New exhibition features art from prominent Meramec alumni
By: Will Murry
Art & Life Editor
This November was homecoming for several Meramec alumni artists.
The art gallery in Humanities East opened its newest show on Thursday, Nov. 9, showcasing a collection of work from three distinct alumni; Wolfgang Ibur, Matthew Johnson and Brian Lathan.
“It’s a nice return. A lot of the stuff I’ve got on display is stuff I did while I was here but I never got to show off,” said Johnson. “It’s important for me to show those works and the development of my installations, to show where it’s gotten to today.”
Brian Lathan started Meramec from 2011, Matthew Johnson in 2012. Both of them left in 2015. Wolfgang Ibur attended summer and weekend art classes before attending and graduating in 2017.
The event features a body of work from all three artists, including both work they did while at Meramec and some of their more recent projects. Students and parents alike were impressed by the collection, calling it weird, eccentric and unique.
“It was hard to figure out what the pieces were trying to display but the visual element of the display was very pleasing,” said freshman Isaiah Wilson. “I think it gives our art program here a lot of accreditation to see that alumni are making good art.”
Painting professor Margaret Keller said the exhibit was “very fresh, experimental, and unusual” and that it’s one of the best the Meramec art gallery has held.
“I mean, no one has seen anything like Wolfgang’s fur popsicles and I can’t stop looking at Brian’s emotive characters,” said Keller. “I think [their] work goes really well together. I’m glad I saw them grow and they’re always surprising in what they come up with.”
Johnson expressed his great love of Meramec and said that without it, he wouldn’t have learned to think outside the norm.
“I think what I took away the most from what I learned here is to be flexible. My art shouldn’t be static,” said Johnson.
The gallery itself was orchestrated by the three alumni in tandem with the Meramec art department.
“It’s come full circle,” said Ibur. “I’m proud to have my work on display in this gallery, especially when the gallery shows three radically different styles of work. From Matthew’s paintings and installations, Brian’s ceramic characters, and my furry shoes and popsicles, it just goes to show you can make anything.”
The alumni art gallery will be on display until Friday, Dec. 5 in the Meramec contemporary art gallery. Select works will be for sale by the artists. For price inquiries, visit the gallery during gallery hours for a price packet.
