PULLMAN, Wash. — The Compton Union Gallery at Washington State University will host an exhibition of recent works by Native American Artist’s Rick Bartow and Joe Feddersen from Sept. 15 through October 4.
The exhibit is part of “Art in the 2000s,” working in conjunction with the WSU Museum of Art’s “Art in 2 Worlds.” The Compton Union Gallery is open 10-3 p.m., Monday-Friday. Admission is free.
Bartow is member of the Yurok tribe of Northern California. His expressive pastel and graphite drawings are created with flowing line, strong form and stormy color. At the center of his works are images that reflect a transformational mythology, combining archetypal imagery and personal symbolism.
Deeply influenced by his time in service during the Vietnam War, Bartow depicts forms of men and animals – figures in various states of transformation. In some cases, masks appear to be falling off to reveal what lies beneath. In others, human figures combine with animal features like that of a coyote, raven or deer to create a transformed being. These drawings engender a sense of healing of mind, soul, and spirit – a tribute to the strength of Rick Bartow’s belief in “the power of drawing as medicine,” said Gail Siegel, campus involvement coordinator.
Feddersen, a member of the Colville Nation, is an innovative and progressive printmaker. Through his work, he explores issues of pattern and color. Strongly attracted to indigenous Columbia Plateau patterns and designs found on bags, blankets and baskets, he creates rhythmic abstract landscapes of space, color and texture. The depth of color creates a unique luminosity, the repeated line and form work to produce a flow of visual relationships – Plateau geometry in contemporary context.
Bartow lives and works in Newport, Ore. Bartow studied art at Western Oregon State College before serving in Vietnam in 1970 and 1971. Feddersen received a bachelor’s degree in printmaking from the University of Washington and a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is a member of the art faculty at Evergreen State University, Olympia.
The work of both artists is widely collected and exhibited nationally and internationally. The exhibition is presented courtesy of the Froelick Gallery, Portland, Ore., and the WSU Museum of Art.
