Senior Moments

Right now, scores of Kansas City Art Institute students are desperately hunting for coveted gallery space to exhibit their senior thesis work. Fortunately for two of them, Brent Wheatley (or “Wheatdog,” as his Baker University college buddies used to call him) has opened his Crossroads studio space to show the work of fiber department seniors Larissa Uredi and Deja Browning.

The two students (or “kids,” as Wheatley says) installed the show and designed and paid for the placards in what may be the only senior thesis show now on exhibit in the Crossroads District.

I can’t say I was thrilled to be viewing art on a frigid night in a room with a malfunctioning heater, but the gallery space is small enough that it was almost possible to ignore the cold.

Uredi’s six fabric installations were the most appealing works there. “Shells” consists of two soft nautical creations a couple of feet long, spread out on a riser. They’re made of hand-knit yarn shaped around wire, with a liquid acrylic coating that lends a realistic appearance. And for “Cocoon,” Uredi drapes a transparent curtain made of polyester tricot from the ceiling; a veinlike pattern of rug yarn is sewn into the material. Uredi tells the Pitch that she wants this piece to be interactive — she wants people to “go inside and see the gallery through the material and to become part of that environment.” I didn’t participate, though — the creation seemed too delicate to touch.

Also hanging from the ceiling is “Mourning Cloaks,” two identical pieces of silk noil (raw silk). The elongated triangles have prickly white porcupine points on the outside and soft red fabric inside. For a student — even one on the verge of graduating — Uredi’s work is interesting and mature.

Browning’s pieces, containing wire and different kinds of fabric encased in glass, are appealing mainly for their craft. But though their construction is impressive and the fragile quality of each piece complements Uredi’s fiber work, they’re not particularly evocative.

Overall, the show is a little rough around the edges (the title cards aren’t cut perfectly, and other qualities make the show feel a bit amateurish), but that’s the charm, too. The work feels appropriate for the space, a studio-cum-gallery for students new to exhibiting their work outside of the campus confines.