Jundt Art Museum Opens New Series of Summer Exhibits July 5 with O’Day Inaugural Installation

The inaugural exhibition, “Out of order/in-between,” is an installation by Spokane artist and art instructor Thomas O’Day. It opens July 5 and runs through Aug. 31 in the Jundt Galleries.

SPOKANE, Wash. – The Jundt Art Museum at Gonzaga University begins a new series of summer exhibitions titled “Close-In,” featuring works by regional artists. The inaugural exhibition, titled “Out of order/in-between,” is an installation by Spokane artist and art instructor Thomas O’Day. The exhibition opens July 5 and runs through Aug. 31 in the Jundt Galleries.

Since 1988, O’Day has created work that remains in a transitory state. Pieces and parts are used and reused in a progression, each time with added elements. His experience as a delivery driver and installer of art for Cookes Crating in Los Angeles, and as director of the Spokane Falls Community College Fine Arts Gallery has made him mindful of the spaces “in-between” the studio and the destination. The exhibition is inspired by the art world’s “backstage,” where creations are crated, packed, and wrapped. Employing a unique process that allows for chance and change, O’Day blurs the boundaries between the gallery and the studio.

O’Day has taught in the SFCC fine arts department since 1986, and served as gallery director since 1998. He holds a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Long Beach and a master’s degree from CSU, Northridge. He participated in the 2001 “Drawn to the Wall” exhibition at the Jundt and was guest lecturer for the event in 2004. O’Day is best known for his “art disposal service” (labeled as such in 1992). Much of the work featured in the “Out of order/in-between” installation has gone through a series of disposals, including burial, burnings, freezing or shredding. Over time, the remains of the destroyed artworks are gradually incorporated into new works and eventually have little in common with art as object. O’Day’s work is represented in collections throughout the Northwest and California.

A free public walk-through with the artist begins at 3 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 30, followed by a reception until 5 p.m. “Japanese Prints from the Collection,” showcasing the work of well-known 20^th and 21^st century Japanese printmakers, continues in the Arcade Gallery through July 31.

The museum’s exhibitions are free and open to the public from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. The museum is closed on Sundays and school holidays. For more information, please contact Karen Kaiser, interim director, at (509) 313-6613 or via e-mail.