Fine arts school opens new exhibits

Hope School of Fine Arts hosts thesis exhibits\nSpecial exhibitions offering graduating MFA candidates an opportunity to showcase their works during three consecutive group shows began Wednesday and run through May 11 on the first floor of the Hope School of Fine Arts. The first group consists of James Lipovac (painting), Jessica Pignotti (painting) and Richard W. Saxton (sculpture). Group one displays its work until April 13.\nThere will be an opening reception Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. The reception will be held on the first floor's T. Solley Atrium.\nCloths from West Africa\nThis exhibit is featured in the Special Exhibitions Gallery. The strip-woven cloth known as kente, created by Asante and Ewe weavers in Ghana and Togo, has become not only the most readily recognizable African textile, but also a sign of cultural pride and identity for many African-Americans. This exhibition, drawn from Bloomington private collections, offers visitors a chance to explore a textile tradition in which color and pattern form a feast for the eyes. Two kente pattern names, "something extraordinary" and "my skill is exhausted," convey the beauty and complexity of this weaving.\nMax Beckmann portraits and late prints\nMax Beckmann (1884-1950), one of the most important German artists of the 20th century, spent the last years of his life in the United States, where he became friends with many American artists, art historians and collectors. The centerpiece of this exhibition is Beckmann's Hope Family \nPortrait of 1950, commissioned by former IUAM director Henry Radford Hope. Also on view are sketches for the portrait, and Beckmann's last print cycle, Day and Dream. The show explores Beckmann's ties to IU and relationships between the Hope painting and the graphic works. This exhibition is presented in memory of Sally Hope Davis (1913-2002), widow of Henry Hope, the museum's first director, and an important museum benefactor in her own right.\nThe exhibit began Wednesday and will run through May 11.