Shawn Ganther & Joshua Zeis

Exhibit runs October 5- December 30, 2018

press release: In Good Company: An Exposition of Contemporary Veteran Art

In November 2018, veteran and civilian artists will merge together in Madison, Wisconsin to exhibit new works that reflect the profundity of the veteran experience. Aligned with an amplified voice examining the veteran identity, these artists discover themselves as political beings embodying a comprehensive and inclusive human experience. Multiple exhibition venues will host these artistic talents that range from two and three dimensional visual-art to theater/performance art, music and writing.

Marzen, Integrated Art Group's fine art showroom, is so pleased to be hosting works by two amazing artists on Gallery Night. Shawn Ganther and Joshua Zeis are both part of the Veteran's Exhibit, Interaction,  which examines the ethereal meaning of the question, "Did you serve?"

Joshua Zeis is an artist based out of Fargo, North Dakota. Outside of his studio practice, he is a ceramics instructor at the Plains Art Museum Center for Creativity and a landscape designer and coordinator for Hebron Brick Supply Company. In addition Josh engages veterans, their families, and the public in object-oriented dialogue as part of a National Endowment for the Humanities grant initiative through NDSU titled “Project Unpack: Telling Stories, Creating Community”. 

Shawn "Simon" Ganther (born July 19, 1977) is an American contemporary painter and printmaker who emerged during the veteran artist movement. He served in the United States Air Force from 1998 to 2003, and is best known for his piece “The Thinker” a 22”X30” charcoal drawing on paper. “The Thinker” was featured in the Veteran Artist Program Exhibit in the Pentagon from 2013-2014. Shawn’s work has been shown across the country and is included in numerous private collections including: Harvard University Art Library, Cornell University, Stanford University Libraries, and the Yale University Art Library.   

Events:

November 2, 2018, 5:30PM-8:00PM: Artist Talk and Clay Performance

Please join us for an evening with artist Shawn Ganther and an interactive clay installation with Joshua Zeis as he completes the second phase of "Organic Mechanic." In a recent interview with Midwest Nest, Josh describes his process for the event: "For Zeis, it's the clay's process and working with ceramics that he enjoys, not the glazing and the firing. 'This isn't actually ceramics, ceramics is when it's fired just past 1,800 degrees and the structure changes from clay to ceramics,' explained Zeis. 'That's why these are cited as clay and not ceramic. I took them off the wheel, I set them on the shelf, and then I do my little surgery where I create a hole and use an endotracheal tube to do a controlled deflate. This pulls the air out until it flattens. Then I lay them on the steel and they get comfortable. I get to watch them change over a couple of days as they dry.'"

November 3, 2018, 1:30PM-4:00PM, Smart-Plate Litho Workshop with Scott Lenaway: This is an introductory workshop to the use of polyester smart plates. This portable and flexible matrix is perfect for hand drawn marks as well as computer generated imagery using a laser printer or photocopier.  Students will explore the boundaries of this matrix and become comfortable with the printing process.

Kenosha-Based Center for Collaborative Research will be present with their Press on Wheels (POW)

ADULTS AND KIDS 8+ ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT