“Inside the Bug Jar” is an art exhibit with artworks from West Chester alumini’s. The exhibit was shown in the John H Baker Art Gallery inside the E.O Bull Center for the Arts at West Chester University.

One of the artists whose work was shown was Nicholas Burns. He is a painter and a graphic designer. He wrote a poem that had inspired the entire exhibit (http://nicholasaburns.com/writings). His paintings makes it feel like the message he is trying to send is being trapped.

Another artist, Samantha Pace, is a freelance artist specializing in multimedia paintings. Her pieces seem to have the meaning to just be free. Pace’s artworks does not seem to relate to any political or cultural issues that are currently going on in this world.

An art gallery located in Syracuse, New York had an interesting exhibit. The exhibit was called, “INVISIBLE PEOPLE: Portraits of the Homeless” by Neil Shigley. Neil Shigley is a San Diego based artist “whose work explores the subject of homelessness by giving visibility to homeless individuals through large-scaled portraits” (Shigley, Neil. INVISIBLE PEOPLE: Portraits of the Homeless. Artragegallery.org). Shigley calls homeless people “invisible people” instead. Shigley creates portraits of homeless people he encounters. He tries to get to know them to help inspire his portraits. Each portrait of a homeless person contains a story of how they got into their situation.

He creates portraits of homeless people because often society sees them as invisible. Doing this shows the homeless people that someone acknowledges them and that they are seen. He’s been drawing portraits for 13 years ever since he ran into a homeless Vietnam Veteran. Shigley is focusing his attention on the homeless, which is a real political and cultural issue. He is using his talent to raise awareness for those who need to be heard.

“I have focused my art on capturing the incredible character that life on the streets has given these individuals, many of whom are from my neighborhood near downtown San Diego. A character that is hard earned through sometimes many years of life on the streets and the daily struggle for survival that may bring”(Shigley, Neil. INVISIBLE PEOPLE: Portraits of the Homeless. Artragegallery.org).

To read more about these exhibits and more… https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EqnbNl–Kbe9j3HzpYyOqQ2xfy66Uef6rDFkkEYSAqE/edit?usp=sharing?usp=sharing