In Northern Light: Kegel and LaJeunesse 2014

Fall 2014

In Northern Light: The Expatriate Art of David Kegel and Paul LaJeunesse
September 14 - October 26, 2014

From September 14 to October 26, 2014 the McCutchan Art Center and Pace Galleries will be featuring the creative work of two American artists, photographer David Kegel and painter Paul LaJeunesse, both of whose art was inspired and affected by living in England and Iceland, respectively. This exhibition will open with a free public reception for the artists from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, September 14 in the McCutchan Art Center and Pace Galleries. At 2 p.m. each artist will give a brief gallery talk on his artworks in the exhibit. LaJeunesse was the spring 2014 USI Art department visiting artist, and Kegel is part of the fall 2014 Art department visiting artist series. He will present a free public slide lecture titled "Art Therapy and the Artist" at 6 p.m. on Monday, September 15 in Kleymeyer Hall in the Liberal Arts Center on the USI campus.

About the Artists

Paul LaJeunesse is a realist painter who earned his Master of Fine Arts in painting at Bowling Green State University and his Bachelor of Fine Arts in drawing from Missouri State University. He has taught at the university level in Missouri, Ohio, Oregon and most recently at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. His artwork has been featured in numerous exhibits in the U.S. and Japan. From September 2007 to January 2008 he was Artist in Residence at the Association of Icelandic Visual Artists in Reykjavik and at the Herhúsiô Artist Residency in Siglufjordur, Iceland. The paintings in this exhibit are the result of his time in Iceland.

David Kegel is an art therapist and photographer who has worked actively in both fields in the U.S. and in the U.K.  He was born in Evansville, Indiana, attended Bosse and Harrison High Schools and earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the John Herron Art Institute in Indianapolis. Kegel continued his education at the University of Louisville, earning a master's degree in expressive therapies and family therapy. He has worked in various mental health and correctional settings as a practicing mental health professional for 38 years, until January 2014.

David Kegel and his wife Alvera Kegel were recruited to work as social workers in the United Kingdom in 2005. It was there that his artistic interests were rekindled through the photographic medium. He became a member of the world's oldest photography association, the Leeds Photographic Society, and was granted membership into the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain in 2012. His street, fashion and street and portrait photography has been exhibited in the U.K. in invitational and competitive exhibitions. He and his wife returned to the United States in 2014. His exhibit of 31 photographs at the McCutchan Art Center and Pace Galleries is his first exhibit in the U. S.