AMES, IOWA — AUGUST 10, 2023 — The Brunnier Art Museum, University Museums affiliate at Iowa State University (ISU), located on the second floor of the Scheman Building, 1805 Center Drive, Ames, IA, is hosting the exhibition Future Unfolding featuring the newly commissioned cameo engraved glass work of art added to the permanent collection, Outliving Glaciers, by internationally-known and award-winning artist and environmentalist April Surgent. The exhibition opens Tuesday, August 22 with free admission for the public.

Cameo engraving is an ancient technique few contemporary glassmakers choose to attempt. It is a slow and meticulous process that entails precise work to carve through layers of various colors of glass to create low relief images. As a young artist in the early 2000s, Surgent first encountered engraving under the tutelage of the Czech master engraver Jiří Harcuba, which led to her focus on the use of cameo engraving as way to depict landscapes and environments in glass.

While nature is her source of inspiration, Surgent draws on her experiences with several science-funded research grants to inform how she chooses to represent the natural environment. Surgent was a recipient of the National Science Foundation Antarctic Writers and Artists Program in 2013, was the first artist in residence with the NOAA’s Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program, and assisted with a 2019 U.S. Geological Survey led research study in Alaska. These research trips have yielded a range of imagery that she later records via glass when she returns to her studio. Surgent uses her engravings to document the world as it is in this moment, as the loss of natural habitats and environmental impacts due to climate change escalates.

“Through the amalgamation of art and science, I seek to understand how we are affecting the environment to learn what we can do to create positive impact,” says Surgent. “Observation, conservation science, and in-depth research inform my work discussing the urgency of climate change and the call to action.”

Along with the cameo engraved glass, Future Unfolding includes two art installations created from human-made debris collected out of the ocean. “The art presents the perfect opportunity to direct further discussions on how glacial and sea changes continue to have a dramatic impact on Iowa,” said Adrienne Gennett, curator of the Brunnier Art Museum. “Through examining Surgent’s art, the conversation must be had that we, and especially future generations, are and will be impacted by the devastating loss and accelerated environmental change occurring around the world.”

As a way to facilitate these discussions, University Museums will host free programs for the public to join. April Surgent will be on-site at the Brunnier Art Museum Thursday, October 12 from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. for an artist lecture Exploring Climate Change in Glass where she will discuss her inspiration and expression of environmental change through cameo engraved glass. She will also talk about her experience participating in scientific research fellowships. On Sunday, November 5 from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m., ISU Professor of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences Dr. Neal Iverson will present Glaciers in a Warming World: Examples from Today and Iowa’s Glacial Past. Dr. Iverson will lecture on how glaciers and ice sheets respond to climate warming in ways that are both predictable and surprising, and how their shrinkage over the next century will affect hundreds of millions of people.

While on campus at ISU in October, Surgent will give specialized tours to philosophy, meteorology, geology, and agriculture classes. When University Museums has the opportunity to host artists on campus, there is always a focus on engaging with curriculum being taught throughout the colleges. Education staff work to bring students and faculty together with the artists, who give great insight on how their art can connect deeply to their fields of study through visual literacy learning.

Future Unfolding will be open to the public beginning Tuesday, August 22 and will run through Sunday, December 17, 2023. Admission to the Brunnier Art Museum is free, and open hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; and Saturday and Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. The museum is closed on Mondays and university holidays, but Iowa State curriculum tours may be scheduled Mondays with two weeks’ notice.

This exhibition is curated and organized by the artist, April Surgent, and University Museums with Traver Gallery. Generous support for the exhibition was given by Marcia and Jim Borel; Carol Gee; Lucinda and Dirk Scholten; Phyllis and Larry Lepke; and University Museums Membership.

Find full descriptions of programs on the University Museums Calendar. All programs are free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Click the event title for more information and/or to register. Events listed below will be at the Brunnier Art Museum (1805 Center Dr., 295 Scheman Building, Ames, Iowa) unless otherwise noted. Programs are subject to change. Check the University Museums Calendar and Facebook page for the latest events information.

