October 29, 2007
Lyon College News Bureau
Lyon College’s Kresge Gallery to host painting exhibition by John Hartley
An upcoming exhibition of paintings at Lyon College will be “Searching for Heroes.”
John Hartley’s series will appear in the Kresge gallery from Nov. 1 – 29, and the gallery will host a Closing Reception and artist talk on Nov. 29 at 6 p.m.
“‘Searching for Heroes’ is part of an ongoing series of paintings that combines two passions: making art and toy collecting,” Hartley said. “Begun as lighthearted figurative studies of toy soldiers, deeper meanings became apparent as I completed more paintings. I added additional military toys, figures, and action heroes to the series, and expanded the possibilities for interpretation.”
The traditional hero wears a uniform or cape and is glorified in the media, on film, or in the comics. Searching for Heroes focuses on the hero archetype as soldier, caped crusader, and religious icon. Hartley’s work seeks to explore the question: has society displaced our ability to see the heroes around us, the ones not immortalized in the toy aisle?
“My aim has always been to create intellectually and emotionally significant statements of the soul,” he said. “These toys and plastic figures evoke for me memories of playtime and growing up in the 1960s. My collection of toys includes mostly cars and motorcycles, but Superman and army men are mainstays in any boy’s toy chest, including mine.”
Today, boys play hero in space with intergalactic monsters and laser guns while the images and sounds of war in Iraq play in the background on TV, he added.
“What impressions will remain with them in forty years? Who will their heroes be?”
Hartley’s assertion is that some say there are two ways to approach image making. One is to be influenced by the surrounding environment. Another is to create primarily from an inner world without external reference.
“My images rely on both.” He said. “These toy heroes represent for me memories of an imaginative childhood and grown-up recognition that there is a hero in all of us. They are both a literal and visual reference to who I am and where I come from.”
To learn more about his work, visit Hartley’s Web site at www.johnhartley.net.
"Army Man"
"Robin"
"A Baker"