Richard Shipps- Long Night Dark to Light

Celebrate the Winter Solstice with the astounding cut paper artwork of Richard Shipps which encourages the viewer to explore negative and positive form, shadow and light, through signs and symbols-a visual feast. Through the long night we pass, and find our way from dark to light.

December 1, 2010-December 23, 2010
Artist Reception Wednesday December 8
4-5pm Paper Cutting Demo- make a snowflake
5-8pm reception- free and open to the public

Welcoming our south side art partners: Monkey Mind Studio, Tall Grass Art Association, Union Street gallery

Rebecca L. Heide- Hyperreality

Hyperreality
Digital Composites by Rebecca L. Heide

Hyperreality is about the manipulation of time and space through digital imagery. A personal narrative has been created from the dissection and reassembling of images that reflect the life of the artist. Photographs of landscape, the human form, and sculpture are manipulated to create memory vignettes. The images are a simulation of the mental state at various times through life. Feelings of happiness, loss, fear, isolation and complacency are reconstructed in a visual form for the viewer. Rebecca’s work depicts a heightened sense of reality that blurs the line of what is real and what is fantasy.

Hyperreality is a solo exhibition at Governors State University, Visual Arts Gallery E-1580. The exhibition will open on November 15, 2010 and run through November 23rd. Opening reception is Tuesday, November 16th from 5:00-8:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public.


Rebecca received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is currently working towards a Master of Fine Arts from Governors State University. Rebecca currently resides in Homewood, IL.

Joe Baltz

Governors State University is pleased to present Narratives of the Secret Darkroom by Joe Baltz. The exhibit explores the relationship between the language of visual reality recorded by Black & White film and the language of inner emotional experience. He uses the silver gelatin process to produce B&W postcards which are sent through the US Postal Service. The Postcard and text amplifies the connection of his personal world through photos and text. Baltz believes that images often call forth a secret story and stories often hold a secret image. Narratives of the Secret Darkroom is a two year photo project that allowed him to present 30 individual post card recipients a unique collection of personal observations and reminiscences captured on film and in text.

Joe Baltz’s photos and cards will be exhibited in a solo show at Governors State University, Visual Arts Gallery E-1580. The exhibition will open on November 2, 2010 and run through November 10. The opening reception is Thursday, November 4th from 5:00-8:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

Baltz is a teacher of Photography at Joliet Central High School and lives in Joliet, IL.

Thank you to everyone who voted for their favorite piece in the Regional Faculty Invitational Exhibition. As the show comes to a close we are happy to announce that the People’s Choice Award goes to Carrie Ohm for “Cloud Circles:Impossibly Large Scaled Down #2”. 2010 Porcelain, Paper


The 2010 Regional Art Faculty Invitational is a biennial event for Universities and Colleges in the Chicago Southland and is hosted by the Visual Arts Gallery at Governors State University. This year invitations were sent to Governors State University, Trinity College, Lewis University, Prairie State College, Saint Xavier University, Joliet Junior College, The College of Dupage, South Suburban College, The University of Saint Francis, Olivet Nazarene University, and Kankakee Community College.


The artists exhibiting in this year’s show are: Javier Chavira, Christopher Clark, Michael Costanza, Daniel Falco, Eric Gorder, Michael D. Hart, Jane Rhodes Hudak, Jean Janssen, Elise Kendrot, Erik LaGattuta, Joe Milosevich, Carrie Ohm, Heather Page, Beth Parin, Gary Schirmer, Lou Shields, Chelise Slowik, Jerry Slowik, Michael E. Smith, Jeff Stevenson, Jessica Van Swol,


The Invitational promises a random cross section of working styles, subjects and media and this year is no exception. Ceramic, wax sculpture, mixed media collage, graphic novel, pastel, photography, oil painting and assemblage are represented. This year we also have an art history project from Dr. Arthur Bourgeois from his African Art collection that is integrated with contemporary images to activate the exhibit and provide opportunity for reflection.

Craig R. West

Mr. West is cordially inviting the public to view his newest body of photographs, “God’s Covenant Community,” a sacred documentary that explores the spiritual and sacred connections of Midwest Baptist Church members and their Christian Faith. Mr. West is a founding member of that church, and actively serves as a Deacon there. Midwest Baptist Church is a small to mid-sized church with a membership role that averages around 90-100 members. In “God’s Covenant Community”, Mr. West has focused on special moments that show the deepest kinds of Christian bonds that believers share in both formal and informal church settings. As Mr. West states, “my photographs attempt to visually show why the relationships and ties that exist between believers in a small church community are so strong. Put simply, God’s Love and Grace are the lifeblood and glue that holds this church [Midwest Baptist Church] together.”

While many of the images in “God’s Covenant Community” feature various age groups, Mr. West’s favorite images involve children at worship and at play. As his Pastor so eloquently states, “our children are the lifeblood of the church.” And the viewer will find all kinds of images of children in this exhibit. Many of these images feature children having fun at Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Easter Service, and Church Picnics.

Mr. West’s photographs originally start off as color photographs, and are then changed to grayscale, and then to a duotone mix of black, orange and green. The resulting image then is imbued with a warm tone that creates an archetypal timeless feel. As Mr. West states, “I want my concentrated body of covenant photographs to bring back the visual essence of that old time religion.”

What gives this documentary stunning universal appeal is the open expressive gesture that the people in each photograph display. Whether in the act of worship or at play, the members of Midwest Baptist Church are bonded by an open love, affection, and humanity that is simply contagious. Mr. West’s main goal and objective behind this body of work is to use these compelling photographs to encourage, uplift, and strengthen his church. A second goal is to provide a timeless authentic look and feel of what a genuine Church would look like on any given day. Mr. West feels that any authentic Christ-led Church should be characterized by love, fellowship, praise, worship, and lots of lively fun. If you get nothing else from this show, the viewer will definitely know that God, Covenant, and Community are highly valued by all Midwest Baptist Church members.

The Hidden Splendor of Color

The Hidden Splendor of Color
Photographs by Jeremy Spence

September 13, 2010 and run through September 22
Closing reception is Wednesday, September 22 from 5:00-8:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

The Hidden Splendor of Color is about the side of life that is usually passed on a daily basis. Through the usage of artificial light, landscapes at night take on a different persona. Color has been used to turn ordinary landscapes and architectural structures into something that can only exist at night. Spence’s panoramic works turn everyday landscapes into vivid habitats that become eye candy for the viewer. Through the use of richly saturated colors, one can appreciate the beauty of hidden colors that exist only at night.

Jeremy Spence is a graduate of Governors State University and recently received a Master in Fine Arts in Digital imaging/design at Governors State University.