Autistic Artist to be Featured at SBU

Alex Masket will let his art, his mother and others do the talking at the Oct. 14 opening of his solo exhibition at St. Bonaventure University’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.

Masket, 23, is severely autistic and functionally nonverbal, which leaves others to explain the motivation and meaning behind his intricately composed and colorful works of art.

The opening of the exhibition “Sticky Fingers: The Art of Alex Masket,” from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14, will include the showing of the award-winning film “Breaking Boundaries: The Art of Alex Masket.” The documentary chronicles the story of the artist and his creation of a deep and varied body of work despite a disability that inhibits “normal” human interaction.

There will also be a presentation by Dr. Renee Garrison, associate professor of education at St. Bonaventure, as well as a talk and question and answer session with Elaine Masket, Alex’s mother.

“Wherever we go there are questions about Alex’s artistic journey, his materials, how we’re managing what we’re managing,” said Elaine Masket. “People want to understand how Alex’s creative spirit has been able to surface.”

Alex was 8 years old when his parents took note of the intricate patterns he was making with Legos building blocks. His materials expanded to markers, duct tape, peel-and-stick numbers and letters, each medium intricately arranged to produce beautifully balanced works of art dominated by color and form.

Entirely self taught and unrestrained by the limitations of tradition, contemporary tastes or schools of thought, Masket continues to reveal his unique view of the world through his art. His work has been featured in a number of solo and group exhibitions, and Masket was featured in the May-June issue of Utne Reader, the digest of the alternative press, which has showcased the best in independent thought and cutting-edge culture for more than 25 years.

Among those planning to attend the opening at The Quick Center is Karen O’Dell, autism specialist for the Olean City School District and an organizer of an Olean-area autism awareness group. She is urging parents of autistic children to attend. “It’s very interesting, especially the fact that you’re dealing with a nonverbal person,” said O’Dell. “This is a way for him to express himself.”

Dr. Garrison said her talk will “address the notion of how we define ourselves as being a multi-dimensional process and we are not defined by one aspect of who we are, but more of a ‘total package’ approach; and how our definition of who we are is fluid and changes over time and in different situations. I think it's important that people appreciate Alex as an artist and that it might help if they take an introspective look at their own self-perceptions.”

A reception with food, refreshments and jazz will follow the presentations.

The event is open to the public, but those planning to attend are asked to indicate so by contacting Evelyn Sabina, curator of education at The Quick Center, at esabina@sbu.edu or at 375-2088.

The Quick Center galleries are open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Other exhibitions at The Quick Center of the Arts include:

• The 10th Anniversary Exhibition of the F. Donald Kenney Collection: Paintings and Works on Paper. This exhibition marks the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Quick Center’s F. Donald Kenney Museum and Art Study Wing, built by gifts from Kenney and his estate. The museum houses Kenney’s extensive art collection, which includes works of the European masters such as Renoir, Matisse, Cezanne and Picasso.

• African Odyssey III, a repeat installation of selected items from the African art collection on loan from the Museum of Anthropology at Wake Forest University.

• All Bonaventure Reads: A Special Exhibition. This exhibition examines segregation in the United States and is inspired by “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,” the best-selling book by Rebecca Skloot that was chosen as this year’s All Bonaventure Reads selection.

Pictured, one of the intricately composed works created by Alex Masket, exhibiting the artist’s uninhibited, bold use of color and his facility with unconventional media.