Works by Monmouth College art professors on display at two area locations

by Barry McNamara

Monmouth, IL (06/04/2019) — Paintings by Monmouth College art professors Brian and Stephanie Baugh are on display at two of Monmouth's more popular civic places - the Buchanan Center for the Arts and the Warren County History Museum.

The couple will talk about their works and their different approaches to art at 10 a.m. June 12 at the next Old Friends Talk Art program at the Buchanan Center for the Arts, 64 Public Square. The talk and their exhibit are both free and open to the public.

The paintings on display at the Buchanan Center are abstractions, but one of the basic differences is their medium of choice. Brian works with oil paint, while Stephanie uses acrylic.

"The primary difference with the media comes in the drying time of the paint," said Stephanie. "Oils dry slowly and are workable for a longer time, and acrylics dry quickly, which invites working in layers."

Their approaches are also very different.

"I typically start with a plan or an idea of where I'm going, and often I use digital technology to create templates that I will use as guides for the abstractions based on typography," said Stephanie. "Brian is always sketching, but his sketches provide only a starting point. His working process is spontaneous and responsive to the physical properties of the paint on the surface and to the interactions of color. His work is often influenced by the music he listens to while he works."

The Baughs also each have art on display at the Warren County History Museum, 238 S. Sunny Lane. That show, which includes art and creative writing by several Monmouth students and by College English professor David Wright, features works that were inspired by objects in the museum's collection.

"For that show, Brian created a still-life painting, and I made a collage," said Stephanie. "The exhibition will be on display for the rest of this year, and we will hold an event in the museum to celebrate the show sometime during the fall."

Stephanie also has a solo exhibition opening soon at the West Central Illinois Art Center in Macomb, titled "Objects and Experience," which was also the title of her recent show on Monmouth's campus. The Macomb exhibition will be on display June 11-July 13, with a closing reception on the final day from 1-3 p.m.

"Many of the works from the Monmouth show will be on display, but the gallery is larger, so additional abstract pieces will be included," she said. "I plan on showing 55 pieces."

The Baughs joined the Monmouth community in 2005 when Brian began teaching at the College. Brian is now chair of the art department, and Stephanie is an assistant professor and coordinator of the first-year general education course, "Introduction to Liberal Arts."

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