West Liberty University invites art enthusiasts to the first gallery opening of the season as the Nutting Gallery welcomes mixed media artist Robby Moore of Beckley, West Virginia.
The exhibition opening is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 25 and there is a formal question and answer session with the artist at 6 p.m.
“I’m drawn to Robby’s work because it’s challenging on many levels. The work is full of conflicting emotions where some of the work is stating real problems about race and loneliness but the work is also filled and made with great joy,” said Professor Brian Fencl, faculty member and director of the Nutting Gallery.
“On many levels the work is visually complex and you see him work with a wide variety of media, orientations and borders. For those that are willing to give themselves time with the work and are open to the questions the images pose, the exhibition is very satisfying.”
A graduate of Concord University, Moore earned a bachelor’s degree in Studio Arts with a minor in Theatre. He began professionally exhibiting artwork in 1999.
In 2004, he co-founded Treehouse Arts Ensemble, an organization dedicated to producing original fine and performing art in West Virginia. He has curated many art exhibitions in West Virginia and Ohio.
Also a theatrical director, he has experience professionally as a scenic designer/artist, costumer, actor, technician and marionette puppeteer. From 2011 to 2016, he was a Tamarack resident studio artist at Tamarack in Beckley, W.Va., and has been a juried artist there since 2008.
Formerly named one of the Top 15 Tamarack Artists, his work has been exhibited in various spaces including the Juliet Art Museum in Charleston, W.Va. and The Huntington Museum in Huntington, W.Va. Recently, he was profiled in the Fall 2020 issue of ArtWorks magazine.
In February 2021, his work was chosen for the West Virginia Art Fund Purchase at Lafayette Flats. Moore currently works for Beckley Art Center as their executive director.
“Most of my media is found materials which consist of paper, paint, ink, pencil, thread, and fabric. I use common, often discarded, items to create my work,” Moore explains in his artist statement.
“I use what I have to communicate the strange, triumphant, beautiful, and tragic things that I observe and experience in my daily life. I try to express, through my figures, the sadness and confidence that comes from the depth gained from thoughtfulness. My process often begins with practical choices like composition and design, and then quickly yields to subconscious thought. After a series of impulsive, capricious and reckless choices, I revert back to an orderly state, where I arrange and edit in an effort to tell a short visual story.”
The exhibition continues through September 23. Face masks are required in the gallery and social distancing is observed.
Located in WLU’s Fine Arts Building, the regular hours of the Nutting Gallery are 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. Fridays, weekends and other times are by arrangement only.
The Nutting Gallery is dedicated to educating, enriching, and engaging students and the public through art exhibitions of the highest quality. Fulfilling this mission through exhibitions during the academic year, the schedule includes five exhibitions by visiting artists, two Senior Exhibitions, and the Annual Art Faculty Exhibition.
The gallery website page is found at https://westliberty.edu/art/gallery/ For more information, please contact Fencl at 304-336-8433.
