LIGHT: Beyond the Bulb Exhibit

(COLUMBIA, Tenn.) - August 30, 2017 - - Columbia State Community College’s Pryor Art Gallery is hosting an Artists’ Reception on Sept. 7th from 5pm – 8pm for their new exhibit “LIGHT Beyond The Bulb” which is on display through Sept. 22nd.

“This exhibit is designed for people of all ages to enjoy no matter what perspective they bring,” said Michele Wilkinson, Pryor Art Gallery curator. “Whether you are a scientist or an artist, just come and light your imagination.”

The artists’ reception will host NASA’s own Kim Arcand, Chandra Visualization Program Lead and prolific author. Arcand will be speaking at 5:30pm in the Cherry Theater in the Waymon L. Hickman Building, located across from the Pryor Art Gallery.  Arcand will bring light into focus and will talk about the topics of several of her books regarding the colorization of photography (of the universe) interpreted and digitally sent by the Chandra Telescope Satellite in a manner that we can understand. She will bridge the science of light to an unusual perspective as applied to art. 

Light is explored from the most micro slide of a creature’s retina to the most macro celestial body in this exhibit of photographs taken by scientists and photographers from all over the world. The science of light meets the world of art, its applications in our daily lives and goes as far as NASA’s Chandra Telescopic Satellite, which can see and photograph the amazing light images from outside our universe. 

Thirty colorful exhibit panels, created and supplied by NASA’s Chandra Satellite Telescope mission, will be featured to celebrate the United Nation’s initiative, the “International Year of Light, 2015.” This exhibit has traveled the globe communicating the message of unity to all of us as light beings and consumers.

In addition, Pryor Art Gallery will feature local Tennessee artists John Wilkison, Barry Donaldson, Craig Lackey, Marian Gizzi-Haynes and Coco Dauer exhibit their artistic visual interpretations of light to delight in oil, acrylic, watercolor and other mediums. Columbia Neon Company contributes their expertise in the creation of neon lighting and signage – they have provided a hands-on learning station that will demonstrate the process of creating the spectrum of neon light colors and LED lighting of today, and a crystal prism learning station that displays the rainbow of colors that a single beam of light produces, the same colors on the color wheel used by artists.

The Pryor Art Gallery is in the Waymon L. Hickman Building on the Columbia Campus. The exhibit is free and open to the public Monday through Thursday 8am – 8pm, Friday and Saturday 8am – 4pm. For additional information, please contact Michele Wilkinson at 931.540.2883, or by email at mwilkinson2@ColumbiaState.edu, or visit www.ColumbiaState.edu/PryorGallery.