Painter and printmaker to display Dresden images in exhibit, Oct. 30-Jan. 11

Exhibit: "The Dresden Journals: Nicholas Hill"
Dates: Oct. 30, 2009 - Jan. 11, 2010
Location: Hershberger Art Gallery, Goshen College Music Center
Reception: Friday, Oct. 30, 2009 from 2 to 3:30 p.m.
Cost: Free and open to the public

GOSHEN, Ind. – Painter and printmaker Nicholas Hill, from Granville, Ohio, is professor of art at Otterbein College. An exhibit of his works, "The Dresden Journals," will be on display at Goshen College's Hershberger Art Gallery in the college's Music Center from Oct. 30, 2009 to Jan. 11, 2010. A reception for the exhibit will be held from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 30.

The city of Dresden, Germany was destroyed by the Allies during World War II through aerial bombing. It was then part of East Germany until the fall of Communism. In both 1998 and 2003, Hill spent six-week periods in Germany. The Dresden Journals come out of that experience. "When I first visited Dresden in the late 1990s, the echoes of World War II and the Soviet domination that followed it were still readily evident," he said. "As time has passed, those elements have become less pronounced. The patina of soot-covered and war-ravaged stone facades still remains, often juxtaposed with pastel-coated restorations and new architectural creations. However, the past still lingers in the present."

Hill, who directs the Frank Museum of Art at Otterbein, added, "The visual notations that have led to the works are like a diary. ... Although I have taken countless walks throughout Dresden and made drawings and photographs of specific locations, none of the architectural forms in the works is a representation of a specific place. Each is a composite or perhaps summation is a better term. I attempt to find essential forms."

Hill earned a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University and a master of fine arts degree from the University of Iowa. He has taught at Bethany College, The State University of New York at Plattsburgh and Union College in Schenectady, N.Y.

Widely exhibited, Hill is represented by Printworks Gallery in Chicago. He has exhibited his work in more than 200 juried and invitational exhibitions in the United States and abroad. Most recently, his work has been included in exhibitions in Germany, France, Poland, India and Denmark. His work is represented in such public collections as the Library of Congress, the New-York Historical Society, the United States Department of State and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.

Hill has received grants from the Ohio Arts Council, the Greater Columbus Arts Council, the New York State Council on the Arts, the Kansas Arts Commission and Artists Space-New York City. He has been granted two international residencies in Dresden, Germany.

The Hershberger Art Gallery, located in the Music Center, is open from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The building is accessible to people using wheelchairs and others with physical limitations.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college's Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron's Best Buys in Education, "Colleges of Distinction," "Making a Difference College Guide" and U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition, which named Goshen a "least debt college." Visit www.goshen.edu.