This year The Fine Arts Center is pleased to welcome two new faculty members to its roster: Drawing and Graphics Instructor Ryan Roth and Voice Instructor Brittnee Siemon.
A Georgia native, Ryan Roth earned his BFA from Valdosta State University and received his MFA in Drawing and Painting at The University of Georgia. He went on to teach at The Ohio State University, Denison University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and The University of Georgia and (most recently) lived in New York City working as an artist and for the top antique framer in the nation, Eli Wilner and Company. The company's clients included the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian, the White House, Yale University, the New-York Historical Society, Christie's and Sotheby's, as well as many top collectors. Roth's own work blends his interest in the human figure with an increasing focus on the struggle between societal roles, especially those that relate to the relentless pursuit of business success (or lack thereof) as they intersect with individual perception of identity -- specifically a particularly masculine anxiety centering on career goals. Roth has participated in various exhibitions in Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and West Virginia and as far as Cortona, Italy, and France. Most recently he has shown his work in "Mars Seeks Answers" at Mulherin Pollard Projects in New York City. He was also a part of America for Sale, SEA (Social-Environmental Aesthetics) at Exit Art in New York City and Dumbo Art Center's Art Under the Bridge in Brooklyn, N.Y. He also received the Liquitex Artist Materials Excellence in Art Purchase Award.
This September, