Sarro 1

Abigail Sarro
Wallace
Art Concepts
September 17th 2016
Faculty Exhibition Paper
The 2016 Faculty Exhibition is currently taking place in the Rowe Arts building at The
University of North Carolina at Charlotte. This exhibition is held every two years in Rowe for
The University of North Carolinas Art Department. The show is a wonderful way to help show
college students the potential they have, while also helping them get a better feel for their
teachers and their styles. This year, among the most interesting pieces were Shelley Sloan Elliss
Fimbria, Alexandra Giannells Malignant Growth, Weight of Doubt Series, and Jane Daltonss
Contemplative Cloth Series: Meditation 1, and among the not so interesting was What it Looks
like to Believe: Faith Series by Alexandra Giannell.
Shelley Sloan Elliss piece Fimbria, made in 2015 of thrown and altered stoneware, is a
beautiful symbol of female fragility. Using porcelain slip with fiber forced the medium to be
pushed to its breaking point, a representation of how sexual violence could force any woman to
her limits. Ellis discussed in her statement the brilliant idea of putting her own DNA into her
work by using dryer lint as her fiber. She ran into an issue when she soon realized she was
running low on fibers. Ellis then reached out to the help of others on craigslist for more. Women
responded with lint and stories from near and far. I weaved their lint, their lives, and their DNA
into my aprons (Ellis). This piece gave women a chance to tell their stories and help raise
awareness. The flower, something that has been used traditionally in art all over as different

Sarro 2
symbols for sex, marriage, love, ect. is withered and worn, like a woman who has had to suffer
with the pain left behind from sexual assault.
Alexandra Giannells Maligant Growth, made in 2015 from her Weight of Doubt
Series, is a wonderful depiction of the emptiness of depression. She managed to create a more
than accurate visual of the void made by the mental illness. This visual helps to create a bridge
for those who might not otherwise understand the illness. When looking at this piece the viewer
can feel the heaviness of depression. They can feel the overtaking power of this deep, dark
feeling. Her use of layering different dark colors and mixed media creates a sense of depth. This
technique creates a visual of an empty space, one feels stuck floating through when dealing with
depression. The faint areas of lighter color shining through symbolize the hope that is being
swallowed by the darkness. The way the paint drips in different directions gives it life. The drips
cause it to look as if it is growing, like vines, suffocating and destroying more and more as it
grows. This piece does everything a brilliant work of art should. The work explains something
and gives the viewer feeling.
Meditation 1 of Jane Daltons Contemplative Cloth Series, made of hand dyed and
commercial fabric in 2016, is a modern take on a traditional craft. Upon first glance this piece
has a very quilt like aspect, but once looked at more thoroughly you can see much more stitching
and patching. Instead of large patches the piece is made up of many little patches which appear
to be made up of even littler patches. The smaller patches are organic shapes, rather than
geometrical shapes you see in typical quilt making. She keeps the traditionality of sewing
together larger square patches, but instead of perfect geometric square forms, the sides of her
patches are un-even. Dalton has also sewn together squares of all different sizes, unlike

Sarro 3
traditional quilts that have patches of relatively similar sizes. Her use of different vibrant colors
brings new life to this traditional craft.
Unlike Malignant Growth from the Weight of Doubt Series, Alexandra Giannells piece
What it Looks Like to Believe, made in 2016 from her Faith Series, was of least interesting in the
show. The work is a major step down from Growth. It seems as if she was running out of time
and threw something together. It is a simple abstract piece that consists of the stippling of
different colored oil paints on wood panels. This is a technique we have seen done over and over
throughout art. The colors do not seem to have any type of consistency in representation and the
idea she is trying to get across is very unclear.
The show was a great way for the students to see where the expectations the teachers
have come from. Exhibitions like this are a really wonderful thing to have at the University. The
show really helps the student relate with the teacher. Seeing ones work gives you a better
understanding of the person who created it not only as an artist, but also as an individual.

Sarro 4
Works Cited
Giannell, Alexandra. What It Looks Like to Believe, Faith Series. 2016. Rowe Arts Building, The
Univeristy of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina.
Giannell, Alexandra. Malignant Growth, Weight of Doubt Series. 2015. Rowe Arts Building, The
Univeristy of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina.
Daltons, Jane. Contemplative Cloth Series: Meditation 2016. Rowe Arts Building, The Univeristy
of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina.
Ellis, Shelley Sloan. Fimbria 2015. Rowe Arts Building, The Univeristy of North Carolina at
Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina.
Ellis, Shelley Sloan. Artist Statement. Rowe Arts Building, The Univeristy of North Carolina at
Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina. 2016.