Page 45 - TheGoldBug1970-71

PAGES NOVEMBER 16, 1970 THE GOLD' BUG DOUBLE TALK The case of the missing divot By Chris Bothe recognized it as a person I had seen earlier in the and appeared to be leaving. At this point, I noted the resting place of the four Last Saturday evening, I was walking back day, silting on the Chapel steps, and whom J had campus, searching for a vantage point from which I passed off as someone's boy-from-back-home. The chromium legs and two triangular trusses and saw might best observe the final rays of the departing person stood about four feet high. weighed about 250 that they had dug holes in the earth, similar to those sun and com template upon the events of the pounds. had blue eyes. blond hair and a green left b?, a novice golfer. Immediately, my civic proceeding day. However, my back campus jaunt complexion. The only abnormality I had noticed consciousness called, I rushed from my bushes to turned out to be a special confrontation. was a pair of silver antennae projecting about three the lump before it had a chanceto take off, and As I was surmounting the crest of a small hill, I feet from the back of his head. but in this day of long proceeded to bang on its sides, demanding an noticed a peculiarly shaped object on the seventh hair and extravagant clothing, the antennae really audience with its occupant. green. My curiosity aroused, I approached the area made no Impression upon ~~ The whirring subsided, and presently the opening in true R.O.T,C. fashion, my visage shielded by a appeared and the little man emerged. I pointed to small grouping of trees and shrubs. From this the marks his machine had made, "Do you see situation, Iwas able to discern the object as being a those?" lump of metal, about the size of a 1970 V.W, fast- "Uh. yes," he replied. back. supported by four chromium legs and two "Do you intend to leave them there'?" triangular trusses. The sides of the metal lump ~ "Well. uh. 1 suppose 1 was going to." were spotted arbitrarily with multi-colored lights "Didn't you read the Club House rules?" which blinked at random. "No, not really." At first, 1 thought this might be an escaped light Immediately, 1 pulled out my revised edition of machine from a local head shop, and I decided to go the College' Handbook, turned to page 157, paragraph eight, and read, " ...'and all divots shall see if I could locate a price on it, which if low enough, I would gladly pay for such an obtrusive The person passed by my clump of bushes and be replaced.' I'm sorry, but if you don't comply specimen of psychedelia. But as I was about to stood directly in front of the metallic lump, nodded with the rutes. I will be forced to report you to the leave my hiding place, I noticed a figure coming his head three times and an opening appeared in the administration and your back campus privileges from the direction of the grille, headed directly for side of.the lump. The man climbed in, and then the will be revoked." the mystery lump. opening vanished with as much ease as it had ap- 'I'm sorry." he replied. "I wasn't aware of that As the figure grew closer to my position, I- peared. They the lump began to shudder and whirl rule." "I~norance_is no excuse." 1 said emphatically, echoing the timeless restrain of worldly justice. "Well, I'm sure the whole matter can be easily Gestalt: A quest for form rectifi_ed. J~st a second please." With that, he crept back into his lump. came out again with a gadget about the size of a transistor radio. "What's that," I demanded. wishing to avoid any gesture stmnar to that of the artist treating the hanky-panky. ByMaryRutledge forms. Which in turn stimulates a naturally con- ':A divot replacer." At which point, he aimed at "All the samev-wrong, look again. "Hey, no scious (we look) necessarily unconscious (we the scarred earth. twitched his'ear lobe three times, color't-Iook, what is color? "A dissection of search) gesture of appraisal. So Cubbison and instantly, the divots were back in place. "Well something." Yes, in a way. "Are these land- redefines essential elements such as color, space there you go. may I leave now?" scapes?" Where is the recognizable? Where can the and form and for this series of painting, that is "Yes. I'm sorry to have had to detain you, but we eye stop, relax, and claim "That is a " and must observe the rules, they're only for our own what is it? - enough good." Presently Mr. Cubbison is assistant professor of A "landscape" of Ron Cubbison is in a moment, art at Towson State College and has exhibited his "Yes, so I've heard." . an artistic gesture performed in canvas and oils. H work in numerous places in the area. In the present Upon saying that, the lillie man, the lump, the is faily common to see an artist's personal search in ,exhibition in the art building, gallery one, most of four chromium legs and two triangular trusses a painting today, but unfortunately paintings are the works are for sale and will be displayed until dematerialized before my eyes, but at this point, I often approached with the artist's intent in mind. November 20. The hours are iO A.M. to 4 P.M wasn't in any state to defend the laws of the science Not that this is generally wrong. But in the case of weekdays, and incidentally, it's free. building. these works it would be a sad error to waste effort contemplating what the artist had been thinking of. His personal gesture is plainly exhibited on the canvas. When asked if he saw these landscapes