Curator's Tour of Future Unfolding

with Adrienne Gennett

Sunday, August 27, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Brunnier Art Museum curator Adrienne Gennett will tour the exhibition and introduce the newest acquisition funded by Jason D. Kogan and commissioned by University Museums to the permanent collection. April Surgent’s masterful ability to engrave subtle, yet powerful landscapes and seascapes within glass speak to the significant changes the world is witnessing due to climate change and human made detritus.

Artist Lecture | April Surgent: Exploring Climate Change in Glass

Thursday, October 12, 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

April Surgent will discuss the inspiration behind her new commission for University Museums permanent collection, her unique expression of environmental change through cameo engraved glass, and experiences participating in several prestigious research fellowships.

Glaciers in a Warming World: Examples from Today and Iowa's Glacial Past

Sunday, November 5, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Glaciers and ice sheets respond to climate warming in ways that are both predictable and surprising. Their shrinkage over the next century will affect hundreds of millions of people. Lecture with Dr. Neal Iverson, Professor, Geological and Atmospheric Sciences.

April Surgent started working with glass in 1997 at open access hot shop studios in her hometown of Seattle, WA. She went on to study at the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia where she graduated with honors in 2004. In 2003, she changed her focus from blown to engraved glass after studying under Czech master engraver, Jiří Harcuba. Surgent exhibits, teaches and lectures internationally and has received many accolades for her work, including the Neddy Fellowship through the Behnke Foundation and a 2016 USA Ford Fellowship.

Interested in marine ecology, she uses experiences of working with conservation research scientists to inform her work aimed at cultivating public awareness about climate change and anthropogenic impact on the environment. In 2013, she worked at Palmer station as a recipient of the National Science Foundation’s, Antarctic Artist and Writers Program and in 2016 as a volunteer field biologist for the Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program. Most recently, Surgent worked from the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, 30 miles west of San Francisco with Point Blue Conservation and in SW Alaska with the US Geological Survey. Surgent lives and works on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State.

April Surgent has works of art in the permanent collections of museums around the world including: Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, NY; Chrysler Museum in Norfolk, VA; Toledo Museum of Art in Toledo, OH; Wichita Art Museum in Wichita, KS; Ulster Museum in Belfast, Ireland; and Brunnier Art Museum, University Museums affiliate at Iowa State University in Ames, IA.

aprilsurgent.com

The Brunnier Art Museum is the only accredited museum emphasizing a decorative arts collection in the state of Iowa and one of the nation's few museums located within a performing arts and conference complex (Iowa State Center). Founded in 1975, the museum is named after its benefactors, Henry J. Brunnier and his wife Ann. Ceramics, glass, dolls, ivory, jade, and enameled metals are all included in the Brunnier Collection.

Museum Hours

Tuesday – Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Saturday & Sunday, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Closed to the public Monday. ISU curriculum tours may be scheduled on Monday with a 2-week notice.

Closed University Holidays.

Admission is free. Donations are welcome.

museums.iastate.edu

University Museums is a distinctive organization that encompasses two art museums, a National Historic Landmark historic home museum, a sculpture garden, and one of the largest campus public art collections in the nation. University Museums brings world-class exhibitions with educational programming to Iowa State University, actively acquires works of art to add to the more than 30,000 permanent collection objects, conserves and preserves collections, conducts and publishes curatorial scholarship, and fosters student engagement.

museums.iastate.edu

To schedule interviews, photograph events, or request high-resolution images, please contact Alisha Abner at 515.294.3342 or aabner@iastate.edu. 

Header: Detail of Outliving Glaciers, 2023 by April Surgent. Cameo engraved glass. Commissioned by University Museums. Gift in memory of Lori A. Jacobson from Jason D. Kogan. In the permanent collection, Brunnier Art Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. UM2023.199

Outliving Glaciers, 2023 by April Surgent. Cameo engraved glass. Commissioned by University Museums. Gift in memory of Lori A. Jacobson from Jason D. Kogan. In the permanent collection, Brunnier Art Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. UM2023.199

In Our Absence, 2019 by April Surgent. Cameo engraved glass. From the collection of the artist courtesy of Traver Gallery.

Photo of April Surgent, courtesy of the artist.

Portrait of an Iceberg, 2019 by April Surgent. Cameo engraved glass. From the collection of the artist courtesy of Traver Gallery.

Photo of April Surgent, courtesy of the artist.