'Gifted' Art To Be Shown at Atkinson

Donated Art From All Around Campus Exhibited For the First Time

City College students may have seen some impressive art on campus, but no one has had the opportunity to see it all in one place — until now.

This spring, from Feb. 27 to March 27, the Atkinson Gallery will feature a selection of ceramics, photographs, sculptures and works on paper at an exhibition titled "Gifted." As the name hints, the presentation will be of the quality art donated to City College over the years.

"A lot of people don’t know that City College has a collection of works," said Dane Goodman, the director of the gallery.

Goodman came up with the idea to exhibit a selection of this art in the same room for the first time. He said he has chosen some works he believes represent the collection as a whole, and some because of their great quality.

"I'm just trying to pick out a range of things and a range of materials," he said. "I want people to know that we have really well-known artists."

Among those whose works will be shown are Charles Arnoldi, Lynda Benglis, Fletcher Benton, Don Gummer, Mary Hambleton, David Reed, Richard Ross, Millard Sheets, Italo Scanga, Rick Stitch, and John Walker.

The exhibition will also show two newly donated sculptures by Roland Reiss. Two subcategories for art on display will be geometric and recognizable images, Goodman said.

He expects most people on the opening reception to be college students, even if they have invited people from the community. "The mission of the gallery is to work as a learning laboratory for students," Goodman said. But it is also "an opening spot of dialogue," he said.

City College has been offered many works of art over the years, although it does not actively encourage people to donate, Goodman said.

One reason for donating art to City College is that the donor wants others to have a chance to appreciate it, Goodman explained. However, a committee decides if the college will accept each suggested gift.

Many works found in the Luria Library have been donated by Garner Tullis. In a workshop here in Santa Barbara, Tullis helped artists make monotypes, a print in only one copy. Tullis is one of four major donors of artworks at the exhibition, together with the Barry Berkus Family, the Eli Luria Family and J.W. & Suzanne Colin.

"The trouble is that the gallery is small and all are going to fit there," Goodman said. "It's going to be very full."

The reception will run from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Feb. 27 at the Atkinson Gallery, located in the Humanities Building on East Campus.