Albrecht-Kemper to host exhibition of two temporary collections

By Jazmine Knight

Two new exhibits are in the spotlight at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art.

“Big Ideas” is a series of large-scale works. “New Works” is a collection by Byron Williamson and Deb Riley, both artists who previously lived in St. Joseph.

Dansare Lawrence, marketing and communications manager for Albrecht-Kemper, said the “Big Ideas” collection is overwhelming in a lot of ways.

“You step into this space and you’re confronted with obviously scale,” she said.

Many of these pieces in “Big Ideas” haven’t seen the gallery floor in a long time. Lawrence said handling the pieces was a “logistical challenge.” Many were too large to fit comfortably among other works. However, they all deserve to be showcased and seen.

“Many of them confront you with subject matters that you can obviously see. Something like figures that you are looking directly in the eye. Others are very abstract,” Lawrence said.

“New Works” artist Williamson will be at an opening reception for their exhibit at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15, to give an artist talk discussing his thought process behind this collection of drawings.

“He had deep-wave brain surgery to aid in his Parkinson’s,” Lawrence said. “Previously to the surgery, he was not able to draw anymore. He lost that ability. And after the surgery, he regained his ability to draw.”

This collection of drawings showcases the behind-the-scenes thinking of his experience with that.

Lawrence looks forward to watching guests experience the art and create different interpretations on their own.

“That’s kind of the role of the artist, is not necessarily to tell a specific story that gets interpreted a certain way, but to allow someone to come in and build their own inferences from a piece,” Lawrence said.

Since Lawrence and the Albrecht-Kemper team carefully select the placement of each piece within the exhibition, she wants guests to recognize how different pieces complement each other.

“I’m really excited about the tower space, the color palette in there, the subject matter are all very exciting to me. I love them,” she said.

To see the full “Big Idea” and “New Works” collections, visit the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at 2818 Frederick Ave.