Reece Museum

            

After my amazing experience at the Reece Museum at East Tennessee State University last semester, I decided to go back and see what new material they had on display. Unfortunately, they are between exhibitions at the moment and on the day that I went, the main room was blocked off for a group of students defending their theses, so the experience that I had this time was not quite the same, however it was not bad. I was still able to see some amazing pictures that had been both drawn and painted and even without the large displays that I experienced last time, I still enjoyed seeing the imaginations of the artists come to life on the page.

            The drawing that spoke the most to me today was one that is found in one of the small side rooms, and it was a picture of a fishlike creature swimming in the ocean. This creature was entangled in a free-floating net and surrounded by trash such as a plastic bag, paper, oil, etc. It looked pained and was an all-together emotion evoking picture.

I have been raised with salt water in my veins. The ocean is my absolute favorite place to be and I cannot imagine anything more relaxing than being completely surrounded by perfect blue water. When you look out at the ocean and its massiveness, all of your troubles seem to be so very small and insignificant. Therefore, seeing this image and knowing that it is not far from the truth, saddens me. The amount of trash that is in our oceans is appalling and I feel as though it is something that many people do not think about on a regular basis. Having this image on display is a terrific way to raise awareness for what is happening to the poor creatures who have to deal with humanity’s ignorance.

As per usual, Reece Museum did not disappoint. Even though the experience did not have the same feel as the last, the artwork still moved me. I am also very excited for their next exhibit which should be going in late summer/early fall centered around the Holocaust, its events, and the survivors.