Nohl Fellowship Exhibition opens at Inova

The Nohl Fellowship exhibition is a form of delayed gratification. The winners of the fellowships are announced, and it is not until the following year when the work created during the fellowship is presented in an exhibition at Inova.

This annual event is typically a remarkable sampling of contemporary practices in the Milwaukee art scene – this year, patrons will be able to view the works of established artists Danielle Beverly, Faythe Levine and Colin Matthes and emerging artists Lois Bielefeld, Tyanna J. Buie, Brad Fiore and Paul Kjelland, beginning Friday, Sept. 27, at Inova.

The fellowships are the legacy of Mary Nohl, a respected artist who lived and worked in Fox Point. After her death in 2001, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s Mary L. Nohl Fund was established for these awards. A selection of jurors have the task of choosing awardees, and the competition is often fierce for the lucrative prizes of $15,000 for established artists and $5,000 for emerging artists.

The 2012 jury examined the work of 140 artists from the Milwaukee area. The jurors are recruited from outside of the Milwaukee community, and represent a variety of art professionals. Those who selected the artists in this exhibition were: Lisa Dent, Director, Grants & Services at Creative Capital in New York; Astria Suparak, Director and Curator, Miller Gallery at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh; and Irene Tsatsos, Chief Curator/Director of Gallery Programs at Armory Center for the Arts in Pasadena, California.

Given this year’s roster of artists, exhibition visitors can expect a vibrant array of work:

Danielle Beverly, currently a Professional-in-Residence in the Diederich College of Communication at Marquette University, has been active as a documentary filmmaker and producer, often making work dealing with socially and politically poignant issues.

Faythe Levine has garnered international attention for her advocacy of art and craft practices, including the acclaimed book and film Handmade Nation: The Rise of D.I.Y. Art, Craft and Design and more recently Sign Painters, a documentary and book on the legacy of traditional hand-lettered signs.

Colin Matthes works in a wide range of print, graphic, and installation mediums. He has been deeply involved with the Justseeds print collective, engaging in social, political, and environmental issues.

Photographer Lois Bielefeld‘s work has considered the environment of the individual as a reflection of self as seen in her exhibition The Bedroom, and her more recent work examines notions of portraiture in handgun culture in her project Concealed Carry.

Personal biography and the search for history features in the work of Tyanna J. Buie, explored through complex combinations of print, painting, photography, and objects.

The conceptual space of interpersonal and personal experience informs the work of Brad Fiore, who is a co-founder of the Nomadic Arts Center.

A collective focus and community action is also part of the artistic practice of organizer and graphic artist Paul Kjelland, whose work deals with social justice issues and has been used by groups such as the Palermo’s Workers Union and Wisconsin Uprising.

The exhibition opens with a reception on Friday, September 27 from 6 to 9 p.m. Colin Matthes will give a gallery talk at 7 p.m., followed by his Green Mini Demo Derby at 8pm.

Inova is located at 2155 N. Prospect Avenue. The exhibition continues through December 15, with a variety of gallery talks and presentations planned for upcoming weeks.