Building on Dana / Patterns in Space (Feb. 7-May 19) explores the building’s past, present, and future through the voices of artists, activists, students, and scholars examining its built environment. It establishes the significance of the Dana Fine Arts Building in architect John Portman’s early career and in shifts in the college’s curriculum in the 1960s; it also highlights the challenge of access and inclusion in historical design and an evolving cultural context.
Alongside archival materials, the exhibition features works from contemporary artists and designers who have reinterpreted visual and programmatic aspects of Dana Fine Arts to create a visual conversation between past and present. Finnegan Shannon and Caitlin La Dolce explore our bodies’ relationship to space and advance equitable access for all. Roxie Fricton, following a legacy of site-specific textiles in Portman’s buildings, re-interprets our building through woven installation.
Dalton Gallery hours are Tuesday to Thursday 12:00 to 4:00 and Fridays 12:00 and 6:00, and by appointment.
Building on Dana (August-December 2024)
The Building on Dana project unfolded in two rooms of the Dalton Gallery, as students in Topics in Visual Practices and 3-D Thinking worked together to scrutinize and analyze selected sites around the building, build prototypes in cardboard, and collect and assess archival materials, resulting in the four-floor model and timelines for the exhibition.
Our workspace/classroom was open to the public during gallery hours. We presented it to the Agnes Scott Community and invited guests in mid-December. For more details of our pedagogical adventures, please visit our PROCESS page.
We were fortunate to start our study with an exciting series of guest speakers, whose expertise on Portman’s architecture and related topics were an inspiring introduction to a worthy topic. You can find more information on PEOPLE and in PROGRAMS.
While we anticipated that a study of a Portman building would be significant for Atlanta, we are overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and generosity, the conversations and collaborations this project has generated. Please spend some time with our PEOPLE and PROCESS to get a sense of all those enriching and extending this project.
broken ground/falling light (September-December 2024)
broken ground/falling light featured selected works from the Permanent Collection of Agnes Scott College. Through the lens of the Permanent Collection, this exhibition explored interior landscapes and geometries of light. As we began to think about the ways in which form influences space through the Building on Dana project, this exhibition sought to reflect on space and time through the temporal nature of organic material.
Featured works included pieces by Kojo Griffin, Jenny Holzer, Abelardo Morell, Ruth Laxson, Pam Longobardi, Yasumasa Morimura, Joe Peragine, Steffen Thomas, and Larry Walker. The exhibition was on view from September 17-December 6, 2024.
