January 13 – February 28, 2017
Mariani Gallery, Guggenheim Hall
Reception: Thursday, January 19, 4-6pm
The University of Northern Colorado’s School of Art & Design is proud to announce Impressions of Campus, a solo exhibition of UNC Alumnus and Faculty of Printmaking and Life Drawing, Sieger Hartgers. The works on view capture Hartgers’ admiration for the University’s campus, a place he says is, “uniquely beautiful” and has brought the artist great pleasure and catharsis throughout his tenure.
The title of the exhibition was inspired by a conversation Hartgers shared with Director of Galleries, Pam Campanaro. In discussing the exhibition, the artist consistently referenced the peaceful and subtle ways in which campus has positively impacted his life. These effects, or impressions collectively amount to the thoughtful, visual representations of campus that commemorates the past one hundred and twenty-five years of the institution.
Hartgers’ sixteen scenic depictions include photorealistic paintings, drawings, and monotypes that collectively shine a beautiful light onto campus life. The artist says that although the work strays from his traditional abstract portrayal of subject matter, his attitude to exploring color, form, and line remains. Alike his other bodies of work, Hartgers approaches creating each composition to that of composing a musical piece; arranging and blending forms to echo his sensory experiences of the everyday.
Hartgers’ process entails a combination of plein air (the act of painting outdoors or in ‘open air’) sketches and photographs to initially inform each composition. The artist then takes liberty in inserting his own impressions or slight alterations in each, electing to add or remove objects such as a figure, tree, or vehicle. Hartgers does however, maintains architectural “truth” to buildings on campus, celebrating and preserving UNC’s design that is familiar to staff, faculty, and community of past and present.
Sieger Hartgers leads the Printmaking area for the School of Art & Design at the UNC. He holds a Fine Arts Degree, Drawing and Printmaking from Hogeschool voor de Kunsten(Arnhem, Netherlands) and is an alumnus of UNC holding a BFA in Painting and Sculptor and a MA in Painting and Drawing. Hartgers was recently honored as the 2016 Colorado Higher Education Art Educator of the Year, and award that recognizes outstanding and exemplary service and contributions to art education in the state of Colorado.
