Thursday, February 28, 6:30 p.m.
Figge Art Museum, 225 West Second Street, Davenport IA
An innovative and truly one-of-a-kind artist will delve into the intricacies of his artistic process during a February 28 presentation at the Figge Art Museum, as the Davenport venue hosts a special Artist Talk with New York's Kim Keever, the talent behind the museum's current exhibition Submerged in the Sublime: The Landscape Photography of Kim Keever.
The word sublime in art history is often used to refer to scenes whose magnitude and splendor inspire awe and wonder, but also a twinge of fear. Artist Keever manages to create such scenes within the confines of a fish tank. Using his engineering background in fluid dynamics, Keever takes photographs of compositions he creates using various paints and inks added to the water inside a 200-gallon tank to produce compelling atmospheric effects. Through the combination of handmade diorama elements, carefully orchestrated lighting, and the uncontrollable effects created by paints dissipating in the water, a bizarre landscape appears in front of Keever’s lens. The resulting large scale photographs have often been compared to the paintings of the Hudson River School and simultaneously feel like a primordial landscape and a vision of a post-apocalyptic future.
Keever studied Engineering at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, and worked briefly for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) before deciding to become a full-time artist in the mid 1970s. His background in science and engineering has helped him with various constructions concerning his work and the general thought process that is required of a scientist. Meanwhile, the New York City resident's works can be found in numerous collections nationwide, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington D.C., the Nassau County Museum of Fine Art, and the George Washington University Gallery.
Kim Keever's Figge presentation will be begin at 6:30 p.m. on February 28, with the venue's happy-hour menu and cash bar starting at 4 p.m., and Submerged in the Sublime: The Landscape Photography of Kim Keever will be on display through May 9. Admission to the Artist Talk is free, and more information is available by calling (563)326-7804 or visiting FiggeArtMuseum.org.
