PUHI — Artwork created by more than 100 art students in the Kaua‘i Community College fall semester art courses were unveiled to an enthusiastic crowd amidst the vocal harmonies of the KCC Vocal Ensemble Tuesday. The opening reception for the
PUHI — Artwork created by more than 100 art students in the Kaua‘i Community College fall semester art courses were unveiled to an enthusiastic crowd amidst the vocal harmonies of the KCC Vocal Ensemble Tuesday.
The opening reception for the KCC Art Show marks the start of viewing by the public during the operating hours of the One Stop Center at the KCC campus.
“This is the first time we’ve had an art show where all of the different divisions in art have come together for a singular art show,” said Cammie Matsumoto, the KCC director of community relations and special projects. “This is impressive.”
Student work in beginning, intermediate and advanced level courses in Two Dimensional Design, Digital Art, Graphic Design, Digital Photography, Interface Design, Video Storytelling, Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, Visual Arts and Special Studies, an area where students with special interests and abilities work on advanced studies and projects, are included in the public exhibition.
When combined, the exhibit portrays diversity in art from the students in work which includes self-portraits, still life, landscapes, watercolor, photography, graphic design posters and clay sculptures.
Matthew Fulmer, Norman Acupan and Gary Ellwood make up the faculty in Digital and Design. Wayne Miyata and Chuck Souza head up the Ceramics courses with Carol Yotsuda and Stephanie Britt teaching Drawing and Painting.
“Students are the ones who do all the work,” Souza says in a KCC release. “The work is not just cups, (or mugs and bowls). It’s the development of a language where the art communicates what artists strive to accomplish.”
Some of the ceramic pieces range from a bigger-than-life insect to more practical wine bottle holders.
“Teaching is always rewarding,” said Yotsuda. “Actually, teaching is like drawing on your own blank canvas where what we create is from interacting with students and their art.”
She took pride in the work of her drawing students, which when viewed collectively, demonstrated the diversity of the students similar to the diversity of the population on the island.
“Exhibits give students an opportunity to bolster their self-esteem and in belief in themselves as artists,” Fulmer said, while a student studying his own artwork in relation to others spoke of learning PhotoShop, an Adobe software for image editing. “This is an opportunity for KCC to give back to the community.”
While faculty and students and their friends browsed through the exhibit, Greg Shepherd led the KCC Vocal Ensemble through an encore performance of their Sunday presentation at the St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church in Lihu‘e, bringing another dimension of art into the One Stop Center.
“The art show and accompanying music concert is a wonderful opportunity to publicly display the really great work our students are doing,” said KCC Chancellor Helen Cox. “It is amazing to see the talent we have in our community, and events like this demonstrate how truly vibrant the KCC community is.”
Art aficionados enjoyed the show, chatting, discussing and enjoying the light refreshments, yet another art form in the presentation, prepared by the KCC culinary arts department, Chef Martina Hildorfer.
“The art show is a collection of visual and performing art student works for the academic semester,” said James Dire, KCC vice chancellor for academic affairs. “The quality of the visual art displays is absolutely outstanding. The choral concert displayed astonishing student talent. We may be the smallest campus on the smallest island in the state with a college, but our student talent equals that of any college or university in the country.”
Kaua‘i Community College is located at 3-1901 Kaumuali‘i Highway in Puhi. Visit www.kauai.hawaii.edu for more information.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
