SUNY Cortland's 'Topographies' Exhibition Explores Landscape Through Art

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"Thread Lines," a 2014 fabric remnants on paper piece by Claudia Sbrissa.

CORTLAND, NY (02/26/2015)(readMedia)-- "Topographies," the latest Dowd Gallery art exhibition at SUNY Cortland, explores the natural and artificial aspects of the earth's landscape through several different mediums from two artists.

The exhibition, which runs from Monday, March 2, to Friday, April 10, features prints, lightboxes and a three-channel video installation by Lindsey Glover as well as drawings, small sculptures and a site-specific fibers installation by Claudia Sbrissa.

An opening reception takes place from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 5. Two artist's talks are scheduled: one by Glover at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 10, and one by Sbrissa at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 25.

The pair worked collaboratively to develop themes for the exhibition.

Glover, an Ithaca-based artist, created "Glacial Lake," a video installation, and the "Cumulus" print series from chemical stains that developed on expired Polaroid film after being exposed to light. She layered the irregular marks into luminous landscapes.

"My practice has always been mixing mediums between paper and video and sound," Glover said.

Glover's "Satellite" print series is made up of moss and lichen photo fragments, which she arranged into circular forms of stark, black and white, highlighting the contours of a reconfigured terrain. Her "Floating Fields" lightboxes feature the facades and interior spaces of greenhouse structures, which were printed separately and layered back together, creating dimension within a flat plane.

"A lot of my work evolves from a place of collection," Glover said. "I'm collecting bits and pieces and then I translate them in some way in my studio.

"It's never really clear to me what the final outcome is going to be until I reach it."

Sbrissa lives and works in New York City. Her site-specific "Pile 2015" installation transforms the contours of the main gallery space with hundreds of yards of crocheted and dyed rope, cord and yarn. The material, arranged in great heaps, recalls topographical maps.

The "Habitat: the Fabric Works" series is derived from fabric and remnants collected during Sbrissa's travels throughout Italy and South America. She reworked them into fabric drawings and woven sculptures. The pieces allude to the natural world and the architecture, infrastructure and history of place.

"Growing up (in Italy) with my grandparents, a seamstress and a carpenter, I learned practical skills along with a joy of handwork," she said. "Remnants of fabric and off-cuts of wood were used and reused, salvaged by the process of transformation."

Gallery events and programs for "Topographies" are free and open to the public. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday and by appointment. Dowd Gallery is located in the Dowd Fine Arts Center on campus at the corner of Graham Avenue and Prospect Terrace.

Exhibition support comes from the Art Exhibition Association, the Cortland College Foundation and grants from the Campus Artist and Lecture Series and the Auxiliary Services Corporation.

For more information or to schedule a group tour, contact Gallery Director Erika Fowler-Decatur at erika.fowler-decatur@cortland.edu or 607-753-4216.

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