Stephen F. Austin State University

NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS - Stephen F. Austin State University students enrolled in advanced painting and writing classes will exhibit the results of a collaborative project, "A Portrait of the Artist as a Portrait," Tuesday, March 27, through Friday, March 30, in Rooms B141 and B143 of the SFA Art Building. san

The exhibition of written and visual works is a culmination of a month-long project in which Dr. Matthew Batt's writing students and Chad Erpelding's painting students exchanged works each had created.

The writing students then composed a written portrait of the artist based on the painting each had received, and the art students created a painting in response to the narrative portrait given to each of them.

The two classes will not see the paired works together until they are hung in the exhibition.

Erpelding and Batt, both first-year faculty members at SFA, met during faculty orientation in August and decided to bring their students together in a joint project.

"The exercise allows our students to better understand how a concept translates from the visual to the written word and vice-versa," said Erpelding.

The project's basic premise--that art inspires other artists--is widely accepted, explained Batt. "Musicians respond to plays, poets, to symphonies, sculptors to scripture."

In the professors' estimation, the project supports the premise.

Erpelding said his painting students have been very excited about the project, and Batt said his writing students "have had more ownership and investment in this project than any other I've seen them do. They don?t act like students; they act like artists. It's fantastic."

The two classes will be present for a public reception at the exhibition from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 28. Regular gallery hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information on the project or the exhibition, contact Erpelding at (936) 468-4248 or Batt at (936) 468-2413.