Siobhan Mulligan, Campus Carrier Arts & Living Asst. Editor
 |
| Andrea hill | CAMPUS CARRIER |
| Freshmen Alisa McConnell and Julia Zharichenko study one of the Defloor’s “Baucis and Philemon” pieces at the Moon Gallery on Monday. |
While a team of artists must have a strong working relationship, Dan and Mary DeFoor have a strong personal one as well. The couple met as students at Berry and have learned to combine their individual talents to produce unique ceramic artwork. When crafting a new piece, he creates the basic form on the pottery wheel. However, he is colorblind, so she chooses the glazes in addition to embellishing the form with hand-built pieces or surface carvings. The outcome is a piece that incorporates both their visions into something entirely new.
The DeFoors’ artwork is being displayed as part of a group exhibition in the Moon Gallery on the theme of everyday life. After organizing an exhibition of Berry students’ work at the Harris Art Center in Calhoun, Ga., the couple came into contact with Moon Gallery director Brad Adams at an alumni invitational last year. Adams felt their work would fit well with the group exhibition “Quotidian.”
“I want to specifically serve the students in this building,” Adams said.
Artists who are invited to show their work may utilize techniques not often seen at Berry, or they may use techniques that students are currently studying in their art classes. Most important, Adams said, is their willingness to talk with the students, whether about the techniques behind their craft or the business concerns of a working artist.
The last time Dan DeFoor’s work appeared in the Moon Gallery, was 1975. Although the gallery had shown seniors’ work in group exhibits before, this was the first time a student had put on a solo show. There was considerable work involved, and he had to switch between preparing his art exhibit, driving off-campus for a student teaching position and preparing for his wedding that summer.
“So I would come here to work almost all night, into the wee hours,” he said. “I would sleep in the hallway, get up, drive home, take a shower and go student teach, and then back over here to work.”
Both stressed the influence that Berry has had on their lives. Mary DeFoor described a story from Ovid’s “Metamorphoses” that she first encountered at Berry, which inspired several of the ceramics on display and has gained new relevance throughout the progression of their relationship. The tale of Baucis and Philemon concerned mythological lovers who were turned into trees at the end of their lives so they would never have to see the other die. If one were to take a walk behind the College Chapel, one could see the two dogwood trees that the DeFoors planted there after their wedding in reference to the tale.
“We’ve had some nice shows, been invited to show in some regional galleries,” said Mary DeFoor, “But I think being here at Berry, it takes on a special meaning to us because of our history with the place.”