Fine Arts Gallery to Present Exhibition by World-Renowned Artist Mark Dion

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Mark Dion

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas department of art’s Fine Arts Center Gallery presents Mark Dion: Process and Inquiry. The exhibition features selections from the world-renowned artist’s work, as well as related preparatory drawings, and works made as part of a proposal for a public art piece for the University of Arkansas campus.

Dion was the first artist invited to visit campus by the university’s Public Art Oversight Advisory Committee, a group of campus and community members charged with increasing the availability and prominence of public art at the University of Arkansas, a top institutional priority.

“The committee carefully selected Mark Dion to create a site-specific proposal for numerous reasons, the most important of which include his sensitivity to place, his meticulous inquiry into a society’s culture and history, his collaborative process, and his profound investigation into the natural sciences and our understanding of it,” said Bethany Springer, assistant professor of art. “With Dion’s addition to our campus, viewers can expect a piece that not only embodies our community’s identity and priorities, but also offers a stimulating perspective into the teaching and research that, as a top initiative, defines our university.”

The exhibition, curated by the University of Arkansas’ Alissa Walls Mazow, assistant professor of art history, also features a library section, which serves as an introduction for those not as familiar with the artist’s work, as well as an opportunity for those desiring a deeper level of investigation to study further.

Throughout 2011, the University of Arkansas J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences has celebrated the 60^th anniversary of the Fine Arts Center, which houses the departments of art, drama and music. Mark Dion: Process and Inquiry is both the culminating celebration of the department of art’s past, and a significant step into its future.

The exhibition opens Saturday, Oct. 8, and will continue through Friday, Nov.18. Opening day hours on Oct. 8 are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Regular gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday 2-5 p.m.