DSC Sears Art Museum Gallery Presents Dual Summer Art Exhibit Now through July 31

The Sears Art Museum Gallery at the Dixie State College of Utah Dolores Dore’ Eccles Fine Arts Center is currently presenting a dual summer art exhibit, featuring two talented artists from southwestern Utah, including Cedar City’s Fiona Phillips and part-time Apple Valley resident Paul Fuentes. The exhibit is open Monday through Thursday through July 31, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

In addition, a special artist reception with refreshments will be held on Friday, May 30, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., in the Gallery. Admission to the exhibit and reception is free and open to the public.

Phillips’ exhibit, entitled “Fiona Phillips: Recollection and Connection,” depicts her work as an exploration into the place of memory in regards to identity within the family, and the “snap-shot” photograph as a mediator, linking past and present. She has been working on a series of oil paintings depicting memories of her mother, including reflections that were jogged by rereading old letters and enjoying old photos she and her mother shared over the years. The richness of those slices of memory are seen in visions of hand embroidered linens blowing in the summer breeze, perfect hued flowers, and patterns reminiscent of times gone by. Standing back for a moment, a viewer, not surprisingly, may find themselves remembering vignettes of their own childhood.

Phillips, who has been painting since she was a senior in high school, currently serves as an adjunct professor at Southern Utah University. She earned her MA in Painting from Cal State Dominguez Hills and an MFA in Visual Art from the Vermont College of Fine Art. Before moving to Utah, Phillips worked and exhibited throughout California, and has participated in numerous national, state and regional juried shows, including shows at the St. George Art Museum.

Fuentes will present his works in an exhibit titled “Paul Fuentes: Celebrating 91 Years Here…and There.” Still going strong at age 91, Fuentes captures his enthusiastic observations with retrospection in his studio and en plein air. His landscapes evince his native love of the land whether his medium is pen and ink, or oil. The landscapes are dramatically lit with well-placed strokes of light and dark. Some maintain a small-scale intimacy and other are large and place the viewer within the space. He is most likely successful in these endeavors, since he can watch the light, details, and juxtaposed majesty of the views outside his window of views of Zion National Park.

Fuentes also frequents Sedona, AZ, where he spends a week each year painting and chatting with gallery patrons at the Showcase Gallery in Tlaquepaque. In addition, his works can be seen at the annual Dixie Invitational Art Show on the DSC campus, and he is represented by DeZion Gallery in Springdale, Utah, and the NoHo Gallery in North Hollywood, CA.

For more information on the pair of exhibits, contact Sears Art Museum Gallery curator Kathy Cieslewicz at 435-652-7909 or at cieslewicz@dixie.edu.