in his mind befor-e painting them, Cubbison replied, Letters to the editor "If I had, there would have been no need to paint them." The point is that the painting itself is a gesture, a search. Toward what end? Cubbison Dear Editor, explained, "I wanted to create forms." He was Continued from Page4 This year marks the end of a-very old tradition at through with "picture making" early in his life-art WMC.This year JGC died. This organization, one of In his work, Cubbison is not concerned with To the Editor: the oldest on the Hill, started back in 1894in one of representation; rather, he confronts art itself as a I would like to react to the editorial in the last the tower rooms of old Main. Its purpose was to gesture, and the process and results are evident in issue of the Goldbug which dealt with the crumbling "further the dignity of the senior women." "Ivory Tower" of WMC, Many of the things you the oil on the canvas. The landscapes are a nudity Even with this goal, the uhusual ritual and of space which becomes the canvas and form. - The identify are valid and I especially appreciate your initiation lead to problems with the faculty and final answer or resolution to any artistic search recognition of a few of the programs which involve other students. In 1924the Gold Bug criticised the should be in the last of a series; so, in a truly students and faculty in the community. society because "Pledged girls are placed in an vigorous search, the paintings in the series might But I think it is important to evaluate faculty extremely ridiculous position before the eyes of the very well resemble each other superficially but can concern for the needs of the world in which we live college." It further stated that the initiation clothes never be the same- each gesture having' been on a broader scale than the small contribution to were "costumes which are nothing other than performed in a different time under complex and the Coon Branch Mountain School. While innovation degrading to womanhood." By October of that in our established social institutions is valuable, the varying circumstances. year, the men students had "threatened to storm ultimate effectiveness of a small locally controlled JGC by force" unless they curbed their "unladylike Why the vegatative forms? Living in the country school outside the governmental establishment is behavior." _ on a small farm in New Windsor, Cubbison is close certainly a concept open to debate and wide dif- Opposition became so strong that JGC apparently to a nature he loves and experiences. He is con- ference of opinion. It might also be pointed out that disappearedor at least went underground. It came tinually searching for new forms in his surroun- financial contributions to the needy have back to lifein 1938.In 1M3they decided to hide JGC sometimes been called the great American "cop- dings as take-off points for his landscapes. These _ out" of expecting money to substitute for personal under the outward appearance of a sorority taking are the natural expressions of what is personally the new name Iota Gamma Chi. The old ceremonies affecting the artist- at the time of painting. involvement. and objects inducting a large skull dating from the There is a vast, complex community that your early 1920's were kept. In fact they are still kept Why is there an absence of color? As with land- "Ivory Tower" professors inhabit when they are today. Old scrap books show early initiation ceremonies and pledge jobs. You have to see Dr. scape,_. Cubbison redefines "Color". His works not physically on the Hill. You might investigate Whitfield's Discourse on "Thugs, Doctors, and how they use their "off-duty" time rather than how employ a different kind of color, relying basically on Lawyers" signed and dated by him in 1940 to nuances of tone. Cubbison explained that he they spend their relatively small salaries. You believe itl ! Or some of the early pictures of JGC's wanted his forms to be more than the results of would find them engaged in a wide variety of former brothers-the Preachers. working in HOPE, in PTAs community activities: colors next to each other. In the exhibit preceding and political parties, participating in decision this one, Wasil Pallczuk achieved a vibrant nature- I know the Alumni of JGC will remember all the life through positioning of colors. Cubbison does making positions on boards of social welfare good times and I'm sure the girls who ended the essentially the opposite, stripping off color and agencies, providing leadership to youth programs group did all that could be done. The traditions of and local churches. As you would not want to be leaving space and form to find each other. The judged by only one aspect of your personality, I 1894 are probably too childlike for the '70's. We tones do resemble shadows just as the forms do would suggest that you evaluate the total life-styles were the first women's group to form, now we are resemble vegetative life. of your faculty not just their economic patterns. We the first to leave- maybe that has more meaning The eye is drawn into the landscape and for- also hope to be respected for "doing our own thing" than we know. bidden to rest and identify; in short it cannot find in what-ever ways we feel we can best contribute to Elaine Mentzer any particular starting point, or origin, in the work. growth and change in our society. Mary Ellen Elwell Class of 1969 The viewer then, essentially performs a search-in