{"id":225506,"date":"2025-01-28T09:35:22","date_gmt":"2025-01-28T14:35:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/?p=225506"},"modified":"2025-01-29T06:56:41","modified_gmt":"2025-01-29T11:56:41","slug":"montclair-state-university-galleries-presents-layo-brights-solo-exhibition-invasive-blooms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/2025\/01\/28\/montclair-state-university-galleries-presents-layo-brights-solo-exhibition-invasive-blooms\/","title":{"rendered":"精品成人福利在线 University Galleries Presents Layo Bright\u2019s Solo Exhibition \u201cInvasive Blooms\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/galleries\/\">精品成人福利在线 University Galleries<\/a> proudly announces \u201cInvasive Blooms,\u201d a solo exhibition by artist<a href=\"https:\/\/layobright.com\/\"> Layo Bright<\/a>, on view from February 1 to May 4, 2025, in the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/#:~:text=Displaying%203%20results.-,Alexander%20Kasser%20Theater,%2D%20Page,-Arts%2BCultural%20Programming\"> Alexander Kasser Theater<\/a> display cases. Bright explores themes of time, feminism, migration and the African diaspora. Her practice employs blown, fused and cast glass processes, along with textiles, wood and ceramics, to explore ideas about individual and community identity.<\/p>\n<p>The exhibition features recent and new works, including the debut of an hourglass sculpture symbolizing the passage of time and \u201cBloom Portraits,\u201d a collaborative project with the 精品成人福利在线 University community. These works combine cast face molds with individually crafted glass flowers, chosen for their symbolic connection to migration and cultural narratives.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Exhibition Highlights<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The exhibition features recent and new works, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Debut of Hourglass Sculpture \u2013 A new hourglass sculpture symbolizing the passage of time.<\/li>\n<li>The Debut of Bloom Portraits and Bloom Portrait Series \u2013 Bright\u2019s Bloom series honors resilience and identity, created through intricate glass portraits of women from her community. The Series features collaborative glass portraits of women from 精品成人福利在线 University\u2019s community, celebrating resilience, migration and cultural identity. These works pair cast face molds with individually crafted glass flowers, chosen for their symbolic connection to migration and cultural narratives. For Invasive Blooms, the artist invited Montclair students, faculty and staff to share their migration stories. These stories have been incorporated into the works, making each piece a deeply personal and community-centered creation.<\/li>\n<li>Gele Sculptures \u2013 Inspired by traditional West African head wraps worn by women, these works honor African and Black diasporic cultural narratives of adornment within African and Black diasporic traditions. Bright reimagines these headdresses, connecting the past to the present and celebrating the legacy of matrilineal empowerment.<\/li>\n<li>Ghana Must Go Bags \u2013 In a poignant nod to migration stories, Bright incorporates the bag pattern of these woven plastic bags, once associated with the mass expulsion of West African migrants from Nigeria in the 1980s, into her works. They are featured prominently in both the glass sculptures and in her abstract paintings Horizon Line 1 &amp; 2.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The artist\u2019s work is rooted in creating works that encourage reflection, dialogue and a sense of shared humanity. With the Invasive Blooms Series, Bright invites viewers to engage with the beauty and complexity of migration, heritage and the stories that shape us all.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>In the Artist\u2019s Own Words<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>\u201cGlass is a wonderful medium. It\u2019s fragile, yet resilient. In the Bloom series, I aim to capture the strength of women and their stories through this material, exploring migration, beauty and cycles of life. Collaborating with the 精品成人福利在线 University community has added a special layer, allowing the works to reflect personal experiences and voices in a way I\u2019ve never done before.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"responsive-image-holder wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mlt-responsive-image\" data-original-image=\"\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/01\/Face-Casts-4_BrightS2025.jpg\" src=\"\/responsive-media\/cache\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/01\/Face-Casts-4_BrightS2025.jpg.0.1x.generic.jpg\"\/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"responsive-image-holder wp-caption alignnone\">Artist Layo Bright takes a mold of junior pre-med Biology major Mabel Adeleye\u2019s face, which she used to create a glass portrait. Below: Bright shows senior Business Administration major Ayanna Fuller the plaster mold of her face. Both students\u2019 glass portraits will be featured in \u201cInvasive Blooms\u201d exhibition at University Galleries from February 1 to May 4. (Photos by Chris Cirone)<\/figure>\n<figure class=\"responsive-image-holder wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mlt-responsive-image\" data-original-image=\"\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/01\/Face-Casts-8_BrightS2025.jpg\" src=\"\/responsive-media\/cache\/newscenter\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/01\/Face-Casts-8_BrightS2025.jpg.0.1x.generic.jpg\"\/><\/figure>\n<h2><strong>About Layo Bright<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and based in Brooklyn, NY, Layo Bright holds an MFA from Parsons School of Design and has exhibited at prominent venues, including the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum (CT), Museum of Glass (WA), Smack Mellon (NY), Sean Kelly Gallery (NY), MICA\u2019s Meyerhoff Gallery (MD), as well as Smack Mellon (Brooklyn, NY) and Halsey Mckay Gallery, (East Hampton, NY). Bright also holds a law degree from Babcock University in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>The 精品成人福利在线 University Galleries exhibition is curated by Director Megan C. Austin.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Programs and Events<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Artist Reception<\/p>\n<p>Tuesday, February 4, 5 \u2013 7 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>Alexander Kasser Theater Lobby<\/p>\n<p>Meet artist Layo Bright at the opening of 精品成人福利在线 University Galleries\u2019 Spring 2025 exhibition.<\/p>\n<p>Remarks by the artist and Director Megan C. Austin, 6 p.m.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Art Forum<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Monday, February 10<\/p>\n<p>5:20 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>Calcia Hall 135<\/p>\n<p>Art Forum is a speaker series featuring artists, designers, art historians, curators and art critics from around the world presenting their work and ideas in an open forum, hosted by the Department of Art &amp; Design. Layo Bright will discuss her latest work in the exhibition Invasive Blooms.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Visit Us<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Hours: Monday \u2013 Friday: 12 \u2013 6 p.m.<\/p>\n<p>All exhibitions and programs are free and open to the public.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Website:<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/galleries\"> montclair.edu\/galleries<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Follow Us:<\/strong> Tag @montclairstategalleries and use <strong>#MontclairStateGalleries<\/strong> to join the conversation.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Support and Contact<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>This exhibition is made possible, in part, by funds from the McMullen Family Foundation, the College of the Arts, and private contributions.<\/p>\n<p>Media Contact<\/p>\n<p>E-mail: galleries@montclair.edu<\/p>\n<p>Phone: 973-655-3382<\/p>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/\/ Output tags as a list for Google Analytics custom dimension\nwindow.MSU_TagList = [\"University Galleries\"];\n<\/script>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Explore Themes of Migration, Feminism, and the African Diaspora in Montclair, NJ<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":396,"featured_media":225509,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,7,10],"tags":[568],"class_list":["post-225506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts","category-press-releases","category-university","tag-university-galleries"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/396"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225506"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225506\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":225535,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225506\/revisions\/225535"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/225509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/newscenter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}