducted into the American Royal Western Art Association in 1988. She holds the distinction of being the first woman and Kansan to hold this honor.

October 16th-November 1, 2009
Opening Reception: Tuesday, October 20, 2009, 5-7pm
Pictures of Poverty
A Community Photography Exhibition. Organized by Community Action Partnership of Saint Joseph. The goal of "Pictures of Poverty" is to raise awareness of poverty in Northwest Missouri, and start a dialogue about how our community can commit to ending it. Community Action Partnership hopes to reveal images of the “invisible” poor and the working poor in our community, as well as images that will inspire hope toward breaking the chains of poverty. For more information, visit www.endpov.com
Award Winners by Category:
  High School:
    First Place: Molly Thomas Flat Broke, Jesus Bless
    Second Place: Matt Barns Under the Bridge
    Third Place: Landon Davis Untitled
  Amateur:
    First Place: Jennifer Hale Kenneth
    Second Place: Karen Planalp This is Clarence
    Third Place: Max King Shelter for Homeless
  Professional:
    First Place: Deborah Weems: Fallen Between the Cracks
    Second Place: Laurel de Freece Helen's Back Porch
    Third Place: Jeff Foster Offering

June 13 - September 6, 2009
Opening Reception: Friday, June 12, 2009, 4-7pm
Theodore Waddell: Angus Anthem
Theodore Waddell has long been recognized as one of Montana’s most important contemporary artists - one who has played a significant role in the development of late modernism in Montana and the West. Born in Montana in 1941, Waddell grew up in Laurel, Montana, studied at the Brooklyn Museum Art School, Montana State University and received his MFA from Wayne State University in 1986. He later taught in the art department at the University of Montana in Missoula. Ted ranched for many years in Ryegate, Montana, and now divides his time between central Montana and northern Idaho. Coming from three generations of Montana ranchers, Waddell translates his passion for wilderness and love for animals through impressionistic use of paint, color, light, texture and form on canvas and paper. www.theodorewaddell.com

June 13 - September 6, 2009
Opening Reception: Friday, June 12, 2009, 4-7pm
John Roush: Rocky Shores and Mountains
     John Roush is well known in this region and recognized nationally for his pastel paintings. He is a Master signature member of the Pastel Society of America and also of the MidAmerica Pastel Society. In 2006 he was awarded Fellow membership in the American Artists Professional League based on his work in pastel. As a member of the Oil Painters of America, his work has been shown in their national and regional exhibitions as well. He is also a member of Allied Artists of America and Audubon Artists.
     Many of his paintings are executed on site, en plein air. Frequent painting trips throughout the Midwest and annual expeditions to Maine’s coastal islands provide the inspiration for his work. Architectural elements often appear in his paintings, incorporating his fascination with linear perspective. Buildings, barns, roads and houses give scale and to his landscapes and show a human presence.
     He has been featured in The Artist’s magazine, the Pastel Journal and North Light book’s Pure Color. His paintings have won awards in dozens of national competitions and been shown in exhibitions throughout the United States. He is represented in the Midwest by Southwind Gallery, Topeka, Kansas and in New England by Bayview Gallery, Camden and Brunswick, Maine. He maintains a website at www.johnroush.com .

Jacob Lawrence: Urban Storyteller
 April 25-June 6, 2009
Learn about the life of artist Jacob Lawrence and his series on The Great Migration--the movement of 1.3 million African-Americans out of the Southern United States to the North, Midwest, and West from 1915 to 1930.

Fight for the Right: The Women's Suffrage Movement April 25-June 6, 2009
Explore this era of US history by learning about women such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, and other leaders of the movement, which culminated in 1920 with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

     The exhibitions "Jacob Lawrence: Urban Storyteller" and "Fight for the Right: The Women’s Suffrage Movement" were created in conjunction with Saint Joseph's Big Read Project and funded in part by the Allied Arts Council. The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest.
     Locally, Saint Joseph has chosen for the community to join in reading the American classic "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald. "The Great Gatsby", set in 1924, portrays life in high society and delves into themes of alienation, friendship, identity, and the American dream. The Albrecht-Kemper developed these two exhibitions for visitors to learn about two major historical events of the United States that were happening in the 1920s. While life for the men and women depicted in the two exhibitions was very different to that of Jay Gatsby, they also depict the struggle for freedom and the American dream.

