Surrealist paintings by artist Kristy Deetz will be displayed during the spring semester at Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Sharp Museum. A public reception is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Jan. 27 with virtual artist talk at 6 p.m. (Photo by Russell Bailey)
January 23, 2024
33 surrealist paintings form an adventure story at SIU Sharp Museum
CARBONDALE, Ill. — A series of surrealist paintings that tell an adventure story are featured in an exhibition during the first part of the spring semester at Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Sharp Museum.
“Off the Wall: Into the Story” by Kristy Deetz is in the museum’s Saluki Gallery through March 8. The series of 33 paintings feature the main characters Rabbit and Kitty Boy. Based on those paintings, Deetz and her husband, author Edward Risden (whose pen name is Edward Louis), have created two illustrated books of their adventures.
“It’s using visual imagery to create a story,” said WM Weston Stoerger, the museum’s curator of exhibits. “Her paintings are both visual stories as well as written narratives based on them. It was a natural slot for us. With her background and how dynamic and engaging these works are, we jumped at the opportunity to be able to show her work.”
A public reception, along with a virtual artist talk, is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27. Deetz’s talk begins at 6 p.m.
“Ms. Deetz and her husband are coming up with stories that are wholly novel; the stories are based on works from her imagination, pulling from everyday concepts representing life, death and even the holidays,” Stoerger said.
A professor emerita of arts and visual design, painting and drawing at the University of Wisconsin– Green Bay, she has frequently served as a visiting artist, led numerous painting and drawing workshops and has an extensive exhibition record at national and international venues.
Deetz earned a Master of Fine Arts with a concentration in painting from Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Fine Art, also in painting, from Bowling Green State University.
For more information, contact Stoerger at 618-453-5388 or stoerger@siu.edu, or visit museum.siu.edu. Sharp Museum hours are noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1-4 p.m. Saturday. The museum is closed Sunday and Monday, and during all SIU breaks and holidays.
As with all exhibitions, the artwork represents the viewpoints of its creators, not SIU. SIU complies with the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act and State Officials and Employees Ethics Act.