An exhibition celebrating the life and work of visual artist Matthew C. Baumgardner (1955-2018) will be presented by the Furman University Department of Art Jan. 19-Feb. 19 in Thompson Gallery of the Roe Art Building. Thompson Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

“Orange Sunshine,” 32 3/4″ x 24 3/4″, Masonite, 1980

As the campus remains closed to the public due to COVID-19 protocols, in-person viewing of the exhibition is limited to Furman students, faculty and staff. However, the online Zoom exhibition opening, which takes place Thursday, Jan. 28, 6:30-7:30 p.m., is free and open to the public and is part of Furman’s Cultural Life Program. RSVP by email to the Furman Department of Art at furmanart@furman.edu to obtain a Zoom link.

Curated and organized by Furman art students, the exhibition, “Matthew Baumgardner: Grids and Glyphs,” is the culmination of the Curatorial Issues and Practices class taught by Diane Fischer, adjunct professor of art history, and marks the second exhibition of Baumgardner’s work hosted at Furman.

The show explores Baumgardner’s creative process and inner spirit through a selection of works and ephemera spanning the artist’s career from 1977-2018, and includes 17 paintings, sculptures, notes, journals and materials from his Travelers Rest studio.

“Song of Solomon,” 13 1/4″ x 13 1/4″, Birch Plywood, 1995

Central to the exhibition are paintings rendered on birch plywood with Baumgardner’s signature medium – “mud” – a thick, paint-like paste created with gypsum and powdered pigments he

applied to surfaces in multiple layers of grids