Strength through Connection Exhibition Opens Thursday

The Ashland University Coburn Gallery will be hosting an exhibition titled “Strength through Connection” featuring a selection of works by animation artist Tracy Miller-Robbins and graphic designer Jonathan Frey as they address building a better understanding of our diverse community through race, class and religion. The exhibition will run from Oct. 26 to Nov. 17.

In conjunction with this exhibit, the gallery will host “Thy Neighbor,” an international mail art show that focuses on the connection through our neighbors and encourages more active engagement within our communities.

Both exhibitions are co-sponsored by the Coburn Gallery, the Department of Art & Design and the College of Arts and Sciences Symposium “Against Indifference.” An opening reception, which is free and open to the public, is planned for Thursday, Oct. 26, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

Exhibiting artist Miller-Robbins creates animated drawings about interpersonal experiences. Influenced by Ben Shahn and Caroline Leaf, her works strive to capture this essence through both gestural marks and figurative gesture. The expression and limited palettes of her work results in pointed thematic motifs that are embedded in seemingly abstract forms. The works, which merge the practices of sketching and animation, have been nationally and internationally presented in festivals and galleries.

Frey is an artist and designer who currently resides in central Pennsylvania. His work broadly explores the influence of ideology on contemporary culture. By evaluating the significance of the grid within in the context of architecture and game structures, Frey is able to consider issues of connection and disconnection that occur within local and global communities. He also explores the potential of graphic design to be used as a medium for public awareness and social critic.

For more about the “Strength through Connection” exhibition or events at the Coburn Gallery, visit www.ashland.edu/coburngallery or find us on Facebook. The Coburn Gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 12 noon to 4 p.m. Saturday/Sunday.