On Friday, Sept. 10, a new gallery exhibit titled “Seeing Beyond the Flames” by Nicholas Silberg opened at EMU’s Margaret Martin Gehman Gallery. This event, the first gallery opening of the semester, was attended by a small crowd of masked students and faculty members. The gallery opening featured an introduction to the artist by Anna Westfall, Associate Professor of Visual and Communication Arts, followed by a brief statement about the work from Silberg, and concluded with open time to enjoy the exhibit and talk with the artist and other attendees.
Westfall introduced Silberg as a full professor of art and the chair of the fine arts, humanities, and wellness department at Savannah State University. The exhibit features a variety of prints, including screen prints, copperplate photo gravures, collagraphs and letterpress prints, and is the first time that all of these prints have been on display together.
Silberg refers to himself as a “process artist,” meaning that the experience of creating the artwork is more important than the final piece. He says that his experience with the completed artwork is “like when people collect concert ticket stubs.” The primary value that the ticket stubs have is as a representation of the experience.
Silberg says he is interested in “disassembling and reassembling” to create “reconstructed images.” These reconstructed images are intended to draw the viewer’s attention to the forms of everyday objects rather than just their perceived meaning. If the viewer can look past their initial interpretation then they can come to have a deeper understanding and a greater appreciation for what is actually present.
Noussaiba Garti, a first-year nursing major who was in attendance at the event, remarked that she saw a connection between the themes of the show and the essay “Seeing” by Annie Dillard which she had recently read in her college writing course. Garti recalled a quote from the essay in which Dillard states, “There are lots of things to see, unwrapped gifts and free surprises.” Garti expressed that in artwork and life in general, she enjoys looking for interpretations beyond those which are normally seen.
A common point of discussion within the creative world is whether the artist is responsible for how viewers perceive their work. When asked about this question in regards to perceptions of his own work Silberg stated that he prefers to allow space for the viewer to come to their own conclusions, but added that “if you are too controlling [about the message] the viewer gets bored, but not enough control is reckless.”
The title of the show, which also appears in one of the prints, is inspired by the cave allegory which appears in Plato’s “Republic” and pulls together the concepts of form, process, and interpretation present in Silberg’s work. The artist statement for the show says that “the body of work elicits an allegorical experience for the viewer offering a chance to question our relationships to the letter forms. The vintage printing cuts, blocks, and type are stripped down to a mere form and then reassembled.”
Silberg’s “Seeing Beyond the Flames” will remain on display in the Margaret Martin Gehman Gallery through October 8 and is available to visit during Common Grounds operating hours.
