WKU News

Re- Formed, an exhibition curated by Art History alum Liz Chagnon, kicks off the Fall 2018 semester at the WKU Art Gallery with an exploration of both the literal and conceptual fragment.

Re- Formed is free and open to the public Aug. 31-Oct. 3 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the second floor gallery in WKU's Ivan Wilson Fine Arts Center.

Photo: Liz Chagnon in front of The Hermitage of San Baudelio de Berlanga in Spain
 
About the exhibit
 
Inviting audience participation throughout the monthlong exhibition, Chagnon opens Re- Formed as an ever-evolving experience. Can our stories endure after they have been retold? This is the question that Chagnon, a Gilman Scholar and recipient of the 2018 FUSE grant, seeks in response to her ongoing research.
 
Recently participating in a KIIS Barcelona study abroad course that provided the opportunity visit the monasteries of Spain to the museums of the States, the Spanish Hermitage of San Baudelio's story is her basis for investigation. The 22 religious frescoes that once formed part the interior decoration of the 11th century hermitage were relocated in the 1920s to various institutions both in the States as well as Spain, while the physical building remains with ghosts of their original location. Learning how each museum now curates these frescoes prompts for further insight into the challenges curators face in representation.
 
“I hope to better understand the role of artist, curator and ultimately cultural heritage through the complexities of fragmentation on this scale,” Chagnon said. “Understanding what is being left behind is as crucial as what is being represented.”
 
The exhibition is straightforward in its approach and invites collaboration. Working with WKU's Art Department students, Chagnon instructs the fragmentation. Here the “fragments” are created without the students' knowledge of the outcome—crafted as a single piece of paper depicting the students' concept of community, only to be then torn and reformed as part of a retelling of the intended narrative. The accompanying film shares the process from conception to reconstruction in contrast to the tangible wall of curated fragments. Chagnon intends to expose the experience of art within and outside its original intention, prompting reflection for one's next museum experience.