The Wedding Party, Mixed Media by Sharon Allred
Ancestors and Spirit Guides Exhibition on view at NOC Tonkawa
Ancestors and Spirit Guides, featuring 45 paintings by Tulsa artists Sharon Allred and Romney Nesbitt is currently on view in the Eleanor Hays Art Gallery on the Northern Oklahoma College Tonkawa campus, according to gallery director Audrey Schmitz.
A reception with refreshments is planned for Sunday, Feb. 15 from 5 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. with Artist Talks at 5:30 pm.
Romney Nesbitt has always been an artist, but her recent work reveals a new approach to image making. She explains, “In 2017, I came to understand how my meditation practice was a threshold into inner worlds. My images changed from representing the outside world to illustrations of what I see in my mind’s eye. The images you see in Spirit Guides are my ‘interior landscapes’.”
Nesbitt continues, “I begin each painting in the same way I prepare for meditation: I settle my thoughts, breathe and become fully present to one brushstroke after another. Each painting is a surprise as I allow myself to let go of any expectations and enjoy the process.”
Sharon Allred’s creative career emerged alongside her years as a cardiac nurse where she focused on the many aspects of healing the whole person. Tying art to healing was a natural transition, and she has developed her own unique style that invites the viewer to look within.
Allred shares that her ancestor “images connect to the core of the human experience. I use color and textures to express the organic nature of our emotions, memories, personal legends and hopes. My painting process often includes found objects and asemic writing. The process of creating art for me is a mirror of the way life is lived – we add, subtract, move and shift to new ways of being in the world.”
Ancestors and Spirit Guides remains in the gallery through March 27.
The gallery, located in the Kinzer Performing Arts Center, is open 1 p.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, by private appointment, and during events in the Dineo Heilmann Auditorium. Admission is free.
After the artist reception, a Four-Hand Concert with Jerry Steichen and Cathy Venable will be held at the Dineo Heilmann Auditorium inside the Kinzer Performing Arts Center. The concert, set to begin at 7:30 p.m. is free to the public. The concert will mark the rededication of the NOC Steinway Piano.
Northern Oklahoma College, the state’s first public two-year community college, is a multi-campus, land-grant institution that provides high quality, accessible, and affordable educational opportunities and services.
NOC serves nearly 3,100 students through the home campus in Tonkawa, Enid, and NOC/OSU Gateway Program in Stillwater, and the University Center in Ponca City. Of these students about 80% receive financial aid and/or scholarships. 75% of NOC students complete their degree with zero debt.
The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and offers associate degrees in three general areas: Arts, Science and Applied Science; the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs; and the Accreditation Commission for Education and Nursing.
For more information about Northern Oklahoma College please call (580) 628-6208 or visit the NOC website at www.noc.edu.
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