The Missouri Bank’s Crossroads location, at 125 Southwest Boulevard, KCMO, will debut four new large-scale commissioned images by artists, Rodolfo Marron III and Sarah Hearn, as part of its ongoing “Artboards” series. Installed on the exterior, double-sided billboards rising above the bank, the “Artboards” are visible to the public all hours of the day, and will remain on view for three months. For more information about Missouri Bank’s “Artboards” series, please visit https://mobank.com/crossroads-artboards or the Missouri Bank “Artboards” section of our website.
Rodolfo Marron III, “Streetwalker Treasures”, to be displayed on the east-facing billboards
On the East-facing billboards, Rodolfo Marron III’s Streetwalker Treasures is a representation of small, delicate items Marron collected over the past few years. An avid walker, Marron discovers various plant life, dead insects, and other miscellaneous mementos—that when artistically manipulated, can exude a new level of vibrancy and importance.
For this billboard, Marron scanned and digitally manipulated the found objects, arranging them to reflect the opposing panel. He also included original drawings, featuring a floral wallpaper pattern painted with a mixture of natural materials, including mulberries and saffron ink—hallmark mediums of Marron’s work.
These small objects are now expanded to an exaggerated proportion. On such a large scale these minuscule offerings exude a vibrant elegance which would otherwise be overlooked.
Sarah Hearn, “Artificial Lichen Colony 08“ (left) “Artificial Lichen Colony 01” (right), to be displayed on the west-facing billboards
On the west-facing billboards, Sarah Hearn’s works, Artificial Lichen Colony 08 and Artificial Lichen Colony 01, call attention to unnoticed terrestrial life forms while realizing new artificial ones. Hearn said, “Lichen, serves as a form of visual white noise, that once noticed in nature, appears to be living everywhere. These unassuming marvels occupy an estimated 8% of our terrestrial world and are capable of growing on glass, brick, metal, rock, branches and the occasional animal.”
Artworks Artificial Lichen Colony 08 and Artificial Lichen Colony 01 incorporated photographs and drawings of lichen specimens Hearn collected, identified, studied, and donated to herbariums. Each composition was unplanned and grew spontaneously.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Kansas City native, Rodolfo Marron III’s work revolves around the natural world—all things found in nature. His work aims to show the fragility and intimacy of life, love, and nature by weaving new narratives through creation and installation. In his work, Marron utilizes a number of natural materials that can be found here in the Midwest—poke berries, mulberries, walnuts and elderberries. To derive pigment from plants offers a personal venture to understand and connect with nature by learning some of its medicinal uses, its folklore, and overall importance of ease and beauty around us. His illustrations often give viewers a glimpse into something very personal—reflecting his relationships with nature, family, religion, and various cultures in an effort to decipher some sort of spirituality for himself.
Sarah Hearn is an interdisciplinary visual artist and citizen scientist. Her artwork, rooted in drawing, photography, installation and participatory culture, explores the shifting boundaries of science and science fiction. She is interested in how we interact with and represent the natural word. Her current project, Invisible Landscapes, is the subject of a solo exhibition at the University of Notre Dame’s Riley Gallery. In addition to her artistic practice, Sarah is a co-director of PLUG Projects—an artist run curatorial collaborative committed to bringing fresh perspectives and conversations to Kansas City. A native of Oklahoma City, Sarah earned her BFA from Santa Fe College of Art & Design and her MFA from Rochester Institute of Technology.
For more information about the Artboards series, please see the full press release – March 2016 “Artboards”
