The University of Alabama Department of Art and Art History is pleased to present Earthworks, the master of fine arts thesis exhibition of Patrick Hoban, April 16-30, 2019, at Harrison Galleries, 2315 University Boulevard, in downtown Tuscaloosa. The public is invited to a reception for the artist Friday, April 19, from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. 
Hoban expresses the relationship between the fragility of humans and nature through art work that suggests force, separation and compression of materials. He works in ceramic and incorporates found objects in his art. He writes, “The moment when a plant breaks the surface of concrete and continues to grow is a forceful moment with which I relate. Being rooted in Philadelphia exposed me to the extremes of the natural world and how they interact with the spaces of an inner city. Childhood spent on beaches and by rivers, observing, experiencing, collecting and documenting the extreme forces of nature has allowed me to connect my personal struggles to those of nature. There will always be barriers to deal with, but much like nature, I must find a way to survive.”
Patrick Hoban is a graduate student in ceramics with an assistantship teaching ceramics and 3D design. Hoban received the BFA in sculpture from Pennsylvania State University. Hoban’s cast bronze sculpture of a jon boat is part of the Literary Capital Bronze Sculpture Trail commissioned by the city of Monroeville, Ala., to be unveiled April 26, 2019. His work has appeared in the Tuscaloosa Monster Takeover project, the Alabama Clay Conference, and was selected for the Waterloo Arts 2018 Juried Exhibition in Cleveland, Ohio. His public art proposal for a sculptural bike rack to be installed near Government Plaza, was accepted by the city of Tuscaloosa. He was juried into the 19th Annual National K-12 Ceramic Exhibition in Kansas City, Mo. Hoban was the recipient of a full scholarship to ceramic summer class at Penn Valley School with the renowned artist, Chris Staley, and a recipient of the Emerging Artist Award at Malvern Preparatory School.
Image credit: Patrick Hoban, Placeholder (detail), ceramic and found rocks, 4′ x 9′ x 2″. Image courtesy of the artist.
This exhibition is in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in the Department of Art and Art History at The University of Alabama. For more information about the UA Department of Art and Art History and its programs, visit this link: https://art.ua.edu/academics/or contact the department at (205) 348-5967.
Harrison Galleries, LLC, is located at 2315 University Boulevard in downtown Tuscaloosa. Hours are Monday through Friday, 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m., by appointment, and First Fridays of the month, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. For more information call (205) 464-0054 or visit the website: http://www.firstfridaytuscaloosa.com/art-galleries/harrison-galleries-llc.