Senior art student to exhibit in Gilson Gallery

Courtesy of Jay Meara.

This painting titled “Zombie” is part of an exhibition by senior art major Jay Meara. His show is set to open tomorrow at 8 p.m. in King Hall.

Each year senior art students are given the opportunity to show their work in the Gilson Memorial Gallery located in King Hall. The first student to do so this year will be senior art major Jay Meara with his show titled ‘Organ.’

The main theme of Meara’s show is an exploration of his relationship to his Catholic faith.

“As my perspectives change, my opinions about the Church change along with it,” Meara said. “There are many aspects I love about the Catholic Church and other teachings which I disagree with. Like anyone else, there comes a time when you look at what you have been taught and assess this with what you believe.”

Many of Meara’s works are self-portraits, but not in the traditional sense.

“A majority of the work has to do with the human body,” Meara said. “I commonly use myself as the model, which is why I chose the name ‘Organ.’”

One example of his work features a depiction of Meara as a zombie.

“I chose the zombie as a metaphor for being in a state of sin,” Meara said. “As a Christian I can’t stop myself from sinning, it is built into my nature. Sin is something that weighs upon me and I often feel like a zombie, moving from place to place looking for my next meal. Also, in Catholicism we believe that during communion you are actually eating and drinking the flesh of Christ, which could be viewed as a kind of cannibalism, harking back to the zombie.”

Meara has a number of reasons for using himself as a model.

“The first is not because I’m conceited, which is something I am afraid people will think when viewing the show,” Meara said. “But because I’m always available for a photo shoot. The other reason is that these works are representations of me trying find a balance between the Catholic Church’s teachings and my evolving outlook on life. I was also thinking of a pipe organ, which plays an integral part in the Catholic Mass’s responses and singing.”

Meara’s mixture of the quirky and classic imagery recurs throughout his art work. Through this mix Meara is finding his own unique style and iconography.

“Another recurring image in the show is the use of Cathedral floor plans and other architectural elements, like columns and archways,” Meara said. “I was thinking that as I try to create a balance in my life between aspects of Catholicism that I love and cherish along with areas that I don’t agree with, I am in a way constructing my own religion.”

Meara will showcase a mixture of prints and paintings in ‘Organ.’

“I love the process of printmaking,” Meara said. “It is very tedious and methodical, which goes well with the way I work. I can be very anal-retentive when it comes to creating work, which causes me to work very slowly. I also love that you can create almost an unlimited amount of prints in printmaking, as compared to painting’s single piece.”

While attending Emporia State, Meara has been impressed by the faculty of the Art Department.

“Somehow ESU attracts amazing professors who are all very passionate about teaching and very dedicated to creating work, despite some of our deplorable facilities,” Meara said. “I am constantly amazed at the amount of effort the faculty put into their job. They are all constantly pushing us to become better artists by providing generous and intuitive feedback. Also some even supplement their class’s overstretched budget by contributing supplies from their own pocket.”

Through his exhibition, Meara wants to express his ideas while also allowing viewers to come up with their own meanings behind works.

“As soon as I’m done with a piece and I display it, the personal meaning I associate with it is gone,” Meara said. “I can’t stand there and tell every passerby what the piece is about, he or she creates their own narrative based on their beliefs and experiences.”

‘Organ’ opens on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Gilson Memorial Gallery. The gallery is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.