October 12 , 2005

Burnt orange boulders and black marble columns are the elements to be used in the formation of Corban College’s first major art project.

Designed by Steve Hunt, the work is planned to complement the Psalm Center; it will be sited on the 324-square-foot area to the right of the entry.

“This piece represents Corban’s interest in promoting the arts in the community, and will be the signature piece to introduce our arts visitors to the many shows slated for the Psalm gallery,” said Hunt, vice president for marketing, and a recognized artist in the Salem area.

The artwork will symbolize burial and resurrection, and the Christian's hope of eternal life, Hunt said.

It is done in the spirit of Andy Goldsworthy, an Irish environmental artist born in 1956 who works only with items from nature.

“Movement, change, light, growth and decay are the life-blood of nature, the energies that I try to tap through my work,” Goldsworthy wrote in A Collaboration with Nature. “When I work with a leaf, rock, stick, it is not just that material in itself, it is an opening into the processes of life within and around it.  When I leave it, these processes continue.”

Goldsworthy was a favorite artist of Doug West, campus administrator who died this summer while on a mission trip to London.

“Doug was a great fan of Andy Goldsworthy,” Hunt said. “The temporal nature of the artist’s work appealed to Doug-- the statement that we are but brief stewards of all God’s handiwork.”

The artwork will be designated in memory of West and is funded by a gift from his family, Hunt said.
 
An artist’s rendition and description of the artwork can be seen in the Psalm Center lobby. Work on the project, which will weigh about 4,000 pounds, is expected to begin within the next few weeks, and will be completed by spring, Hunt said.

Psalm Center Gallery art shows have already begun: black and white photographs depicting the construction of the Psalm Center were hung in early October. In November, Salem resident, Richard Truman, a 1989 Corban alumnus, is expected to hang a show of his photography depicting a variety of subjects.

Future gallery showings will include work from a variety of art mediums, Hunt said.

“It is our hope that many alumni and community arts personnel will participate in the ongoing creative activities at Corban,” Hunt said. "We are looking forward to becoming a more active participant in the Salem area fine arts community."

-- By Karen L. Willoughby