Work from local artist Victoria Christen is on display in Buckley Center. The exhibit, titled “In Response”, is centered around the earthquake which struck Haiti in January of 2010. (Bryan Brenize -- The Beacon)
By Amanda Blas, Staff Writer -- blas13@up.edu
After the earthquake that shook Haiti on Jan. 12, the University of Portland had its share of reactions. Some responded with prayers, others responded with emotional support.
Artist Victoria Christen chose to respond in her own way: She responded with art.
Christen, who teaches ceramics at the University of Portland, will feature her exhibit "In Repsonse" in the Buckley Center Gallery. The exhibit serves as a way to keep the events that happened in Haiti alive.
"She was moved to do something," Pat Bognar, the curator of the Buckley Center Gallery, said. "She called me up and said, ‘Pat, I want to do something. It's horrible what's going on in Haiti.'"
Christen was inspired to practice artivism, or "activism through arts."
"I was inspired to try to use my artwork for a positive cause of social change," Christen said.
However, Christen's use of her artwork as a social statement is not the only change she brought to this exhibit; she also took different approaches to her work. Christen, who usually focuses on ceramics, chose to extend her mediums into two-dimensional work with paintings and collages.
"I wanted to stretch myself a little bit and go into unfamiliar territory," Christen said.
Christen's use of different forms of art makes the exhibit unique.
"(The exhibit) is multimedia," Bognar said. "Usually when we have exhibits it's one artist with one kind (of media)."
Christen also wanted to give more than her time and talent to her artistic cause. She used some of her own things in her artwork, such as old wine crates and fabric.
"It was a goal for me that I wanted to use material that I had challenged myself to recycle," Christen said.
"In Response" reflects the situation in Haiti. Christen said she wanted to "raise conscious awareness of the people in Haiti."
According to Bognar, not only does the exhibit help raise awareness about the situation in Haiti, but it also raises money for the Mercy Corps Haiti project, which aims to help build a stronger and more self-sufficient Haiti. The Department of Performing and Fine Arts said that between 12 and 15 pieces from the exhibit were sold at a reception held Friday, Oct. 29.
The exhibit runs until Nov. 18 in the Buckley Center Gallery and is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
