Lander University's Monsanto Gallery is preparing to host an exhibition featuring the works of local artists Robert Poe and Roger Stevenson. The exhibition, "Beyond Boundaries," will run from Oct. 21 to Nov. 19, and gallery manager Jon Holloway said it will feature a combination of abstracts on canvas and photography.
Poe, professor emeritus, taught design, painting and photography at Lander for 38 years. He says of his work, "It has always been experimental with compositional ideas and subject matter abstracted." He added, "I keep trying to surprise myself."
Poe received his formal education at the University of North Carolina, the Brooklyn Museum School, in New York, and the University of East Tennessee. He said reading and travel, visiting museums and workshops and his informal education continues to nourish his passion for moving paint across the canvas in new directions.
Stevenson said he returned to painting in 2000 after a long hiatus from his art education at Furman University. In the interim, he founded the Greenwood Genetic Center and the Greenwood Children's Clinic and devoted his career to the evaluation and care of children with birth defects, intellectual disability and autism.
He said his return to painting picked up his preferred theme of lines and color in nonrepresentational compositions. Stevenson spends time at his studio, Equanimitas, at Wyatt Farms in Greenwood, often introducing children to the enjoyment of art.
Holloway said, "We're looking forward to hosting this dynamic duo," and he invited the public to a reception for Poe and Stevenson on Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Monsanto Gallery at Lander.