‘Contingent Structures’ Opens January 27 at Daum Museum

Sedalia's Daum Museum of Contemporary Art will open Contingent Structures, a new exhibit of ceramic sculptures, on January 27.

The show features 16 large-scale ceramic sculptures by Brandon Reese. "Reese lived for a while in Missouri, he went to the Kansas City Art Institute," said Tom Piché, director of the Daum Museum, "but right now he's based in Oklahoma at Oklahoma State in Stillwater, where he's a professor of art."

Piché says Reese's work is heavily influenced by construction. "There's a real sense of things being constructed, and these forms can vary from large spools, kind of wheel-shaped forms, those are about six feet. There are wall-based ceramic hoops. There are towers, and then there are kind of very abstracted human figures, but it all has that quality of framing, of construction. You get to see the artist at work. You get to see the decisions he's made as he goes along. He doesn't smooth things over."

The upcoming show is one that is unique for the Daum, according toPiché. "It's a divergent kind of ceramics for us. We haven't shown anything like this in quite a while. I think it will have resonance with the visitors who come to take a look."

Showing alongside Contingent Structures is a smaller show called Clay Culture, which will highlight the work of four artists: Peter Voulkos, Jun Kaneko, Don Reitz and Jim Leedy. "These are all very well-known American ceramists," said Piché, "and they're all artists Brandon Reese has studied with. Luckily, our permanent collection contains really significant works by all four."

The Daum Museum of Contemporary Art is located on the Sedalia campus of State Fair Community College. The museum is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission to the Daum Museum is free.