It’s seven o’clock on Oct. 2, 2009 and from a distance the campus seems quiet. As you enter the Fine Arts building, you can hear good conversation coming from the second floor. As you walk up the stairs and enter the Upper Gallery, you are greeted by a crowd; some surrounding a display case on a pedestal encasing what are known as ‘puter bugs.’ There are five of these bugs including a ladybug, a millipede, a praying mantis, a cicada, and a beetle. Some named after computer viruses, these were meticulously crafted from wood, in which both wire and computer parts are attached. They are part of Ken Mitchell’s Senior Show, a show in which Fine Arts Majors are able to host a show that presents their work in their concentration, during their senior year.
On the left, there is an artist statement that measures approximately six feet high and three feet wide hangs on the wall, describing the artist’s background, his materials, why he chose sculpture, as well as his reasoning for the concept of technology and how it affects society. Behind the display of bugs stands a large tripod piece with a computer frame and face that is lit from behind entitled, “Feeder.” It is connected to multiple black ropes which act as computer cables that are attached to seven canvases behind it. These wires hang from the architecture of the building and connect to each of the canvases. Every canvas includes letters that spell out “Wake Up” excluding the canvas that spaces the two words apart, which reads, “Log in… maybe not.”
Adjacent to the large tripod piece is a desk which sits on what resembles a laptop with a yellow hand balancing on a wire cable, entitled “Which Way (It’s Your Choice)”. To the right of the laptop piece, against the wall on it’s own custom stand is a bust that is connected to a receiver from a phone. This piece, “No Answer (Keep Trying),” has a crumbled telephone book at its base. Finally, after a drink and light hor’douvres, there is a piece titled, “Resistent Connection… Again?!” which is an eyeball with two hands cradling it in a tangle of black ropes which is seen on the viewer’s way out.
Rediscover Communication is exactly what this show is about. The artist wants you the viewer, to ask yourself a few questions. What does technology do for us? What does it do to us? How does it change us? Are we aware of it? These pieces were sculpted out of various materials including fiberglass, resin, rope, wood, acrylic, and computer scraps. This show ran from September 28, 2009-Oct. 9, 2009. If you have any questions for the artist, please email Ken Mitchell at kenman32@juno.com.