October 4, 2005
Contact and writer: Deb Banerjee (435) 797-8207
NORA ECCLES HARRISON MUSEUM OF ART
AT UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY PRESENTS
"SIGHT & SOUND: A VISUAL METAPHOR"
LOGAN - The Nora Eccles Harrison
Museum of Art, located on
the campus of Utah State University in Logan, unveils a selection of
paintings and sculptures from the museum's permanent collection in a new
exhibition, "Sight and Sound: A Visual Metaphor."
The exhibit marks the reopening
of the museum after a summer
of renovation and remodeling. The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art is
an affiliated program of the Caine School of the Arts at Utah State.
The artworks in "Sight and
Sound" provide a glimpse of the
simultaneous revolutions in both art and music that occurred during the
20th century, said Victoria Rowe, museum director.
"Viewers can experience art
with the added enhancement of
music to gain an understanding of the liberation from traditional forms
that transformed both modern art and culture," she said.
Located in two major galleries of
the museum, the exhibition
features listening posts where visitors can hear selections from 20th
century composers, including Edgard Varèse, Luciano Berio, John Cage,
George Antheil and Terry Riley. The selections were chosen by
musicologist Eric Smigel to demonstrate the new ideas of space, time and
the depiction of the new world of technology that flow through the art's
historical movements such as Cubism, Synchronism, Futurism, Abstract
Expressionism and Minimalism. Smigel joined the USU music faculty last
year as an assistant professor of music history and world music. His
interests include performance and aesthetic issues of avant-garde piano
music in the 1950s.
"Listening to music while viewing
art allows for a more
intense experience of the art," Rowe said. "The experience of
synesthesia, where colors can be heard and sounds could be seen, was
often experienced by the artist. The addition of music gives the viewer
a deeper understanding of the sometimes challenging work of the 20th
century."
The exhibition will serve as a foundation
for educational
programming. Tours are available for public and private groups, school
groups and home school groups. Tours scheduled in advance will include
hands-on activities and a video of Allegretto by Oskar Fishinger.
Drop-in visitors will be able to hear the musical selections at the
listening stations. For more information or to schedule a tour of the
museum, call (435) 797-0165.
"Sight and Sound: A Visual
Metaphor" can be seen at the
museum through July 2007.
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) 797-3423, http://www.artmuseum.usu.edu. The museum is open
Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m.- 4:30 p.m.; Wednesday, 10 a.m.-7
p.m.; Saturday, noon-4 p.m. The museum is closed Sundays, Mondays and
major holidays. Admission is free. For more information or to schedule a
tour of the museum, please call (435) 797-0165. The museum is accessible
to persons with disabilities.