By Katelan Cunningham
A rainbow pyramid of Peeps, wine and the aroma of coffee made for a unique opening reception for the Pompous Twitter exhibition by third-year painting major Jose Ray April 3 at The Sentient Bean.
Despite the recent popularity of the social networking site Twitter, Ray says the name of the exhibition does not have any correlation.
“I like to play with language,” he said.
Ray’s images are staggered around the walls of The Sentient Bean from eye level to inches away from the ceiling creating an installation-like feel. Ray started planning the exhibition at The Bean six months ago and took into account the setup of the building’s projector screen, speakers and door frames. The arrangement of the series leads you around the room.
Ray’s images are primarily done in marker and watercolor. Ray’s work explodes from the canvases from white backgrounds. He creates distorted faces and body parts in swirls and dashes of color. He hung the canvases with careful attention to the way the pieces fit together and the impact of the negative space, making the gallery wall as integral to the exhibit as the art itself.
The smallest canvases are smaller than one square foot and are more abstract with simple splashes of watercolor, and in some instances continuations from the design of its neighboring canvas.
Whether you’re stopping by The Bean for a vanilla latte or biking to a class at Arnold Hall, the Pompous Twitter exhibition is certainly worth a look.
The exhibition goes through April 30.
