“Art is what you feel when you look at it”
That was the sentiment of local artist Fernando Lozano at a reception held Friday at his current exhibit called “Portrait of a Coal Miner”
The show opened this month at the Shircliff Galley of Art on Harrison and 2nd in Vincennes in the Shircliff Humanities Building on the VU campus.
Lozano says it took him about three years to complete all of the art in the exhibit which was inspired by the coal mining industry and it’s workers whom he says have been treated unfairly throughout the decades.
Lozano says before moving to Vincennes he lived in Edwardsport near the Duke Energy Power Plant and was awakened each morning by coal trucks.
That prompted him to research the industry and it’s history.
It’s a history that some young people who have been viewing his creations have questions about.
Several of his works show canaries in the pictures and Lozano says the younger generation has no idea that the birds were utilized in coal mining for about 90 years as a tool to detect carbon monoxide.
The birds breathe faster than humans and if they became sick or unconscious, then the miner knew to leave the area immediately because the poisonous gas was present.
Lozano says his paintings are meant to honor the men and the children who were part of the industrial revolution in the US.
They are also meant as a seed for thought that other sources of energy besides coal need to be explored and utilized in order to preserve and save the environment.
The exhibit will be available for viewing through February 10th.
The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 to 6pm and by appointment.
There is no admission fee to visit the gallery.
