Symbols of spring can be found in Carapace Explorations, an exhibit at the QCC Art Gallery, closing April 10.
Published: March 23, 2016
Carapace Explorations, an exhibit at the QCC Art Gallery, chronicles an 18-year journey of art and engagement, introducing the medium of paper structure, and features the design, color and beauty of the turtle. The art pieces are created by Dr. Tony Monahan, who has been an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health, Physical Education and Dance at Queensborough since 2011. He is also a dedicated artist who has been producing paper structures and paintings of turtles for nearly 20 years.
Dr. Monahan started working with acrylic paints on canvas and switched to working with fine papers, such as unryo, oil, and Jean Tetan: often used on the sets of Star Trek. Thousands of cut-out paper shapes contain elements of color, nature, science, mathematical sequencing, geometry, as well as representations of physics, astronomy, human anatomy, world languages, fantasy and folklore. Though the process is painstaking—it has taken 18 years to produce 50 pieces—the results are breathtaking.
His work has been displayed at The Helen Keller National Center in New York; University of California, Berkeley; Escola Rosa Azul in Brazil; the American Cancer Society and the United Nations Association in California, among other organizations.
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