Gallery at Penn College to Show Drawings of Kim Banister

The Gallery at Penn College, on the third floor of Pennsylvania College of Technology's Madigan Library, will host "Vessels of Life," an exhibit of mixed-media drawings by Kim Banister, from Nov. 9 to Dec. 2.

An opening reception for the exhibit will take place Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 4:30 p.m., with a gallery talk scheduled at 5:30 p.m. Gallery hours are Saturday and Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.; Tuesday and Thursday, 2 to 8 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. All exhibits are free and open to the public.



The college and the gallery will be closed for Thanksgiving Thursday, Nov. 22, through Sunday, Nov. 25.

Banister's work features dynamic, life-size human figures that are emotional and full of movement. Most of the drawings are pairs of figures intertwined, some wrestling and some embracing.

"The impulse for drawing comes from a gesture or an emotion that I see in a single body or in a couple of bodies intertwined with each other," Banister says. "The figures may suggest intimacy, peace, or a tender moment; they may suggest struggle, violence or bleak isolation. Whatever it is that they suggest is something that I feel, that I connect with in myself."

Banister starts her work by drawing the figures in charcoal on paper, then drenching the paper with linseed oil.

"The linseed oil has a thick viscosity and crawls down the page," she said. "The charcoal begins to dissolve. More lines are added. The color comes last and is powdered pigment blown onto the surface of the drawing. The color continues to dissolve and move on its own for a while. Even after the materials dry, the drawing continues to evolve for a short period as the linseed oil ages and the colors darken."

The resulting works are full of both beauty and simplicity, and the artist says that her study of Eastern concepts is fundamental to the portrayal of her subjects.

Banister earned a master of fine arts in drawing from the University of Cincinnati. She has shown her work throughout the Eastern United States and is the gallery curator at Harrisburg Area Community College, where she also teaches in the studio art department.

"Vessels of Life" is part of the college's Current View Artist Series, which showcases contemporary artists working in a variety of media. Sponsored by the college's media arts department, it provides an opportunity to broaden and enrich the educational experience at Penn College. The Current View Artist Series includes six artists for 2007-08.

For more about this exhibit and The Gallery at Penn College, visit online , e-mail or call (570) 320-2445.

For general information about the college, visit on the Web, e-mail or call toll-free (800) 367-9222.