The Student Union Art Gallery is showcasing an impressive body of work — the human body.
“The Emancipated Figure: Contemporary Reflections,” an art collection featuring 16 New Orleans-based artists, opened in the LSU Student Union Art Gallery Friday. Although diverse, the eclectic mix of art pieces rallies behind the central motif of the human figure.
“The human figure is an emblematic theme in all of this collection,” said Jeremy Kreusch, curatorial assistant at the gallery.
The exhibit, which is free and open to the public, was brought to the University by the Union Art Advisory Committee and will run until Oct. 16. The gallery displays a variety of art forms from papier-mache and paintings to photographs and porcelain sculptures.
Featured artist Shannon Landis Hansen reaches beyond the singular human figure to encompass broader cultural themes. Hansen said her “Red Chair” conveys a stereotypical image of Chinese culture that is comically cliche. The porcelain chair, bustling with details like the heads of small Asian figurines, appears to be pieced together.
“It is about things breaking down and being re-assembled – giving new life,” Hansen said.
The New Orleans resident’s other pieces on display include interpretations of Buddhist principles of refreshed thinking and the cultural decadence of Mardi Gras. The ambitious works manage to maintain a light-hearted feeling despite tackling broad and abstract themes.
“The world is full of kitsch and junk. It is very evocative,” Hansen said.
Donnie Byrd, counseling education master’s student cross-enrolled at LSU and Southern University, viewed the exhibit Friday and said the pieces were poignant and emotional.
“I see pain in this man, he looks excluded and different,” Byrd said regarding a painting of a seemingly wounded man.
Many of the works in the gallery exude an undercurrent of distress and anguish due to the reeling effects of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans. Luis Cruz Azaceta’s “Katrina Head,” an abstract self-portrait, conveys negative feelings toward the natural disaster with a somber expression and elements of disorder.
Kreusch wants students to drop by the gallery to experience the exhibit’s many shades of human character.
“Students should take time for culture,” Kreusch said. “I think they will be pleasantly surprised with what they find