Third Street Gallery archive: 2012 Exhibitions: Light of Day: Selections from Humboldt State University's Permanent Collection

Humboldt State University First Street Gallery presents, Light of Day: Selections from Humboldt State University's Permanent Collection.  The exhibit will run from August 19th through September 16th, 2012, with two special preview days added, August 19th and 20th.

Light of Day is a way to enlighten the public about Humboldt State University's (HSU's) permanent collection of fine art. While works from the collection are displayed in various locations around the HSU campus, much of the art remains in storage. The goal of this exhibition is to showcase the permanent collection in a way that has never been done, by bringing a selection of pieces to the University's First Street Gallery, located off-campus in nearby Eureka, California.
  
The curators of this show are current HSU students Erin Grady, Shawn O'Connor and Natalie Schoch. All the work is two-dimensional, including paintings, prints and photographs. The pieces were chosen by the curators to illuminate the variety and depth of the collection. From Rembrandt to Martin Wong, the show brings to light the work through the decades and reflects upon the growth of the permanent collection.

Light of Day highlights some engaging pieces of the permanent collection. The collection was built over the years through acquisitions by the Art Department and by generous donations made by private individuals. One such Art Department acquisition is the President's Purchase Award. This is given out at the annual student exhibition and many of the pieces that are being shown were purchased through this prestigious award. Other works were donated by benefactors or came as gifts from the artists.

Mr. and Mrs. Kublin, c. 1977, by Hal Martin Fogel, is one such work. Acquired through an exhibition aimed at increasing the amount of photography in the HSU permanent collection, the piece travels back in time, filling the viewers' eye and mind with pictorial semiotic associations that provide a glimpse into this couple's life and the period in which they lived. The seemingly inherent simplicity of a black and white portrait in fact provides a psychological insight by allowing the viewer to peer into the desire of a couple who wish to be portrayed adorned and surrounded by their rich accoutrements.  Light of Day allows rarely seen works, such as this photograph, a moment to shine and to bring focus to HSU's permanent collection.

Among the works that the gallery will present are pieces by such notable artists as Martin Wong, Mel Ramos, Tim Rollins and Leslie Kenneth Price, to name a few.

A reception for Light of Day will be held Saturday September 1st, 2012 during Eureka's monthly Arts Alive event. Celebrating its fourteenth year of service to HSU students and to California's North Coast community, the gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. and is located at 422 First Street Eureka, California. Admission is free. Those planning group tours are encouraged to call ahead. For more information call 707-443-6363.