Art gallery exhibits couples diverse influences, interests
“In terms of media, I find myself increasingly drawn to clay mixed with other materials -- welded steel, wood, stone, bone, found objects, etc. The use of juxtaposed materials is often more responsive to creative impulse than clay used alone. This is particularly the case when trying to create a sense of dialectic or opposition as is central to my work. Clay continues, with its pleasures and pain, to be my preferred medium. Frustration with its cumbersome nature is outweighed by clay’s inherent ability to capture raw tactile energy. I enjoy walking into new situations cold without preconceived ideas, sketches, tools etc. to see what happens."
The work of artists Charles and Fulden Sara-Wissinger opened at Coastal Bend College Simon Michael Art Gallery in Beeville this month. The collection, which includes drawing, paintings, sculptures, and earthenware, showcases the diverse work of this husband and wife team.
Charles Wissinger, an art professor at Texas A&M University – Kingsville, pointed out the Mesoamerican symbolism found in his drawings. “I am intrigued by North American cultures interaction with nature and our simplistic understanding of what it is to be human,” he said.
Wissinger is a graduate of Ohio State University, Columbus, with a Masters Degree of Fine Arts in Ceramics with a minor in sculpture and photography-cinematography. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Art Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, Pa.
His work has been exhibited across the country and in Canada, Mexico and Turkey. He has been a part of international shows in Scandinavia, including the 1994 International Olympics Ceramics Exhibition in Lillehammer, Norway.
