A West Virginia University artist and educator has earned one of the state’s highest honors, and her work will become a part of West Virginia’s permanent collection.
Alison Helm, director of WVU’s School of Art & Design and a professor of sculpture, received a $5,000 Governor’s Award in 2015 West Virginia Juried Exhibit, which opened Nov. 8 at Tamarack in Beckley and will remain on display through Feb. 21.
Helm’s sculpture, “Cyber Clash,” is composed of painted wood, glass, cast resin, mirrors, bent wood, and LEDs.
”’Cyber Clash’ illustrates an explosion in space where opposites – organic and geometric shapes – ignite,” Helm explained. I imagined looking into the night sky and watching fireworks or meteors fly through space and wanted the work to reflect those thoughts.”
In Helm’s vision, the moment of collision or combustion is similar to how opposites attract and interact with each other.
“Personal relationships, connections, and those interactions fascinate me,” she said. “The world is interconnected by technology and an explosion of information and possibilities that we’ve never imagined. I embrace these new changes and express my vision of how this must look visually and symbolically, through strength and fragility.”
Helm is thrilled to have received the Governor’s Award. “I’m very honored and proud to be a part of such a great opportunity given to us by the state of West Virginia,” she said. “Another of my works was added to the collection thirty-something years ago, so it’s very nice of them to have two works from two very different time periods of my artistic production.”
Helm’s sculpture is joined by work by a student pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in painting at WVU. “Engrained, Relationships: Cliff and Patty,” by Tiera J. Floyd of Sutton, W.Va., was one of the 119 works in this year’s exhibit.
“I’m honored to be in the exhibition, and I’ve had the privilege of being included in this biennial show since 2011,” said Floyd. “This show is a wonderful showcase of West Virginia talent. I’ve developed positive relationships with fellow West Virginia artists through this show.”
Like Helm, Floyd has work in the permanent collection. Floyd received the D. Gene Jordan Memorial Award and Award of Excellence in 2013, which also results in inclusion of the work in the state’s archives.
From its inception in 1979 until 2005, the West Virginia Juried Exhibition was presented at the Culture Center, State Capitol Complex, Charleston. In 2007, Randall Reid-Smith, commissioner of the WVDCH, decided to have the exhibition travel to the Parkersburg Art Center, sharing the best in art with yet another community in the Mountain State.
“One of my goals has been to touch every part of our state with outstanding cultural events. We are delighted to have the opportunity to expand our outreach to the community by placing the West Virginia Juried Exhibition 2015 at Tamarack in Beckley,” he said.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History presents this biennial event in partnership with the West Virginia Commission on the Arts and with support from the West Virginia Legislature, which appropriates funding for the exhibition’s awards. The $33,000 in award money constitutes one of the largest endowments for a single exhibition in the country.
Photos of the 18 award-winning pieces can be found at http://wvculture.zenfolio.com.
-WVU-
dw/11/9/15
CONTACT: David Welsh, WVU College of Creative Arts
304-293-3397; David.Welsh@mail.wvu.edu
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