Professor’s Work on Display

ONEONTA—A selection of works by Yolanda Sharpe, SUNY Oneonta professor of painting and drawing, is currently being featured in SUNY Oneonta’s Martin-Mullen and Project Space galleries in the “Start from ZERO” exhibition.

“‘Start from ZERO’ is a sweeping exhibition filling both the Martin-Mullen and Project Space galleries with an expansive overview of Yolanda Sharpe’s contemporary practice,” said SUNY Oneonta Gallery Director Sarah Simpson. “Sharpe is a painter who focuses on oil, encaustic and watercolor. Sharpe has a distinct style in each medium she uses, leaning into the different strengths of the materials. Still, there are many clear through lines within her practice, such as her focus on sinuous lines and shapes, vivid colors and organic materials.”

Sharpe received a Master of Fine Arts from Wayne State University and a BFA in Painting and Printmaking, as well as a BA in Art History, from Michigan State. Her art has been exhibited internationally. Sharpe was a Fulbright Scholar from 2010-2011, and she taught and exhibited in Russia’s Siberian city, Krasnoyarsk. She has received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Sharpe’s past work has examined the relationships between the physicality of paint, wood constructions and color structures of space. Some of her past encaustic paintings have captured Detroit’s beauty, decay and re-ruralization.

The exhibit will be on display in both galleries until December 16. Admission to the galleries and receptions is free and open to the public. Visitors can receive parking passes through the University Police Department.