April 18 - June 7, 2009
Opening Reception: Saturday, April 25, 2009, 1-4pm
Joseph Lorusso: Dreams Begin
Joseph Lorusso was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1966 and received his formal training at the American Academy of Art. He went on to receive his B.F.A. degree from the Kansas City Art Institute. Born of Italian descent, Lorusso was exposed to art at an early age. Through several early trips to Italy, his parents introduced him to the works of the Italian Masters. Lorusso would look to these influences throughout his early artistic development and they are still evident in his work today. Joseph Lorusso creates landscapes and figurative works. In painting these subjects, Lorusso has concentrated on honing his powers of observation, especially as it concerns to color, texture, form and composition. Lorusso’s paintings have been described as warm and dreamlike, places of restful escape with a sense of spirituality, and share timelessness with the works of other eras. Says Lorusso, “I believe truly great art serves as a trigger into something deeper within all of us”. The mood and emotion conveyed in Lorusso’s paintings evokes a deep sense of beauty found in the quiet times of daily living. His people are mysterious, lonely, romantic and yet familiar, placed in settings we often see ourselves. Lorusso’s paintings have gained notoriety by their ability to connect with the viewer, resonating in a way that is intimate and personal. www.josephlorussofineart.com

                 
    Fitting the Dress                   Italian Street                  Lovers & Latrec        Playing with the Band            End of the Line
 

April 18 - June 7, 2009
Opening Reception: Saturday, April 25, 2009, 1-4pm
Depicting Identity: Portraits and Self-Portraits
from the Albrecht-Kemper Collection
For this exhibition, the Albrecht-Kemper is showcasing some of its rarely-seen drawings, prints, and paintings. The images chosen range from traditional artist self-portraits to artworks that push the definition of portraiture. We've even included some of our favorite pet portraits!  This exhibition coincides with the display of student artwork, and ties into the Saint Joseph School District's curriculum, as art students of every grade have a unit that relates to identity. Many of the artworks on display were purchased through the William H. Toben Memorial fund. Mr. Toben and William Albrecht were founders of the Western Tablet Company, which manufactured the Big Chief paper tablet. Toben funds helped to purchase Wayne Thiebaud's Man Sitting-Back View when the Albrecht Art Gallery opened in 1966. Four other paintings and a print collection of 135 self-portraits were also purchased with Toben funds in the early years of the museum's history.

Saint Joseph School District
Kindergarten - Eighth Grade
Student Art Exhibition
April 19 -  May 17, 2009
Opening Reception: Sunday April 19, 2-4pm.
Closing Reception: Family Museum Day, Sunday May 17, 1-4pm
The Albrecht-Kemper is pleased to host this exhibition of artworks made by local students. The Saint Joseph School District is made up of eighteen elementary schools and four middle schools. We thank the students and teachers for their participation in this wonderful exhibition. We hope that you enjoy viewing the variety of artworks that the students have created this past academic year.

March 8 - April 9, 2009
Opening Reception: Sunday, March 8, 1-4pm, with Awards Presentation at 2pm
Annual Regional High School Exhibition
      The mission of the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art is to bring the excitement of American visual arts to the region through education, temporary exhibitions, the permanent collection, and the nurturing of regional artists. What better way to nurture young local talent than through exposure in a museum-sponsored juried art competition? The Regional High School Art Exhibition is an invitational exhibition, with over 75 schools from Northwest Missouri and Northeast Kansas asked to participate.
     Artworks are divided into nine categories based on media and/or technique. After a panel jury selection, First, Second, and Third Place, plus Honorable Mentions, are awarded in each category. Make sure you don't miss this opportunity to see the incredible and innovative work of our future artists.
     For more information, or If your school is interested in participating in this annual exhibition, please contact Jennifer Zeller, Curator of Education, at jzeller@albrecht-kemper.org or 816-233-7003.
Official Rules and Entry Form

2009 HS award winners
2009 Participating Students
2009 Participating Teachers and Schools

January 17 - March 1, 2009
Opening Reception: Friday, January 16,  4-7pm, with Awards Presentation at 6pm
Annual Membership Exhibition
The Membership Exhibition showcases the talents of museum members. It is open to current members of the Museum. Each member may submit two original works not previously exhibited at the museum. Artworks are divided into seven categories. The exhibition is then judged and awards presented in each category. Click here for official entry form. (pdf)
If you have trouble viewing entry form, please call 816-233-7003 to have one mailed to you.
2009 Award Winners by Category
 

