Mark Rospenda: Filter Feeder
October 13, 2023
GREENCASTLE, IN - Prepare to embark on an extraordinary artistic journey as the Richard E. Peeler Art Center at DePauw University proudly presents Filter Feeder, an immersive exhibition featuring the work of artist Mark Rospenda. Showcasing drawings and sculptures made of paper pulp—all created specifically for DePauw University—the exhibition will be on view from August 28 to December 8, 2023, at the Peeler Art Center’s University Gallery on the upper level.
Filter Feeder promises to captivate art enthusiasts with its diverse range of artworks. Visitors can step inside an impressive 28.5-foot-long structure crafted from paper pulp 2x4s. Adding to the spectacle is a remarkable 10 x 40 foot drawing of a hurricane, meticulously brought to life through hand-cut inlaid paper, graphite, and tape. These thought-provoking pieces represent the core of Rospenda’s concept for the exhibition as a reflection of the human experience of images.
The exhibition derives its title from the artist’s observation of the parallel between filter feeder organisms and our own lived experiences. Rospenda states, “We as humans do not ask to be immersed in images, and yet they are constantly washing through and over us. And those images, in turn, become a part of what we understand and believe.”
Rospenda continues, “However, it seems that with increasing frequency we see things that exist outside of the structural framework we have constructed to understand our experiences. Whether publicly shared or in private, these are the moments that make us tell others that what we saw ‘felt like a movie.’ Disassociated from what feels real, these outliers make us reevaluate our understanding of a sane and rational world—coming through like a hurricane, tearing down the structures of understanding that we’ve built to make sense of the senseless.”
Filter Feeder serves as a self-portrait of the artist. Through a poetic representation of knowledge and belief, Rospenda questions the resilience of our own understanding when faced with moments that have the potential to shake us to our core.
Mark Rospenda’s practice has been shaped by his meticulous nature and passion for exploring the intricate nature of human thought. His creative process involves physically cutting into, shredding, and converting his drawings into pulp, resulting in a tangible representation of memories lost, found, and transforming. His work has been exhibited at the Spartanburg Art Museum, DEMO Project, Herron Galleries, and many other locations nationally. As the winner of the Director’s Choice Award in the 2016 Art From the Heartland exhibition, he was granted a solo exhibition at the Indianapolis Art Center in 2019. His artwork is currently included in the White Columns Curated Artist Registry and he organized and oversaw more than 125 exhibitions while Curator at the South Bend Museum of Art from 2011–2022. Rospenda lives and works in South Bend, IN, where he is Adjunct Faculty in Fine Arts at Indiana University - South Bend.
For more information and to explore Mark Rospenda’s portfolio, please visit markrospenda.com.
Mark Rospenda: Filter Feeder
On view: August 28 – December 8, 2023
HOURS AND LOCATION
The galleries at the Richard E. Peeler Art Center are open Monday-Friday 10 am – 4 pm; Saturday 11 am – 5 pm; Sunday 1 pm – 5pm. The galleries are closed during University breaks and holidays. The exhibition is free.