ONGOING KNIFE FIGHT: BROCK FORRER AND ADAM WOLLENBERG w TWO THIRDS GALLERY THROUGH MARCH 29 A spectacular grouping of solo and collaborative art from two of Herron’s most exciting printmakers, soon-to-be graduate Forrer and recent graduate Wollenberg. Both artists have aggressive, distinctive styles. Forrer is known for his bold images of shack-like structures and odd characters. Wollenberg’s ongoing apprenticeship as a tattoo artist is evident; he’s always been fascinated with feathers and arrows, and they combine well with the knives, axes and bones that he introduces with this exhibition. The show has an overwhelming sense of doom and dread, but also an exuberance that renders it ambivalent. — Charles Fox
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SPARK FISHING: JUSTIN COOPER e MONSTER GALLERY THROUGH MARCH 28 (BY APPT ONLY) As thoughtful and realized a show as one has come to expect from Cooper. Cooper employs both large, unstretched canvases and smaller, gold leaf-laden panels. His use of negative space is well considered, and his effective compositions are neither busy nor sparse. The reintroduction of humans into his art is welcome; female figures are prominent within this body of work (with especially stunning impact in “Collector”). Despite depicting the search for energy, the net effect of Spark Fishing is to leave the viewer with a feeling of peace. — Charles Fox LINDA ADELE GOODINE AND KYLE CHANNING SMITH r HARRISON CENTER FOR THE ARTS THROUGH MARCH 29 Herron Prof Goodine and her student Smith combine their talents. Goodine’s large-format photographs explore mythology, history and the concept of emerging womanhood against the backdrop of the near Northside. In “Antoinette,” a young woman — seemingly unafraid of getting her head chopped off — sunbathes on a strip of rococo wallpaper on a snow-covered suburban landscape. The magical and the everyday mingle in her evocative photos. Kyle Channing Smith’s work is more quotidian: Her video “I’d Invite You, But You’d Just Stand Around Looking Awkward” features Smith acting out an endless, looping series of verbal pauses. — Dan Grossman RECYCLE PARTS t STUTZ ART GALLERY THROUGH MARCH 29 Salvaged bike parts become photos, painting and sculpture. Birds are a recurring motif: two bike seats become ears for a whimsical owl in a sculpture by Catherine Cunningham. ECO-LOGIC r SPACECAMP MICROGALLERY THROUGH MARCH 29 Four artists playfully blur the lines between natural and artificial. Notable are Caleb Charland’s impeccably composed photographs showing apples and potatoes powering LED lights. GRAPHITE w INDIANAPOLIS MUSEUM OF ART THROUGH JUNE 2 The fourth most abundant element in the universe, employed by a range of contemporary artists in innovative ways. Including Robert Longo’s drawings of iconic artworks and Kim Jones’s massive, playful “Untitled (War Drawing).”
PERRY RILEY JR. Dewclaw Gallery through March 23 MATT HUTTON AND CORY ROBINSON Gallery 924 through March 29 MIKE ALLEE: SELECTIONS FROM A HUMAN CIRCUS Indy Indie Art Gallery through March 31
OWEN MUNDY Herron School of Art and Design through April 13 STEELE CONCEALED Indiana State Museum through April 22 THOMAS MUELLER Christel DeHaan Fine Arts Center March 25-May 12
18 // ARTS // 03.20.13 - 03.27.13 // 100% RECYCLED P APER // NUVO
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Christina Blanch in two incarnations: as the teacher of a classroom full of superheroes in an illustration by Justin Wasson and in human form alongside comic legend Stan Lee.
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO LOIS LANE? BSU offers online course on gender in comics BY ROBERT ANNIS EDITORS@NUVO.NET
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all State professor Christina Blanch spent her formative years spinning in a circle, trying to transform into Wonder Woman. Although she didn’t magically become a crime-fighting Amazonian princess, she did gain a life-long love of comics. This April, Blanch will bring that appreciation to the Internet, teaching a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on gender in comics. The six-week class begins April 2, and so far, more than 5,000 people — a mix of comic fans and academics — have signed up for the class. The reading list will be a grabbag of classic superhero titles like Action Comics and Captain Marvel, and other, lessconventional fare, such as Terry Moore’s Strangers in Paradise and Y: The Last Man. Comic book creators and icons such as Gail Simone, Mark Waid and acclaimed Batman writer Scott Snyder agreed to be interviewed for the class. All the reading materials for the class are available on the Comixology app at a reduced price. Blanch estimates the class will eat about three to five hours a week, culminating in the students creating their own comics. Ball State senior and self-confessed feminist nerd Valerie Sizemore disagrees with some academics who might argue that comic books are too “low-brow” for the classroom. “It’s possible to couple gender theory with comics to create a fruitful and intelligent conversation,” Sizemore said. “Studying
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GENDER THROUGH COMIC BOOKS
A MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSE OFFERED THROUGH BALL STATE UNIVERSITY TAUGHT BY CHRISTINA BLANCH APRIL 2-MAY 11 ON CANVAS.NET
works by writers like Shakespeare, Joyce, or Emerson are important, but with the right professor and the right questions, comics can be just as valuable learning tools. Our class proved this true on a daily basis.” Gender has been a thorny role in comics over the years. Superman was the first superhero in comics, and Lois Lane the first popular female character. When she was created in 1938, Lois was a tough-asnails reporter, fighting Clark Kent for the big stories. But in the 1950s, she turned into “a simpering crybaby,” as society tried to force women back into the home. Instead of coming up with angles for her next Pulitzer Prize-winning article, Lois was dreaming up harebrained schemes to capture the Man of Steel’s affections. Blanch had hoped to use a copy of Superman’s Girlfriend Lois Lane featuring Superman and Batman playing horrible pranks to dissuade Lois, but the issue wasn’t available on Comixology. Sizemore, who took the class last semester for credit, discovered one of her favorite new characters from the assigned reading material. “We had to read Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka, and I immediately latched onto her,” Sizemore said. “Not only is she this tough, intelligent, and strong woman, she’s an LGBTQ character whose existence doesn’t revolve around the fact that she’s a lesbian. Her sexuality has an effect on
her life, of course, but it isn’t her driving characteristic. It’s refreshing because you don’t often get to see queer characters this nuanced, let alone that are women.” Batwoman is in stark contrast with too many oversexed depictions of female superheroes that are all-too common in comics. Adding insult to injury, female heroes, already barely clad in skimpy costumes – Who would really fight crime in essentially a swimsuit and high-heeled boots ? — are drawn in ridiculous, bodycontorting poses that no woman with a spine could accomplish. That’s why fans started the Hawkeye Initiative website, which replaces the superheroine with the Avenging Archer in the same pose. The site is the focus of one of Blanch’s lectures. “I think it’s great, really funny,” Blanch said. “I don’t mind women being sexy – or men, for that matter – but some of the poses just make you go, ‘really?’ It’s opened some eyes. You might not think it’s that bad, but then you stop and really look at it (in a different context).” Blanch praised Marvel Comics recent decision to revamp the Ms. Marvel character, renaming her Captain Marvel and giving her a new, less revealing costume. Blanch spoke with writer Kelly Sue DeConnick, and said the reason for the switch was fairly simple – DeConnick knew she would be writing a funeral scene in the new comic, and “who goes to a funeral with their butt cheeks hanging out?” Blanch said. “Comics are getting better,” Blanch said. “Some things are never going away and that’s fine … but let’s not use women just to advance the men’s stories.”