Hard experience with years of “Intro to Art” students has taught me that few terms can relegate a person to the ranks of overly intellectualized academia more quickly than “contemporary, non-objective abstraction”. The genre begs a hasty, concise explanation.

Resonance, John Beckelman

John Beckelman’s mixed-media paintings that just opened in our new exhibit on October 3rd are examples of contemporary, non-objective abstraction. There is nothing remotely “academic” about this remarkable body of work. Clay, pigment and oil combine on richly worked, tactile surfaces. These are also not “pictures” of anything literal. Bold use of materials alternates with a palpable restraint in compositions that drip and flow across Beckelman’s panels. Cosmic events and playful musings hang side by side in calculating coherence.

First Light and On Becoming, both John Beckelman

I’ve been privileged to a front row seat to John’s evolution of imagery. I am sensitive to the degree to which his paintings draw the viewer into a deeply personal, visual experience. Commingled with his ceramic vessels, it is my belief that, in this exhibition of two and three dimensional work, we are afforded a rare, expansive view into his artistic life.

John Beckelman and Priscilla Steele, Coe College campus, Fall 2008