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UH School of Art storms DiverseWorks with graduate work ranging from kineticsculpture to a micro comic convention

An illiustration from Ted Closson's Nighthawks at the Last Supper, A Comic andZine Convention in Miniature.
Rosine Kouamen,Yassin, 2012, photographic print.
Lisa Garrett, Urban Decay, 2012, neon sign.
M’kina Tapscott, Red Giant, 2012.
Steven Hook, Ideas, 2012,gouache on paper on canvas, 48 x 48 inches.

Judging from artist Natali Leduc's mysterious bicycle-powered sculpture at the center of DiverseWorks' main gallery, Saturday night's opening reception for the 34th UH School of Art Masters' Thesis Exhibition is gearing up to be quite the event with an impressive array of emerging artistic voices.

A sort of emerging artists' cotillion for the Houston art scene, the annual springtime exhibit is designed as a showcase for the University of Houston's latest crop of graduating MFA candidates who together offer a glimpse into the future of art in the city and beyond.

Held at DiverseWorks while the usual space at the Blaffer Art Museum finishes up its major renovation, this year's exhibition represents five departments within the School of Art, including the Interdisciplinary Practice and Emerging Forms (IPEF) program and its first graduating student, video and multimedia artist Chuck Ivy.

"Even through the outward forms of the work vary so much, there's a definite theme of collaboration and community engagement throughout the show," said exhibit curator Amy Powell from the Blaffer Art Museum.

"Even through the outward forms of the work vary so much, there's a definite theme of collaboration and community engagement throughout the show," curatoral fellow Amy Powell from UH's Blaffer Museum explained to CultureMap on a preview tour.

"One student, Ted Closson, is staging a mini comic convention with a group of illustrator friends while upcoming graduates Danilo Bojic and Sebastian Forray have commissioned additional artists to help build these large curated installations."

At the gallery's edge, Rosine Kouamen draws viewers into an engaging partitioned space reminiscent of a half-furnished apartment that explores the experiences of Houston’s African diaspora through a fusion of memory, cultural nostalgia and images of the city's first-generation immigrants. Fabric hangs from the wall featuring a pattern of product wrappers from long-extinct candies. A flatscreen television shows a video piece showing the artist preparing a large meal of traditional Cameroonian comfort food and then eating it by herself.

"You become aware of the differences between places when you leave one for the other," Kouamen explained, motioning to a set of images showing personal trinkets and ephemera from West Africa. "For example, little objects from home that were once so insignificant suddenly become so important. People end up holding onto these things to create a personal culture for themselves that makes sense in this new place."

Also on display will be canvases by Emily McGrew and Steven Hook, who also will include video work that relates to his paintings. Abi Semtner examines family history with obsessive arrangements of fabric and paper. M’Kina Tapscott’s experimental ceramic assemblages approach questions of race, class and identity. Lisa Garrett’s neon sign creations light up the gallery space on several prominent walls.

The 34th School of Art Masters Thesis Exhibition opens with a large reception at DiverseWorks on Saturday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The exhibit will be on view through May 12.

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Movie Review

Fun visuals can't save The Magic Faraway Tree's meager plot

Photo courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

Andrew Garfield, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Claire Foy, Phoenix Laroche, and Billie Gadson in The Magic Faraway Tree.

With kids and families always on the hunt for entertainment, it’s typically a safe bet for a movie studio to offer up something new, even if it is a film based on an old property. The Magic Faraway Tree, based on a series of books that started in the 1930s, is a very old property, one that its filmmakers have tried to liven up with a few stars, a lot of whimsy, and a boatload of CGI.

The Thompson family, led by stay-at-home dad Tim (Andrew Garfield) and breadwinner mom Polly (Claire Foy), are forced to move to a rundown country home when Polly gets laid off. The kids — Joe (Phoenix Laroche), Fran (Billie Gadson), and Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) — are used to the perks of city life like wifi and electricity, and each of them rebels in their own way to their new lot in life.

Fran, enticed by a fairy named Silky (Nicola Coughlan), is the first to venture out of the house, making her way to a magic tree that transports her to a world full of strange characters like Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning), and more. Her adventures there not only broaden the world she thought she knew, but may be the key to helping her ailing family.

Directed by Ben Gregor and written by Simon Farnaby (Paddington 2, Wonka), the film is a pleasant enough lark, but it fails to fully capture the imagination. The five-member family has a lot going on, from an initially-mute Fran to a domestic situation that raises more questions than it answers. The film tries to incorporate an anti-technology message through Tim’s hatred of a smart refrigerator (voiced by Judi Dench!) and the kids' addictions to devices, but it’s quickly shed in favor of other options.

Once Fran makes it to the Magic Faraway Tree, there’s a nice shift in the storytelling, but it’s unclear what the ultimate goal is. It’s a good idea to have Fran, the youngest of the children, convince her older, more cynical siblings about the virtues of the magic world, but the conflict in the real world doesn’t seem to rise to the level needed for the escape the tree provides.

There also seems to be a missing link in the storytelling for viewers to understand the importance of the fantastical characters. The visuals of seeing Moonface and his crescent moon-shaped hair, a man with a suit full of banging pots, and more are fun for a while, but not enough to carry the whole film. A last-minute revelation feels like it was something that should have been disclosed much earlier to help strengthen the emotions of the story.

A two-time Oscar nominee, Garfield is making his first foray into family movies (if you don’t count playing Spider-Man), and while he does a good job, he doesn’t make the best fit for the semi-goofy role. The same goes for the Emmy-winning Foy, who isn’t given much of anything to do. The movie puts the story on the shoulders of the three child actors, and while each of them acquit themselves well, none of them are so outstanding as to be noteworthy.

With nearly 90-year-old source material, The Magic Faraway Tree needed to be something truly special to stand out in the 21st century movie world. Unfortunately, it features a mostly forgettable story that features some fun visuals, a couple of cute kids, and not much else.

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The Magic Faraway Tree is now playing in theaters.

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