“Jim Agard: A Retrospective”

By Emily Francisco

This semester in Schmucker features a new, yet familiar, artist: one of Gettysburg College’s own beloved Studio Art professors.

Titled Jim Agard: A Retrospective, the latest Schmucker Art Gallery Exhibition celebrates the works of retiring Professor Jim Agard, who has taught at Gettysburg College for twenty years. The works on display date from 1962 through 2011, exploring a variety of subjects such as optical illusions, abstraction, and two-dimensional design. The exhibition features his sculptures as well as drawings.

The exhibition is unique in that it was curated by Professor Agard’s former Studio Assistant Kerri Rosenstein. Rosenstein, in fact, who graduated from Gettysburg in 1998, had her own works exhibited in Schmucker just last fall. She has curated and taught in programs throughout the country, including ART SPACE, Gallery Saintonge, and the University of Montana. Her curatorial statement gave the exhibition a more personal edge, describing her connections with Professor Agard’s art instead of analyzing his work in purely a historical context.

Rosenstein writes, “Jim’s work is purely non-objective and formal, yet equally laden with profound conceptual significance. It invites an approach that is lucid and straightforward, while encouraging a willingness to let the focus blur. To hold these views simultaneously. To see and then hyper-see and be willing to not see, and in not seeing, see even more.” Several of these words are printed on the wall in front of the gallery, inviting visitors to see Professor Agard’s work as his assistant and good friend does.

The most memorable piece in the exhibit is Inverted Illusions, a black wall in the adjoined smaller gallery bearing wire sculptures of various shapes and sizes. This installation is interactive. The viewer must stand at a certain point and, while focusing on one sculpture, cover one eye and invert the shape. He or she then can see the illusion by swaying from left to right; the sculpture appears to stretch and distort as the viewer moves. The effect culminates as he or she walks horizontally to the opposite end of the wall.

This theme of illusion and perception carries throughout the exhibition. There are several other wire sculptures on display, in addition to other geometric sculptures. These other sculptures are different in that they are made of laminated wood covered with steel impregnated paint, creating the “illusion” of an aged metal object.

A fascinating collection of work, Professor Agard’s exhibition captures the artist’s originality and ambitious intellect. His pieces inspire viewers to think of art, line, composition, and sculpture in new ways, challenging their psyche to be a part of the exhibit itself.

Jim Agard: A Retrospective will be on display in the Schmucker Art Gallery until March 9.