For the second year in a row, the opening exhibit for this school year in the Regier Art Gallery at Bethel College features husband and wife artists and educators.
“The Rose Aesthetic” is an exhibition of the paintings and drawings of Gwen and Victor Rose of Wichita.
It is currently in the gallery in Luyken Fine Arts Center at Bethel through Sept. 19. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, 2-4 p.m. There is no admission charge.
The artist reception is Sept. 19 from 6-8 p.m. at the gallery.
Both Roses have degrees from Wichita State University – Gwen a B.F.A. in painting and a master’s degree in art education and Victor both a B.F.A. and M.F.A. in drawing and painting.
Gwen taught art in the Derby school district for 30 years and is a member of Gallery XII in Wichita. Victor has taught at WSU, Friends University, Newman University, Butler Community College and other area schools.
Gwen’s lifelong inspiration in her artwork come from “the patterns, colors and shapes I find in nature and geometry.”
She says she takes paper and pencil outside and draws from nature, in her own garden or while camping, or takes photos in the same settings to spark ideas. “I enjoy adding mathematical concepts to my work [such as] the Fibonacci series, prime numbers and tessellations,” she says.
“Starting with realistic drawings of birds, flowers, insects and landscapes, I use those images and mathematical concepts to create abstract images of nature.”
Victor’s artist statement says he “[tries] to explore different subject matter, different styles, different materials and different techniques to find ways to transform my understanding of life and my vision of art.”
His media and techniques include black-and-white prints that start with ballpoint pen or felt-tip pen drawings; “buried pieces and appropriations” (work buried in garbage for several weeks and then “excavated”; old pieces used in new ways); and picture plane (painted wood) abstractions.
Bethel is a four-year liberal arts college founded in 1887 and is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Bethel was the first Kansas college or university to be named a Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT) Campus Center, in 2021. For more information, see http://www.bethelks.edu
