USU’S MUSEUM HOSTS EXHIBITION OF SCOTT GRIEGER PHOTOGRAPHS AND SCULPTURE
LOGAN — An exhibition of photographs and sculpture by Scott Grieger is now on display at the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art on the Utah State University campus. The exhibition, “Impersonations,” was organized by the museum and is a collection of historically important conceptual artworks from the 1970s.
Grieger will provide a lecture Monday, March 19, at 7 p.m. in The Performance Hall, located adjacent to the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum. Additionally, Grieger will meet with students in USU’s art department Tuesday, March 20.
“Impersonations” is on display until May 31.
The centerpiece of the exhibition is a series created by Grieger that “impersonate” famous works of art — using only his body as medium. The resulting photographs from his widely exhibited “Impersonations” series show Grieger acting out some well known artist’s work, including Barnett Newman’s famous stripe paintings, Claus Oldenburg’s colossal monuments and Robert Rauschenberg’s tire encircled ram sculpture.
The work grew out of Grieger’s association with Norman Lear and Hollywood comedians, including Sid Caesar, Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks. Over dinner the group would do impressions of Sinatra, Cagney and each other. The fast and funny atmosphere inspired Grieger to apply the standards of comedy to high art.
“Today, the works’ witty commentary stands the test of time,” said museum director Victoria Rowe.
“Grieger is an image-collector, not an image-inventor,” said art critic Linda Weintraub. “Like a connoisseur, he selects prized specimens from today’s supersaturated image-stream … Instead of venerating these prized examples from the visual torrent, he manipulates them, usurps their authority, reverses their flow of influence and sends them back into the world to un-brainwash the people.”
A catalog accompanies the exhibition with an essay by Dave Hickey, a MacArthur “Genius” award-winner and freelance writer of fiction and cultural criticism. Hickey currently teaches in the creative writing program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has written for most major American cultural publications including “Rolling Stone,” “Art News,” “Art in America,” “Artforum,” “Interview,” “Harper’s,” “Vanity Fair,” “Nest,” the “New York Times” and the “Los Angeles Times.”
This project is supported by the Marie Eccles Caine Foundation, the Utah Arts Council, with funding from the State of Utah and the National Endowment for the Arts.
For more information about “Impersonations,” or to schedule a tour of the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, call (435) 797-0165.
The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art is located on the USU campus at 650 North 1100 East, Logan, Utah, 84322, (435) 797-0163; fax (435) 7978-3423. Information is available at the museum’s Web site, http://www.usu.edu/artmuseum. The museum is open Tuesday- Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, noon-4 p.m. The museum is closed Sundays, Mondays and holidays. Admission is free. The museum is accessible to persons with disabilities.
Parking for the museum is available in lot C3 to the west of the museum. The parking fee in this area is $6 ($3 will be refunded if parked for two hours or less). Parking is free after 3:45 p.m. and on weekends. Parking is also available in the USU Parking Terrace, located near the Taggart Student Center for $1.50/hour ($7.50/day maximum). Free parking after 2 p.m. is available at lot B, located at the corner of 700 North and 1200 East (by Aggie Ice Cream).