'Architect's Brother' exhibit opens Jan. 16 at Sheldon Art Gallery

Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison's "The Architect's Brother" opens Jan. 16 at Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The exhibition features 42 large-scale, mixed-media images creating a mythical world that mirrors ours, where nature is domesticated and controlled. The show will be on view through April 1.

The exhibition considers the state, and possible fate, of the Earth. The ParkeHarrisons came of age in a United States newly altered by environmental awareness, which encouraged personal and cultural commentary by artists.

They conjure a destiny in which humankind's overuse of the land has led to environments spent and abandoned with the exception of one indefatigable spirit, portrayed by Robert ParkeHarrison. The protagonist takes up ironic and often futile tasks of preservation or renewal amid landscapes spent and abandoned either because of war or industrial intrusion.

Placing himself within the images, ParkeHarrison attempts to patch holes in the sky, construct rain machines, and chase storms to create electricity. The photographs -- each of which took about five weeks to create -- started with notes and a drawing and library research. The ParkeHarrisons built sets and props to carefully stage each image.

Programs open to the public, all at the Sheldon, 12th and R streets, include: * An opening reception and exhibition tour at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 16. * A Second Sunday gallery walk at 2 p.m. Feb. 11 with teacher and photographer Larry Gawel, who will discuss the ParkeHarrison photographic techniques. * A lecture by the artists, Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison, followed by a First Friday reception from 5-7 p.m. March 2. * A panel discussion at 5:30 p.m. March 20. Led by Susan Seacrest, president of the Nebraska Groundwater Foundation, the panel will explore aesthetic and environmental aspects of the exhibition. Participants will include: Dana Fritz, a photographer on the UNL faculty; Gawel; and Mace Hack, executive director of the Nebraska Nature Conservancy. This event is sponsored by the Nebraska Humanities Council.

"The Architect's Brother" was organized by the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film in Rochester, N.Y., under the direction of Therese Mulligan, curator of photography.

The exhibition is made possible in Lincoln by the support of Baylor, Evnen, Curtiss, Grimit and Witt, LLP, and the Wake Charitable Foundation.

The Philip Johnson-designed Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery houses a permanent collection of more than 12,000 objects focusing on American art. The Nebraska Art Association is the dedicated nonprofit support group of the Sheldon. The museum is open to the public Tuesday through Sunday. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For information or to arrange a tour, please call (402) 472-2461. Additional information is available on the Sheldon Web site, www.sheldon.unl.edu.

The link below is to a black-and-white JPEG image of a photograph from "The Architect's Brother." It is titled "The Sower," Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison, 2002, 28 inches by 30 inches, photogravure, courtesy of Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison.

CONTACT: Tom White, Public Relations Manager, Sheldon Art Gallery, (402) 472-1197