Permanent Collection
Artist Statement:
“What is the reality behind the facade of the circus?”
Artwork Description:
Tightening her corset as she’s getting ready to go perform in the tent she knows all to well. She is full of adrenaline, the butterflies fluttering in her stomach, aching to escape. She pulls the ribbons tighter, killing her butterflies. She’s ready to show the crowd, without fail, what she’s worked so hard to perfect these past couple months.
Artwork Medium:
15.5 in x 12 in; Watercolor, Ink, Gouache, Color Pencil
Photo Credit: Meghan Burke
Artist statement:
We have all had people in our lives that constantly seem to be running into bad luck. They cry on our shoulders and beg for our sympathy, and we begrudgingly give it to them, believing their sob stories. But, what if they are not the victim, but the villain. Those who constantly victimize themselves and demonize others always seem to get into trouble, and always seem to isolate those who supposedly wronged them. It is my belief that these people are their own worst enemy and corrupt those around them with their toxic stories. Sympathy is their drug of choice and they will do anything to get it.
Artwork Medium
Beads and Clay
Artwork Medium
Acrylics, Ink, and Mixed Media on Wood
Artist statement:
I painted “Days of Open hand” in 2010 while living in the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. Being surrounded by such beauty opened my mind to nature and gave me a clear perspective on what it means to live in the moment.
Donated by:
Steve and Suzanne Heronemus
Artist statement:
Being a college student is hard. You are incessantly asked about what you’re majoring in and what your life plan is, when really, whoever has their life plan figured out? Especially when they’re in their early 20s? I was very undecided as to what I wanted to major in, and even though my college told me most freshman start out undecided, they quickly began pressuring me to choose a major and create a four year plan. Feeling overwhelmed and stressed about making what felt like the most important decision at the time, I knew I needed to listen to both my head and my heart to figure out what I wanted to do. And if I couldn’t figure it out, I knew that was okay too. I made this piece for the first college art class I took, right as I was realizing I wanted to change majors and study Art. It’s okay to be undecided and to have no idea what you want to do with your life, as long as you’re listening to both your head and your heart.
Artwork Medium
Reed, tissue paper, butcher paper
Artist Statement
A quality that we unknowingly take for granted is the ability to forget. We don’t have to remember all of the unpleasant experiences, the difficult situations, and the awkward moments. With time, they all fade away and we are left with the memories we enjoy. But what if we didn’t forget? Anything. For individuals with Hyperthymesia, the details never slip away. Every day is unforgettable. Recalling an unimportant detail happens automatically and constantly. Their minds become flooded with memories and there is no way to look away. Could you handle all the details without overflowing? Would you be the same person? Would you value different things? Could you handle the truths in the details?
Artwork Description:
The 18 by 24-inch painting is a portrait of a woman. It is the same woman layered three times in a transparent effect. The painting includes every color of the rainbow and is stylized. Although it is painted realistically, it is in a vector style that does not blend color rather than represent each color as a separate cell.
Artwork Medium
Acrylic on Canvas
Artist Statement:
We are limited to this life
We are limited to our bodies
We are limited to this world.
All of us want to predict
How it will end.
We all Want to see ahead,
Yet we can only guess
And find comfort
With each other
And with not knowing.
Artwork Description:
In this piece, I hand sculpted each little detail from clay. Every flower, face, and eye were made individually, treated with acrylic paint, and then glued one by one into the frame. This was a painstaking process that took almost a month to fully create. With this piece, I was hoping to evoke the emotion of peace. The faces are not twisted with pain, but at peace, even with a hint of sorrow. The message is not to fear becoming a part of the flowers, but to be comforted knowing that even in the end we may be a part of something beautiful.
Artwork Medium
Ceramic sculpture treated with acrylic paint
Artist Statement:
Influenced by my childhood love for ocean life and Brancusi’s bird in space sculpture, Mola combines the physical attributes of a bird and a fish to create a new species.
Artwork Medium:
Metal and Fiberglass Resin
Donated Anonymously:
In honor of the graduating class of 2015 theatre students and their directors.
Artist Statement:
Paint has presence in my work. As a knife painter, I try to push the boundaries of what the knife can do. In addition to the traditional impasto (thick paint), my paint application can have a more quiet, gentle presence in a painting. As an expressive colorist, I create representational paintings with a focus on color relationships in a painterly style. Weather, the effects of light, and nature all get my creative juices flowing, and I just can’t stop painting – the world holds endless paintable subjects. All my works are done with artist-quality oils on archival supports.
Artwork Description:
Capettini created a series of panoramic format paintings for a solo exhibit at La Grange Art League Gallery in 2019. This painting was included in that exhibit. It was inspired by a photo taken by the artist on Main Street west of Randall Road in Batavia in early fall, and the colors of the fields and sky were vibrant. Capettini values her experience growing up in Batavia, within the suburban sprawl of a big city, yet still able to easily access more open lands, both farmed and natural. This painting honors that experience. Instead of traditional wall labels with narrative descriptions of the paintings, Capettini wrote haikus. For West of Town, the label read:
bur oak reigns supreme
last year’s crop a brassy hue
country still exists
Artwork Medium
12”x24” oil on archival hardboard, studio painting done with knives
