The Shaker Historical Museum is pleased to present two innovative exhibitions in the Lissauer Gallery this winter and spring. During the first week of March, Christopher Hoot’s brilliantly colored abstractions offer up a visceral experience for those who crave the richness of color forms at the end of a winter thaw. Next, wrap up spring with a minimalistic interpretation of “home” with Jen Adams’ A View of My Neighborhood.

Christopher Hoot

Christopher Hoot, professor of graphic design at the Mary Schiller Myers School of Art at the University of Akron, has successfully restructured and taught courses in graphic design and 2D design foundations, but has also found positive reception outside of the institution as a working designer with a variety of clients through his design business, HootDesign. These include Akron Art Museum, Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College, City of Canal Fulton, West Point Market, Oberlin College Performing Arts, Akron Civic Theatre, Design Management Inc., Midwest Art History Society, Applied Quality Methods, Glendale Cemetery, Visual Symphony, Children’s Ballet Theatre, Recycling Coordinators, Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum, Cleveland Center for Contemporary Art, Brouse McDowell, Savino Sorbet, Myers School of Art, The University of Akron Chapter of the AAUP, and Buckeye House Rabbit Society.

He has been involved in the publication design of books, catalogs, newsletters and annual reports; the environmental design of exhibitions, signage and didactic systems; and the corporate identity design of visual identities and graphic systems.

Christopher Hoot designed the exhibition John Heartfield vs Nazi Germany for the Akron Art Museum in 2008, and in 2010 designed the catalog and graphic system for their Pattern ID exhibition. His current research is in visual rhetoric, making connections between verbal and visual devices to enrich expression in graphic and visual communication design.

Jennifer Adams: A View of My Neighborhood

Jennifer Adams is a visual artist living and working in Shaker Heights. Raised in a farmhouse in Pennsylvania, as a young child she became fascinated with visual pattern in her surroundings. Wallpaper and flooring were great puzzles for detecting repeating patterns at home. Starting her career with a Bachelor of Science in textile design from Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science, Jennifer worked as a jacquard woven upholstery designer before earning an MFA in fiber from Cranbrook Academy of Art. Her work has primarily focused on 2D practices including drawing, printmaking and photography, as well as textile arts such as quilting and knitting. Repeated pattern is at the heart of her work, unifying a visual field, drawing the viewer’s attention to pattern and inspiring the viewer to notice patterns in their daily experiences.

The Shaker Historical Museum’s Lissauer Art Gallery at 16740 South Park Blvd in Shaker Heights (Shaker-Lee Road RTA GREEN LINE stop) features art from Northeast Ohio artists. This intimate gallery is designed to encourage new and emerging artists, promote an appreciation of art, and support local artists. We are delighted to bring the work of Christopher Hoot and Jennifer Adams to the Lissauer Gallery. Opening receptions are held the first Friday of every other month, and are free and open to the public. Regular admission $5.00; free for Shaker Historical Society or Ohio History Connection members.

CHRISTOPHER HOOT | MARCH 9–MAY 6

Reception (Admission Free) 6–8pm Friday, March 9

JEN ADAMS: A VIEW OF MY NEIGHBORHOOD | MAY 11–JULY 8

Reception (Admission Free) 6–8pm Friday, May 11

Lissauer Gallery at Shaker Historical Society

16740 South Park Boulevard

Shaker Heights, Ohio 44120

shakerhistoricalsociety.org