Shib happens

A word that UB students overlook on a daily basis will come alive in downtown Buffalo at the hands of 35 talented members of the Class of 2013.

This Saturday, the graduating students from the Visual Studies department will present their theses exhibition, Shibboleth, in front of faculty, family and the most prominent people from the Buffalo art scene.

The term was one of many proposed between the group of students, but senior fine art major Jennifer Cornwell's suggestion was chosen for the word's connection to UB, as well as its definition, according to senior communication design major Ned Semoff.

Shibboleth is a word that carries multiple meanings, both literally and for the graduating students. It is a word, saying or custom that a person who is unfamiliar with it would pronounce or perform incorrectly in comparison to those who are familiar with it. It is also defined as a custom, principle or belief that distinguishes a class or group of people and is used to identify foreigners or those who don't belong to a specific class or group of people.

The latter definition encompasses how many art students feel, as their realm on campus, the Center For the Arts, is literally detached from the rest of the Academic Spine. The merging of mediums and 35 different artists also adds to the ties of shibboleth because the mediums being presented this weekend will also vary.

Students will be presenting sculptures, traditional paintings, animation, graffiti, screen printing, print media, photography, environmental art, sound art and two students will be selling clothes they have designed as their theses.

For senior communication design major Kelzie Leach, Shibboleth serves as an early graduation ceremony before her post-undergraduate plans take her to Portland, Ore. As a student who came to UB initially for its pre-health and dental program, Leach is grateful that a staff as supportive as the VS department and her advisers, Reinhard Reitzenstein and Stephanie Rothenberg, could help her hone her craft in design.

"I used to be so scared because I felt like everyone else was an artist and I wasn't," Leach said. "But I'm really happy with where I'm at. I think I've found my place as an artist and as a designer among my peers and that's really awesome."

Leach's thesis project will present Rorschach tests, or inkblot tests, out of personal photos. The theme of family, home and childhood has been prevalent in Leach's art throughout the years and she credits the freedom she's had as a visual studies major to help her find her niche.

Semoff's work focuses on language, a theme that has been present in his work due to his struggles with language throughout his life as a result of his dyslexia. He will be presenting a modern version of German artist Kurt Schwitters' phonetic poem "Ursonate." The original poem lasts about 45 minutes, but Semoff's variation will be a kinetic animation and spans at 22 minutes.

Semoff drew inspiration for his project from the avant-garde Dada art movement, which left a lot of liberty for him in terms of tailoring it to his personal artistic vision.

"A lot of the poetry and language [in the Dada movement] was all about breaking down the normal and taking it and putting it back together and not giving a f**k about what people say," Semoff said. "The only instruction [given] for the poem is to be imaginative. You need to take it and make it your own."

Semoff, Leach and their 33 classmates have been preparing their theses in a two-part class led by Reizenstein and Rothenberg, two major allies in their journey. Because Reizenstein specializes in sculpture and Rothenberg specializes in communication design, the resources the visual studies undergraduates have had has been monumental.

"It's been important for all of us to stay motivated because after 10 months of working on something, there have been so many moments where we just want to go into a corner [and give up], but its been great [regardless]," Semoff said.

Reitzenstein finds his role in the 35 students' lives extremely gratifying. He feels that helping the students with their projects has helped him as an artist and instructor

"The students have progressed substantially pretty much across the board and there are always some outstanding projects that rise above the others due to a number of factors that point to levels of maturity and familiarity with their evolving personal language and a personal determination to achieve on a high level," Reitzenstein said in an email. "Those that accomplish at a high level of output push the others to new heights along with them, so there is a lot of interplay and cross fertilization"

The visual studies program gives its students a strong foundation as underclassmen, which then leads them into niches or specialties in art, Semoff said. The beauty of Shibboleth and a thesis project, in general, is having the opportunity to combine the talent they've developed and still incorporate the basics they learned as freshmen.

Over 175 have people confirmed their attendance on Shibboleth's event page on Facebook, but Semoff said they will be expecting approximately 500 attendees this Saturday, thanks to the support they have received from local galleries such as the Albright-Knox Gallery and Hallwalls Contemporary Gallery.

Shibboleth will be presented on the fourth floor of Hi-Temp Fabrication at 79 Perry St. in downtown Buffalo. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the show is open to the public; refreshments will be served and the show will conclude at 10 p.m.

Email: arts@ubspectrum.com