NEWS & NOTES
Chas Fagan Connects
Art with History By Natalie Pruett, marketing and communications
F
OR 11 YEARS running, Country Day has hosted a public art exhibition in the Hance Family Gallery featuring well-known artists and art collections generously shared by members of our own community. This year’s contributor and artist is one in the same in Chas Fagan, a Country Day parent and world-renowned visual artist. Best-known for combining his artistic gifts with his knowledge of history, some of Mr. Fagan’s high-profile commissions include oil portraits of all 45 U.S. Presidents; along with statues of
President Reagan in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol, Neil Armstrong for Purdue University, Rosa Parks in the Washington National Cathedral; and the official portrait of Mother Teresa for her canonization at St. Peter’s in Rome. “The range of art exhibits we feature ties art education directly to our community, reaching all levels of interest and age groups,” says Upper School Art Department Chair and Hance Family Gallery Director Tom Delaney. “Our exhibits serve to affirm community and deepen the connection between artist and viewer by sharing finished works of art and revealing the intent, creation, and process that inspires the work on display,
which relates directly to our fine arts curriculum at all levels.” An installation of 26 of Mr. Fagan’s pieces featured both in-progress and completed works, which hung in the Hance Family Gallery from February 4–March 1. Mr. Fagan’s Captain Jack bronze statue, currently displayed on the Greenway in Uptown Charlotte, was represented by portions of the original cast and suspended from the gallery ceiling. Additionally, maquettes (smallscale preliminary models), sketches, and photographs accompanied the displayed works to reveal the creative process from start to finish. Students from all divisions, grades, and subject areas visited the exhibit and some Upper School art students will work directly with Mr. Fagan during the spring semester.
My students loved that Mr. Fagan was a real person, not some far away art history subject, which made art real for them. –Mike Hennessey, eighth-grade art teacher
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PERSPECTIVES
