CURATOR’S STATEMENT
I hope that these four selected artists
sense of displacement, re-presenting the
present an accurate cross-section of the
familiar landscapes of rural Oklahoma as
wide variety of talent and media
new and strange. Paul Bagley’s complex
submitted to the Fellowship program. The
sculptures and attendant performance,
work of all four intersperse their own real
rooted in the landscapes and rural culture
and authentic personal histories into a
of Oklahoma, also seek to universalize and
wider examination of that individual’s
re-present those places as full of rich
place in society, while at the same time
layers of metaphor and experience; both
anchoring their work in an understanding
artists drawing deep strength from their
of their locality. Lindsay Larremore and
locality while ensuring that the viewer can
Mark Zimmerman concentrate on the
fully understand the intent of the artist as
personal, both using their impressive
present within the work.
command of traditional media to actuate their examination of the relevance of the
Ben Heywood - Executive Director
personal to universal. While Zimmerman
The Soap Factory, Minneapolis, MN
takes from his own painful personal family history, Larremore uses the intensely private medium of paint to mimic the un-examined minutiae of her everyday life.
Cover Images:
Positioned as the ‘other’ in a universalized
Paul Bagley, Symbiosis, 2010, Wood, steel, incandescent
landscape of Oklahoma, Eyakem Gulilat
lights, fasteners, fabric, 9’ x 11’ x 18’
OKLAHOMA VISUAL ARTS FELLOWSHIP
uses photography to expose both his adopted home and his immigrant status,
Eyakem Gulilat, Norman, Grandfather’s Morning Prayer,
allowing the viewer to experience his
Archival inkjet print, 16” x 20”
& STUDENT AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE
• 2011 •
OVAC-OK.ORG • 405.879.2400
THE OKLAHOMA VISUAL ARTS COALITION HELPS ARTISTS THRIVE IN OKLAHOMA. OVAC SERVES OVER 4,500 ARTISTS ANNUALLY THROUGH THROUGH PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, FUNDING, EXHIBITIONS AND PUBLICATIONS. THE OKLAHOMA VISUAL ARTS FELLOWSHIPS AND STUDENT AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE RECOGNIZE OKLAHOMA ARTISTS WITH OUTSTANDING VISION, REWARDING THEM FOR THEIR PAST ACHIEVEMENT AND FUTURE PROMISE. A GUEST CURATOR SELECTS THE AWARDS THROUGH AN OPEN CALL PROCESS. VIEW VIDEO INTERVIEWS WITH THE FELLOWSHIP AWARD WINNERS AT YOUTUBE.COM/OKVISUALARTS
PAUL BAGLEY • OKLAHOMA CITY
EYAKEM GULILAT • NORMAN
Oklahoma Visual Arts Fellowship
Oklahoma Visual Arts Fellowship
Through his three-dimensional, multimedia work,
Gulilat’s photographs address how identity forms in
Bagley encourages communal, creative or functional
the junctures of cross-cultural encounter. He focuses
interactivity. He often generates artwork in response
on communities that are underrepresented and his
to the location where he works. The origin of
own memories of new cultures and physical
materials provides the conceptual framework for
landscapes.
every piece, such as wood recycled from demolished buildings or adaptive reuse of outdated technology.
“I treat my camera as a tool that captures one moment of a larger dialogue that occurs between me
“In studying sustainable design over the years, I’ve
and my subjects,” said Gulilat. “Photographing the
developed sensitivity to the layers of applied design
space in-between, along with both my perspective
integrated into our modern culture and how art
and my subject’s perspective, results in a collapse
appreciation functions within this realm,” said Bagley.
between boundaries.”
He said this examination of our rapidly changing world “drives my creativity, addressing embodied
Gulilat received an MFA in Media Art/Photography
energy, processing methods, material up-cycling, and
from the University of Oklahoma and a BAS in
those relationships relative to their history and
Photojournalism and Art from Abilene Christian
environmental impact.”
University.
Bagley received a BFA in Visual Communications from
E YA K E M . C O M
LINDSAY LARREMORE • TULSA Student Award of Excellence Larremore recently received her BFA in Studio Art from Oklahoma State University. Through her painting series, she explores issues of privacy in public and personal settings. The perspective of her oil paintings brings the viewer into the role of voyeur, capturing moments in the life of a young woman. L I N D S AY L A R R E M O R E . C O M
MARK ZIMMERMAN • EDMOND Student Award of Excellence Zimmerman recently received his MFA with an emphasis in Photography from the University of Oklahoma. His current body of work, invites viewers to contemplate their existence and the continuation of time. Using precarious photographic processes, he explores impermanence as a reminder that people, places and things decline, decay and die.
the University of Oklahoma.
MARK WZIMMERMAN .COM P A U L B A G L E Y. C O M
Paul Bagley, Symbiosis, 2010, Wood, steel,
Eyakem Gulilat, Memories of my Father, 2010, Archival inkjet print, 16” x 20”
Lindsay Larremore, 4:22 PM, 2010, Oil on panel,
Mark Zimmerman, A Fragile Existence Plate 6, 2011,
incandescent lights, fasteners, fabric, 9’ x 11’ x 18’
Sophie and Eyakem Gulilat, Archival Ink Jet Print, 24” x 50”
6.5” in diameter
Collodion photography on mirror, 6.5” x 8.5”