“Bagatelle: Recent Drawings by Alan Garfield,” through October 27

Exhibit: Through Friday, October 27

Reception: Saturday, October 21, 6:30 – 8 p.m.

University of Dubuque's Bisignano Art Gallery, 2255 Bennett Street, Dubuque IA

With the exhibition's creator having led University of Dubuque students through the history of western Europe on art and culture adventures for the past 23 years, the director of the Bisignano Art Gallery enjoys a of showcase of in the venue's Bagatelle: Recent Drawings by Alan Garfield, this beautiful collection of works on display through October 27.

During Garfield's travels abroad with UD students, he would traditionally wake between 2 and 5 a.m., take out a piece of paper, and draw something from the day’s activities. Forty of those drawings and more are on display in Bagatelle, an exhibition that Garfield himself doubted would ever occur.

“This show has a musical title," said Garfield. "It [Bagatelle] seemed appropriate because these drawings are small, lightly arranged pieces done at the spur of the moment and not really unified by subject matter or content. Actually, I’d often listen to bagatelles by Beethoven and others late at night. These are drawings. They’re not quick sketches, which I usually don’t do. They are exact, purposeful, and yet abstract in their own ways. While they are not paintings, obviously, they are in my mind finished works.

“They are quick, well, fairly quick, drawings done in my studio," Garfield continued. "Studio? That would be in a modest European hotel or hostel room with a manila folder containing two or three pieces of paper and an envelope with four pencils and one sharpener ... . Often, I’d quietly move into a common area and draw. When I didn’t have a roommate, I’d brew a fresh cuppa Earl Grey and listen to music, either classical or Irish, while concentrating. Either way, I’d often lose myself in the lines and shades, always trying to drill down into the deep darks and very light greys while trying not to miss an excuse to highlight negative space,”

The mission of the Charles and Elizabeth Bisignano Art Gallery is: to serve University of Dubuque students, faculty, staff, and the surrounding community by bringing diverse exhibit to campus; to support the mission of UD by connecting visual arts to other disciplines via educational programming and collaborations; and to promote UD to the tri-state area and beyond by welcoming the public to attend (in person and virtually) the exhibits. The Bisignano Art Gallery is the programming arm and primary resource for the Digital Art and Design Department. The gallery features at least 10 original, in-house curated exhibitions per year. It also serves as the primary display space for students and faculty on campus, providing opportunities through juried student shows, Senior Thesis exhibitions, and faculty shows.

A reception for Bagatelle: Recent Drawings by Alan Garfield will be held in the University of Dubuque's Bisignano Art Gallery on October 21 from 6:30 to 8 p.m., and takes place in conjunction with that evening's Heritage Center concert event The Music of Billy Joel and Elton John with Michael Cavanaugh – Homecoming at UD. The exhibit itself will be on display through October 27, with regular gallery hours noon to 5 p.m. on Monday through Friday. Admission is free, and more information is available by calling (563)589-3267 and visiting DArt.dbq.edu/gallery.