Alien life gains foothold at Meadows Museum of Art via multimedia exhibition
SHREVEPORT, LA — Bossier City mixed-media artist Steve Zihlavsky uses reclaimed scrap materials to conjure extraterrestrial creatures and landscapes in the Meadows Museum through October 5 in the exhibition entitled "The Court of King Skebal."
Transforming the space further are projected animations of Zihlavsky's artworks by Shreveport musician and filmmaker Michael Futreal. Colorful sculptures and paintings crawl, stalk, and sprawl to an otherworldly musical score created specifically for the show by Futreal.
A free public reception for the artists with drinks and hors d'oeuvres will take place Saturday, September 10, 5:30-7 p.m., featuring the live music of Twang Darkly.
A fixture on the local arts scene, Zihlavsky is a founder of Lab Rats Arts, an art collective born out of Zihlavsky's participation in the 2015 UNDISPUTED! art battle at Millennium Studios. Zihlavsky has been a creator of numerous public murals around the Shreveport-Bossier area, including "Respect the Swamp" at Captain Shreve High School.
"Art can be everywhere and made from nearly anything," says Zihlavsky, as he weaves recycled objects into a "mixed media dreamland." Keen to pass on his knowledge of working with reclaimed materials to the community, Zihlavsky serves as a mentor to students during ArtBreak and in the Bossier Parish Talented Arts Program. Musician Michael Futreal was thrilled at the opportunity to collaborate with Zihlavsky.
"Steve's psychedelic works were a perfect inspiration for a new batch of songs and animated films in my ongoing 'rural space music' project," says Futreal. "I really liked the idea of answering his use of recycled supplies with music played on the instruments I build from materials like gourds and reclaimed woods."
Futreal was awarded the Shreveport Regional Arts Council's Music Fellowship in 2015 and this year composed and performed music for "AS IS" by Nick Cave, utilizing members of his trio Twang Darkly in conjunction with other area musicians. In 2015, he served as official Artist-in-Residence at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Nevada, creating a suite of musical films showcasing the canyon's dramatic fault-thrust geography. This work stemmed from "Martian Archaeology," Futreal's 2014 Twang Darkly project inspired by a fascination with the Red Planet, which recast close-ups of Red Rock Canyon into animated visions of a "lost Mars," accompanied by a suite of instrumental music.
Both Zihlavsky and Futreal have been recently recognized by art critics as "Collectible Artists" as part of their participation in Shreveport Regional Arts Council's Juried Roster Artist program.
About the Meadows Museum of Art
The Meadows Museum of Art is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums and located on the campus of Centenary College of Louisiana at 2911 Centenary Boulevard in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Museum is free and open to the public Mondays from 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Tuesdays from 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Wednesdays from 9 a.m.- 6 p.m., Thursdays from 12-4 p.m., Fridays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Sundays from 12-4 p.m. For more information or to schedule fieldtrips, call the Museum at 318.869.5040 or click here.