U of M Art Students' Thesis Exhibition Set for Performance Network Gallery, Now thru 5/6

To celebrate the initial renovation of Performance Network's lobby, four University of Michigan School of Art and Design students will present a thesis exhibition titled "Sangfroid: the art of keeping cool" in the newly remodeled gallery space. The exhibition will run April 16-­May 6, 2015 with an opening reception tonight, April 16 from 5:30pm to 9pm. The gallery is open to the public from 11am to 5pm Tuesday­Friday. For information on productions and events at the Network or to donate, go to www.pntheatre.org or call the box office at 734­663­0681.

"Sangfroid: the art of keeping cool" is the culminating thesis show of seniors Will BeDell, Anya Klapischak, Joshua Kochis, and Grace Treado. This series of interdisciplinary experiments employs performance, video, painting, installation and print media, with explorations into the sensations of vulnerability and spirituality, the un/natural landscape and post­modern Americana. While each emerging artist's piece expresses their acute individuality, their co­habitation within the Performance Network creates a new class of art that amounts to more than the sum of it's parts. Colloquially translated as "excessive composure or coolness under great pressure," sangfroid is the art of balancing rigorous academic standards and deeply personal creative instincts.

"This is the second exhibition in the new gallery space, but the first that makes use of both the gallery and the rehearsal room," said John Manfredi, Executive Director of Performance Network. "It's been great having these kids in the building. They bring a good energy to the place and we're looking forward to the installation and having the exhibit here."

Will BeDell's work is an exploration of a/s/l. 21/Male/Michigan. The work is focused on the semi­abstraction of Americana and the surrounding landscape, inside and out.

Anya Klapischak is a theater­maker from New Jersey. She will not be moving to New York after graduation.

Joshua Alexander Kochis was born and raised in the small forests between suburban homes of Brighton, Michigan. His artistic process is rooted in found objects of the organic variety, especially in the form of small wooden pieces he finds on the ground. He calls these fragments "Subterraneans" and considers them some of his best friends. The resulting work is a record of this habitual and arguably one­sided relationship, taking the form of drawing, painting, printmaking, collage, and sculpture.

Grace Treado is graduating in the spring with a BFA from the School of Art & Design and a minor in Museum Studies. As part of a year­long interdisciplinary thesis project, Grace has translated her rare neurological condition into a video installation that combines recorded performances, experimental video, and abstract painting. In addition to being an honor student, she is a member of the student zine art collective TeneT because she is passionate about spreading her creative voice and the voice of other young artists to the greater Ann Arbor community. Her experience working in fine art galleries has influenced her interest in curation and exhibition design, which she will be pursuing in Detroit this fall.