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Stormy weather—from onset to aftermath and all in between—is the theme of MFA’s (Maryland Federation of Art) 5th annual exhibition. MFA invites all 2-and 3-D artists to submit any original artwork depicting the sounds, colors, impact, anticipation, and more, of stormy weather.The selected artworks may be viewed on MFA’s online Curve Gallery from August 15 through September 30, 2019. Show Chairs: Richard Niewerth and Wil Scott.
Boston University, Boothbay, Maine
R. Barry Shauck lives in Boothbay, Maine where he enjoys retirement after thirteen years of holding the position of Assistant Professor and, subsequently, the responsibilities as Head of Art Teacher and Museum Education at Boston University (BU). Barry has earned a BS in education and philosophy from Frostburg State University, an MFA in art education and printmaking from the Maryland Institute College of Art, and an EdD from Boston University. The topic of his dissertation was sources of inspiration for those who paint professionally en plein air and/or teach and paint en plein air residing in the mid-Atlantic through New England states. First serving as a secondary art teacher in Baltimore County, Maryland (MD), Shauck enjoyed a thirty-year career as a Maryland visual arts educator and art administrator. In Baltimore County, he held the position of Art Department Chair at both the junior and senior high school levels, and he later served as countywide Resource Teacher for Gifted and Talented Art. Barry then became supervisor of art for the Howard County Public School System where he served as Instructional Facilitator for the Visual Arts for sixteen years. His association with the Maryland Institute College of Art began during his time there in pursuit of his MFA degree, where he taught on Saturdays for the Young People’s Studios (YPS) eventually becoming Director of YPS as well as an adjunct professor in their MA in Art Education program of studies. Barry has been honored for his art educational leadership and service by the MD Parent Teachers Association, the Maryland Art Education Association where he served in various roles including President, the Howard County Arts Council, the National Art Education Association (NAEA) where he also served in various roles including President and Chair of NAEA. Distinguished Fellows. Shauck credits his colleagues, those who contributed to and participated in his dissertation research, and his students for helping to shape both his content and knowledge of the field
The invitation given to me by the MFA was to serve as the juror for their online exhibition opening late this summer entitled Stormy Weather. The parameters for the show, as described in the MFA website were “from onset to aftermath and all in between... any original artwork depicting the sounds, colors, impact, anticipation, and more, of stormy weather.” Jurors often struggle with both the notions and tasks of curating and jurying, as well as implicit and personal biases when selecting artwork. In the absence of artists’ statements, a juror may consider what prompts an artist to produce work such as documentation, emotion, a heightened moment, imagination, literature, masters’ works, memory, messaging for either political commentary or social justice, a narrative relationship among actors, observation, or responsiveness to the conditions of subject matter. Of equal importance is the suitability of formal factors: accuracy and/or chance taking; composition; contrast; craft; drawing; size; the use of color, finish, presentation; and the ways in which media and subject matter work to either oppose or support one another to resolve the idea of the artist. I was asked by the MFA to choose about seventy-five works for Stormy Weather and, as I believed to be appropriate, to spread my selections as broadly across the artists who had entered their work for consideration. The selections made were mine alone, and they were made as best judgments based upon the perceived quality of the work and its relationship to particular criteria and theme. Inspiration surrounding artistic practices deserves a closer eye and more investigation. My hope is that those who chose to enter this show, as well as those who view it, will consider its scope both cohesive and dynamic for specific rather than peremptory reasons. Continued success and sincere thanks are extended to those affiliated with the Maryland Federation of Art who were instrumental in making Stormy Weather possible including Frank and Sharon Arsenault, Elana Harris / Gallery Manager, Joann Vaughan / Executive Director, and best wishes are extended to every artist involved in this exhibition be they prize winners, those selected, or those who took the initiative to enter this show.