Kristin Elliot, who graduated last year with a bachelor’s degree in glass forming, stands by her favorite glass piece Wednesday afternoon in Gilson Gallery inside King Hall. Elliot’s closing reception will be Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. Erica Cassella/ The Bulletin

The Gilson Memorial Gallery in King Hall has hosted a number of exhibitions for Emporia State art students. Currently being displayed in the Gallery, Kristin Elliot’s art exhibition “Over and Over” features the product of four years in ESU’s glass-forming program.

“An exhibition is a culmination of the students’ studies here at ESU,” said Patrick Martin, associate professor of art. “They take all of their studies and draw them into one show. This is the body of work they will use to get into graduate school, galleries and to obtain jobs.”

Though she already graduated with her bachelor’s degree last semester, “Over and Over” is Elliot’s senior exhibition. Her showing was on hold due to the number of senior exhibitions that go through the gallery in King Hall.

“All BFA students will do a senior exhibition,” Martin said. “Each student gets a slot up there (in Gillson Memorial Gallery). Sometimes there are two or three (exhibitions) at a time.”

Like her degree, Elliot’s exhibition has an emphasis in glass forming.

Elliot said there are 16 pieces in total and out of these, two pieces are mix media, a combination of different materials with glass – in this case, pennies with one piece and 40,000 push pins in another.

“My artwork is very intricate and time consuming,” Elliot said. “Some pieces have taken over 50 hours to complete.”

According to its artist statement, the work in Elliot’s display “revolves around meticulous organization and repetitive processes with a material that is somewhat unpredictable.”

To put it in simply Elliot calls her work “organized chaos,” since each piece has a repetitive them and the focus of the display is glass work with patterns and colors being repeated “over and over again.”

“It’s very methodical and she’s very concerned about detail and form in all of her work,” Martin said.

ESU’s art department has the only glass-forming program in Kansas.

“We’re one of only a couple in this region, so we have students from all over the country in our program.” Martin said.

All glass-forming processes are taught through this program such as solid sculpting, cold working, blowing, fusing, casting and slumping. Elliot used all of these for her show.

“Art to me is about the process rather than the end product,” she said.

Martin said Elliot’s work is “exceptional for an undergraduate student.”

Elliot will use the knowledge she gained at ESU in Seattle, Wash., where she has been offered a glass job as a cold-worker.

“Opening my exhibit was a sign of relief,” Elliot said. “It was horrible and overwhelming, but to finish something and have others see it is the best feeling in the world… it’s is not a closing – it’s a new beginning.”

The closing reception for “Over and Over” is scheduled from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 25 at the Gilson Memorial Gallery in King Hall.

Thomas Govert

Send article as PDF to

Art by Roy Johnson

Nude images of men in the Gilson Memorial Gallery in King Hall have a greater purpose than just being works of art. Senior Art Major Roy Michael Johnson said that the message is to take male physique, which is usually ripped, and put it in what is traditionally thought of as feminine poses.

“Tracing back to Greek mythology, male statures through artists’ work emphasize masculinity and this kind of dominance,” Johnson said.

Johnson is one of the artists participating in the Mass Senior Art Exhibit, with his work on display until Sept. 3. Every senior is required to sign up for a time slot during the year to display their work and the art is judged or critiqued by professors of the Art Department.

“Usually before the show, an instructor will go through the show to give feedback before the show opens,” Johnson said.

The exhibit is a way to show off the work that Johnson said took about a year and a half of dedication. He created his works by a mix of oil on canvas paintings and intimate photography.

Johnson said he started painting in high school, but it wasn’t until he was a freshman that he decided for sure that he wanted to be a painter. When not busy with schoolwork, Johnson said he works at Applebee’s as a server. Among the spectators, he said, were some of his regular guests at Applebee’s that were used to seeing him at work. He said that serving was a great marketing tool to get the word out about the show.

“For anybody that has waited tables before, my artwork is a great tool to fall back on after dealing with the stress of work,” Johnson said.

Junior art major Daniel Swendson saw the show for the first time on Tuesday afternoon. In one section, Johnson uses a single color for an entire pose which Swendson said reminded him of looking through a colored lens.

“It was interesting to see the male form portrayed in such a way,” Swendson said.

Freshman art major Devin Parkman viewed the show this past week as well. Parkman said that he has known Johnson for about a year and a half now and believes that Johnson is much more defined as an artist.

“He projects his messages much more clearly and it’s easy to see how he has grown from where he used to be,” Parkman said.

Parkman said he wasn’t surprised at all by what he saw in Johnson’s display.

“Once you get past the nudity, it seemed to fit his personality and expressed originality. Roy is comfortable with who is. What you see is what you get,” Parkman said

Information on this artist’s and upcoming artists’ work can be obtained at the Art Department Office. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some of the work on display is also for sale.

Chris Hopkins/The Bulletin

Send article as PDF to