Sculptor Ron Isaacs to Speak at September 14 Exhibit Opening

CONWAY, Ark. (September 6, 2017) – Ron Isaacs, an artist who combines painting and wood sculpture to make trompe l’oeil (“fool the eye”) constructions, will give a lecture Thursday, September 14 to mark the opening of an exhibit of his work hosted by the Hendrix College Art Department. The lecture, which is free and open to the public, begins at 4 p.m. in the lobby of Art Building A, and a reception follows.

Beginning with Finnish birch plywood, Isaacs uses sculpting and painting techniques to make the wood resemble objects such as clothing and leaves. “That an object made of one material can take on the outward appearance and ‘reality’ of another is of great importance to me – and perhaps part of the reason that historically, making art became allied with making magic,” Isaacs has written in reflecting on his work.

Isaacs received a B.A. in art at Berea College and went on to earn an M.F.A. in painting at Indiana University. He taught painting and drawing at Eastern Kentucky University for more than 30 years, and over time, developed his unique fusion of painting with sculpture. Isaacs has mounted numerous solo exhibitions nationwide and has work in the permanent collection of Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wis.; Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, Ala.; Yeiser Art Center, Paducah, Ky.; and many private and corporate collections. Since 1974 he has been represented by top galleries in cities from Chicago to New York.

The exhibit will run through Friday, October 6, 2017. To learn more, contact Professor Erik Maakestad at 501-450-1264 or maakestad@hendrix.edu. 

About Hendrix College

A private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.