Think inside the box
Students of art and design Lincoln City’s Taft High School will take center stage at the Chessman Gallery with an exhibit of unique portraits opening this Friday, March 12.
“The featured work is a set of portraits inspired by our current state of interaction — through a screen,” art instructor Noah Lambie said. “We are confined to this rectangle, so students were assigned to take photos of themselves or someone close to them and prepare them for production using materials we have to embed in concrete. They edited the portraits in Adobe Illustrator, cut their shapes out of wood, acrylic and foam on the laser cutter, then set them in molds I made.”
The show can be viewed in person all month, and you can also get a personal behind-the-scenes look at the show at 4 pm on Friday, March 12, from the comfort of your home during the live virtual gallery tour on Facebook @Lincolncityculture, hosted by gallery director Krista Eddy.
“We are excited to see what these young artists have been creating,” Eddy said. “This is the second time the Chessman has hosted a show by Taft High students. The first time I was amazed at the skill and quality behind the work. In this upcoming show there will be many examples of the students' prowess with technology.”
There will be other work too: self-portraits from art students, some landscapes and even clocks.
“Mr. Lambie has designed an arts program at Taft High that introduces students to not only classic ways of doing art but also more modern methods for creating images and items,” Eddy said. “They learn how to use the software and hardware behind machines like laser cutters and 3D printers. You will see many examples of these technical skills in the artwork for this show. I am really looking forward to seeing this work in person.”
The showcase demonstrates not just artistic skill and technical knowledge, but also tenacity and strength in the middle of a really abnormal year.
“I am impressed that this show is happening at all with the way COVID-19 has limited in-person class time this school year,” Eddy said. “It shows how much dedication and resilience Mr. Lambie and his students have, that they’ve been able to generate enough work for this show in the midst of this very strange year.”
The Taft High Student Show will run through April 5 in the Chessman Gallery, located inside the Lincoln City Cultural Center at 540 NE Hwy. 101. The center is open from 10 am to 4 pm, Thursday through Sunday.
For more information, go to lincolncity-culturalcenter.org or call 541-994-9994.