The Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art, on the campus of Central Methodist University, is kicking off 2025 with a colorful and tactile show titled “Musical Conservations.” Featuring the work of area artists Kerry Hirth and Tom Schulte, the winter show opens on January 26.
The show will be divided into three exhibits, one in each gallery of the Classic Hall space. Hirth’s works of abstraction will be featured in the Geist Gallery, while Schulte’s sculpture and relief work will feature in the Yancey Gallery. In the middle will be works by George Caleb Bingham, adorning the walls of the gallery that now bears his name.
Kerry Hirth, who lives and works near Columbia, uses her work to explore the translation of music to visual art. She has been featured in gallery exhibits nationally and internationally and has completed noteworthy projects across the world.
The art in her “Abstract Musical Harmony” exhibit comes through her unique ability to naturally associate musical patterns with colors, as certain groups of notes appear to her as different colors, which she then paints or sketches in linear patterns. Hirth also has a degree in philosophy, as well as a law degree from the University of Missouri, which plays a part in her art as well.
“I believe that for those of us who are captivated by music, the experience of music synthesizes a great deal of complex information, regardless of whether that includes color,” says Hirth on her website. “I often wish I could see and hear what others do when they experience music.”
A sculptor by education and a contractor by trade, Tom Schulte uses materials found in his work to create unique relief art with dimension and depth. His process begins with photo images which he then carves and routs into commercial flooring material, then he burnishes copper foil into adhesive over the relief carving. The piece gets unique color then from oil painting over the copper, creating unique patterns and shine.
“There is a certain unpredictability about the process of my work that adds beauty and abstraction,” says Schulte. “I like the way that I feel in my heart of hearts when, in nature, I come upon something that reminds me that I am in the presence of something beyond my ability to make or even understand entirely. If I can evoke that fleeting feeling that comes, then I feel I have succeeded.”
Visitors will have the opportunity to meet both artists at the opening reception on Sunday, January 26. Furthermore, each artist will provide an artist talk on their work, as Hirth will present at 2 p.m. on Sunday, February 9, and Schulte will speak at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 2.
The Hirth and Schulte works will be on display from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. every Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from January 26 to April 17, apart from a closure for spring break from March 9-16. Special tours and groups are also welcome by appointment. Contact curator Tyler Pierson at tpierson@centralmethodist.edu or 660-248-6304 to schedule a time. The Gallery is located on the first floor of Classic Hall, on the CMU Fayette campus.