Kyle McKenzie presents his MFA Thesis Exhibition, Empty Walls,in the Fine Arts Center Gallery from April 20 – 30, 2009. This exhibition features a series of paintings that depict interiors from the artist’s childhood home, which was recently purchased compulsorily to allow for the extension of a street. After his parents vacated the house, McKenzie revisited the empty space, which he describes as a “shell of (my) former home,” and his paintings document his observations of the empty space.

“I have always been struck by the peculiar way in which light and shadow sculpt the visual world, and I was drawn to the newly abandoned house as a sort of laboratory to observe these situations… the naked simple architecture held a quiet enigma. Increasingly, closely held associations and personal memories flavored my perceptions. The resulting paintings are universal in their depiction of simple domestic spaces, but hold deeply personal reflections on the specific home.”

A reception for the artist will be held on Saturday, April 25 from 2:00 – 4:00 pm in the Gallery. For more information: kyle.mckenzie@yahoo.com.