School of Art alumna Rebecca Brantley curated an exhibition that features the work by the former head of the sculpture Area Jim Buonaccorsi, among others. The exhibition, Gloria Victis: Three Artists Respond to War, is on view now through September 15, 2017 at the Piedmont College Mason-Scharfenstein Museum of Art in Demorest, Georgia. It includes work by painter Temme Barkin-Leeds of Atlanta, Georgia, and ceramic artist Richard Notkin of Vaughn, Washington, in addition to work by Buonaccorsi.

The Mason-Scharfenstein Museum of Art is the home for art donated to Piedmont College by Dr. Bill Mason, a member of the Class of 1957, and Bob Scharfenstein, both of Birmingham, Alabama. Rotating exhibitions are presented throughout the year. Regarding Gloria Victis, Brantley says: “The artists share an interest in art as a vehicle for social commentary.” A panel discussion with the artists, led by Lizzie Zucker Saltz, founder of the Athens Institute for Contemporary Art (ATHICA), will be held at the museum at 4 pm on August 15, 2017. A reception follows from 5 to 7 pm.

Buonaccorsi is an Associate Professor Emeritus in the School of Art at the University of Georgia, where he taught from 1993 to 2015. He works in many different media, although he is perhaps best known for large-scale metal sculptures. As is highlighted by the exhibition, Buonaccorsi often takes war as his subject, asking his viewers to contemplate moral, philosophical, and political issues. He received a BA degree from Rhode Island College in 1982 before earning his MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1984. He lives in Farmington, Georgia.

Brantley is the director of the Mason-Scharfenstein Museum of Art at Piedmont College, where she also teaches courses in art history and criticism. She received an MA in Art History with distinction from the University of Georgia in 2009. Prior to her position at Piedmont College, Brantley taught for the University of Georgia as well as the University of North Georgia and Oglethorpe University. Brantley is the former president of the Board of Directors at ATHICA, where she continues to curate and volunteer as Chair of Exhibitions and Programming.