On the walls in the Moon Gallery are dozens of paintings of people. Some stare directly at the viewer, others turn their heads away. Others do not have heads at all, and are just bodies interacting with one another.

 

They are the work of Christina Vogel, assistant professor of painting and drawing at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Vogel’s work was hung on the Moon Gallery walls on Monday, and a gallery opening was held on Tuesday for visitors to enjoy refreshments and hear Vogel speak about her art.

 

Brad Adams, associate professor of art, visited her studio at the university over the summer and invited her to display her work in the Moon Gallery. She is the sixth artist this academic year to have her work displayed there.

 

“The thing that’s important to me is trying to provide an immersive experience for students with people who are really accessible and open,” Adams said.

 

The exhibit displays paintings and drawing from 2004 to the present. Vogel’s work is composed mostly of figure drawings, which she has been interested in since college.

 

“I took as many classes as I could related to the figure,” Vogel said. “I did figure drawings, figure paintings, and worked with the figure professors.”

 

In the early 2000s, Vogel created mostly self portraits and portraits of her immediate family and friends. She was inspired by the Dutch painter Rembrandt and said that she liked how viewers could see him aging through the self portraits he created.

 

“I have always been seduced by the formality of portraits,” Vogel said. “It’s so formal and serious. I want to confront the viewer through my gaze.”

 

In 2011, Vogel started a series of portraits. She called the series “Snapshots” because she used material from photographs instead of drawing from life. The new series often depict figures with their heads at an angle or turned away from the viewer entirely.

 

“I started to think about how I could deny access to the face and open things up,” Vogel said. “I started to crop out faces and turn the figures away.”

 

Vogel also uses objects to represent people. One such painting is of a red jacket that her husband, father and grandfather used to wear.

 

Her most recent art, from 2014 to present, has focused more on group settings. She took photos of family, friends and even strangers and used them in her paintings. Vogel also worked with photographer Amy Johnson to create watercolor paintings based on her work, which were displayed side-by-side with Johnson’s photographs in a gallery.

 

Vogel said she is excited to display her work at Berry after being alone with it in the studio. Her art will be on display until March 4.

 

“The best part for me are the conversations that happen surrounding the work,” Vogel said. “Each work marks a different point in time, and I feel connected to each piece in different ways for different reasons.”