April 18, 2011
Two visiting artists to speak on campus
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The School of Art and Design at Southern Illinois University Carbondale welcomes two visiting artists in one week as part of the Visiting Artist program.
First up is fiber artist Laura Foster Nicholson, who presents an art discussion beginning at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 19, in the University Museum Auditorium. This lecture is free and open to the public.
Henry Cooper, curator of modern and contemporary art at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., will be on campus for a lecture entitled “Juan Gris, The Phantom,” beginning at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 22, in the University Museum Auditorium.
Nicholson specializes in woven jacquard ribbon and trim and brocaded tapestries. She refers to the ribbon as “tapestries in miniature.” Her full-size tapestries are in museum collections including the Art Institute of Chicago, Cranbrook Art Museum, The Reading Public Museum, and more. She also licenses designs to manufacturers including Crate & Barrel, Land of Nod, Renaissance Ribbons, Grow Kids and Larsen, Inc.
Her master of fine arts is from the Cranbrook Academy of Art. She earned a bachelor’s of fine arts from the Kansas City Art Institute. Besides producing her own art, Nicholson also teaches classes and workshops. She is a past recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, a Graham Foundation for Research in Fine Arts, and a three-time recipient of Illinois Arts Council Fellowships. She earned a Leone di Pietra prize at the Venice Biennale of Architecture early in her career.
Nicholson will meet with graduate students interested in marketing their art or landing corporate commissions during her visit to SIUC.
Cooper’s lecture concerns Jose Victoriano Gonzalez-Perez, also known as Juan Gris, a Spanish artist well known for his role in promoting Cubism.
Cooper formerly headed up the modern art department at Harvard University Art Museums, where he also held several other curatorial and academic positions, and from where he earned his doctoral degree. His teaching experience includes Johns Hopkins University and Columbia University.