Miyo, Miyo by Dobree Adams

    
     From their separate worlds, their life together on a Kentucky River farm north of Frankfort, their travels and their common interests, weaver / photographer Dobree Adams and poet / publisher / book designer Jonathan Greene have forged a multi-faceted collaboration of vision and voice.
     Dobree Adams has long been recognized as one of Kentucky’s most prominent contemporary fiber artists. She weaves one-of-a-kind rugs and tapestries from her handspun yarns. For twenty years she raised sheep on her Kentucky River farm. She spins and dyes the wool from a rare breed of sheep, the Lincoln Longwool, an old British breed known in Kentucky in the 1930's and renowned for the curl, luster, strength, and length of its wool. She has also always taken photographs to demonstrate and document the influences behind her woven work. Since 2003 she has been exhibiting her photography and is one of the co-founders of the Kentucky Women Photographers Network which now has over 45 members.
     Jonathan Greene, author of 27 books, is the publisher of Gnomon Press, a small press specializing in literature and photography. Gnomon Press has published such prominent photographers as Ralph Eugene Meatyard, Shelby Lee Adams, Wendy Ewald, Sally Mann, David Spear, and Linda Butler as well as Robert Morgan, author of the best-selling Oprah Book Club selection Gap Creek, Jonathan Williams, Michael McFee, Jo Carson, Bryan Wooley, and Meredith Sue Williams. Gnomon Press has also published many Kentucky authors and photographers, including Wendell Berry, Guy Davenport, Chris Holbrook, Harlan Hubbard, Jane Wilson Joyce, Jim Wayne Miller, Ed McClanahan, Gurney Norman, Guy Mendes, Martha Bennett Stiles, James Still, and Richard Taylor. Jonathan Greene is also well-known for his prize-winning book design.
     Both artists have received the prestigious Kentucky Individual Artist Fellowships from the Kentucky Arts Council. Their collaboration, which began quietly, has segued into major projects. For example, Hut Poems, Jonathan’s most recent book published by Mountains & Rivers Press in Oregon, features Dobree’s cover photograph of Jonathan’s studio; a collaboration with Paul Holbrook of King Library Press at the University of Kentucky to design and produce a commemorative portfolio of broadsides to celebrate the 40th birthday of Gnomon Press; and several of Jonathan’s poems have been featured with Dobree’s weavings and photographs in her MOUNTAIN / NO MOUNTAIN series to help raise awareness about the destruction caused by mountaintop removal coal mining in Eastern Kentucky.
www.gnomonpress.com
 

Footpath of the Dawn

Footpath of the Sun
 

November 22, 2008 - January 11, 2009
Opening Reception: Saturday, November 22, 2008, 1-4pm
Helen Lea: Always in Bloom
“To garden is to paint a picture. That I am a painter as well as a gardener is not a coincidence. One led to the other.”
     Born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, Helen Lea earned her undergraduate degree in art history at Smith College. After graduation, she studied Italian and Classical painting in Perugia, Italy. Returning to Kansas City, she spent a year working as an artist for Hallmark Cards. She then moved to New York where she worked at the Frick Museum. She returned to Kansas City in 1961, married and started a family while continuing to paint and study. She received a degree in Fine Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1970. Her work has been shown at numerous exhibitions and her paintings are found in both individual and corporate collections worldwide. "Giving form to a flower, garden scene or landscape as I do on canvas with strokes of paint and color can take one into an interior realm that is the very soul of creation. It is both exhilarating and challenging when intellect and knowledge kick in to seek an approximation; above all, simply, a compelling act that only wants to create beauty. Often my work is described as Impressionistic, which means that it is colorful and has a fresh spontaneity."

Ray Ottinger:
The Boy in the Brown Sweater
“…Benton came in, saw that I was working…, then went to the administration building and announced that the scholarship would be awarded to the boy in the brown sweater. I’m not sure if he knew my name.”
     Ray Eldon Ottinger, Jr (1922-1993) was born in St. Joseph Missouri. He enrolled at the Kansas City Art Institute in 1930 and studied there until 1942 when he was drafted into the Army. Following his military service, he returned to the Art Institute in 1945. After graduating in 1946, he and his new bride, Audrey Kennedy, moved to New York City to study at the Art Students League. During this time, they lived in a tiny apartment in the infamous Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City. Returning to Kansas, Ottinger taught design and the University of Kansas from 1947 to 1953, and then worked as a a graphic artist and editor until retiring in 1982. Although Ottinger studied under Thomas Hart Benton for two years at the Art Institute, his painting style was greatly influenced by his travels, experiences, and military service. Thus, many of his artworks show a dramatic departure from the typical style and subject matter of Benton or most of his students.

Helen Lea
Mountain Garden

Helen Lea
Colorful Arrivals



Helen Lea
Seasonal Beauties

Ray Ottinger at work