By Ellie Norman ’25
Social encounters and the objects that mediate interactions shape our world.
That thought-provoking observation introduces Social Objects, an exhibition featuring the artwork of five Wofford faculty members and a former colleague. The display runs Aug. 30 through Sept. 20 at the Goodyear Arts gallery in Charlotte, N.C.
“One thing that connects all of our work is a shared interest in social processes,” says Michael Webster, associate professor of studio art at Wofford. “In other words, everyone’s work is based off of how we engage with other people through the use of objects and how objects can act as mediators between interactions.”
An open call for artists to submit exhibition proposals set the Wofford team in motion. Goodyear Arts — an artist-led nonprofit residency and events program — took notice of the unique theme and the way its seemingly disparate elements are unified.
Webster is the exhibit’s curator and one of its six artists. He’s joined by Wofford colleagues Jessica Scott-Felder, associate professor of studio art; Rebecca Forstater, assistant professor of studio art; Oscar Soto, studio arts manager; and Diana Farfán, ceramics instructor. Former Wofford faculty member Masha Vlasova, now assistant professor of film and media at Emory University in Atlanta, also is on the team.
They relied on networks, exchange and performance to create and connect the elements. For example, Forstater creates work about how digital images and objects become part of the social media landscape, Soto creates furniture that asks people to engage with one another, and Farfán is creating figurative ceramic sculptures that are infused with plastic trash. Vlasova is organizing a presentation of short films about the different artists’ work.
Webster encourages current students and alumni to join him and his team for this unique creative experience.