Marion Art Gallery showing seniors' works

The works of five students from the Department of Visual Arts and New Media at SUNY Fredonia will be displayed in the Cathy and Jesse Marion Art Gallery at Rockefeller Arts Center beginning Friday, Dec. 2.

The Senior Show I exhibition will open with a reception in the art gallery from 7 to 9 p.m. on Dec. 2. The show will run through Thursday, Dec. 8. Both the reception and exhibition are free and open to the public.

The featured artists for the exhibition include Afura Fareed-Muhammad, who will be displaying two series of works, one of which is entitled “Delusions of Grandeur.” It includes a chronological timeline of self portraits.

Afura’s other series includes a full standard deck of 52 playing cards. The exhibit as a whole is titled “An Undertaking Ten Years in the Making” and was inspired by Afura’s adolescent years.

“The concept behind my self portrait series is duality between the aspects of my development, both real and imaginary,” Afura said. “Each of the six images depicts myself in a semi-realistic view as well as in an idealistic facade of wishful thinking. It’s literally a comparison between who I really was at each time period and the person I wished to be or believed I came off as.”

Another featured artist is Amy Barber, who will be displaying 13 paintings, including four that contain a video component. The paintings depict memories of her childhood, each featuring line drawings from her home video footage.

“My work is inspired by the concept of memory. Through my pieces I am questioning the validity of my memories,” she said. “The viewer can make the connection to the social phenomenon of the video camera and how a paradigm shift in the way we as a society remember things is under way.”

Other artists taking part in the exhibition are Michael Mann, Allyson Kemp and Fredrick Duchow.

“The show is a great opportunity for students, staff and community members to see the talent of our art department,” Afura said. “I always enjoy having a closer look at what my classmates have created and celebrating their progress as undergraduates.”

Gallery hours are 2 to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 2 to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday.