January 12 – January 30, 2013
Englewood Art Center
Artist Susan Bickford’s site-specific interactive installation opens Saturday, January 12 in the Ken Mitchell Gallery at the Englewood Art Center – Artist Talk at 1pm
Polyphemus: an interactive installation at the Englewood Arts Center in Englewood Florida from susan bickford on Vimeo.
Polyphemus: an interactive installation at the Englewood Arts Center in Englewood, Florida. The Englewood Art Center, a Division of Ringling College of Art and Design (EAC) is pleased to present Susan Bickford’s site-specific digital-installation artwork in the Ken Mitchell Gallery. The exhibition will be open through January 30, 2013, Tuesday, 9 am- 9 pm and Wednesday through Saturday, 9 am -4 pm.
Susan Bickford will be giving an artist talk on Saturday, January 12, 2013 at 1 pm in the Digital Media Lab at EAC. An opening reception will follow the talk from 2 – 4 pm. The exhibition and all events listed are free-of-charge and open to the public.
This high-tech multi-media installation features projected video of Stump Pass and abstract interactive elements that wrap the viewer in mesmerizing sights and sounds. As visitors move through the space the piece responds, creating ever-changing images.
Describing the installation, Susan says “The viewer becomes an integral part of it, changing it and co-creating it as s/he moves through or makes sound. I am fascinated by the natural world and the interrelationships of geometry and physics. In this particular piece I have chosen to focus on the notion of natural cycles and balance. I set up systems of complex interaction, both in the physical space and in the space of the programming language. I want you as a viewer to be enveloped by something beautiful and mysterious, and then recognize that you are having an effect on it. Maybe you cannot figure out exactly how you are causing the installation and the images to shift, but you know it is responding to your presence. I am showing a chaos of my making and asking the viewer to find the threads of reason and connection within it. My hope is to imply that audience have agency, that their interaction makes a difference, that it is them who is making things happen.”
For the past ten years, Susan Bickford’s choice of media has been projected video/animation & sound for interactive installation and theater. Bickford earned her BFA and Bl D from Rhode Island School of Design in 1985 and 1986, respectively; she earned her MFA from Maine College of Art in 2001 and has since designed projections for numerous theatrical productions as well as exhibiting her work and collaborative projects widely. Bickford has been teaching within the University of Maine system since 2003. She lives in the mid-coast region of Maine and spends time, when teaching allows, in Englewood, Florida at one of the bungalows on Artist Acres.
EAC has been a prominent member of the local arts community for more than 50 years. As a division of Ringling College of Art and Design since 2008, EAC has benefited from the College’s commitment and support-allowing the Center to plan for a bright future. It is our goal for you to appreciate and find value in the variety of programs offered at EAC as well as recognize the vitality the Center brings to Englewood and surrounding communities. We encourage you to visit often and take advantage of the many creative events, classes and exhibitions we offer. Membership and donations to EAC help support our artists and activities and help ensure EAC will be here for your and your community for years to come.
For more information about the Englewood Art Center, please visit our website at ringling.edujea ringling.edu/eac or call us at 941/474-5548.
CONTACT:
KC Bitterman, Director
Englewood Art Center I Ringling College of Art+ Design
Phone: 941/474·5548
Email: eac@ringling.edu
Web: ringling.edu/eac
350 S McCall Road, Englewood, FL 342241 T 941 474 55481 eac@ringling.edu I eac.ringling.edu
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