The Wasmer Art Gallery in the Bower School of Music & Arts at Florida Gulf Coast University opened a new exhibition last week titled, “The History of the United States, Vol. I & II, 1774 – 1844.” There is one print for each year, each created by different contemporary artists. Some chose well-known events while others more obscure conceptual ideas, all of which were tied into what was happening during those years.
The collections were donated by Peter Massing. The prints were created in 2010 and 2011 by artists from every state including Alaska and Hawaii. This is the first time the exhibition has shown.
During the opening reception, WGCU's Mike Kiniry was joined by three FGCU professors who had been asked to look over the collection and choose a few prints that they wanted to reflect on from their own area of expertise.
The panel was comprised of Dr. Rick Coughlin, Professor of Political Science & Government; Dr. Jordan Von Cannon, Associate Professor of American Literature; and by Dr. Sarah Rodriguez, Assistant Professor of History. They were also joined on the panel by Knox Naumes Hope — he's a former FGCU dual-enrolled student who is now studying at College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine. Knox wrote the labels for every print to provide some historical context.
Their conversation lasted about an hour - and they did have the images on display for the audience to consider. We present here an edited version of that conversation as a sort of teaser for the exhibition as a whole, which will be on display through Sept. 24.
Click here to see a PDF of the entire exhibit.
Click here to see a PDF of only the images discussed.
You can hear the entire hourlong panel discussion below.
WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.
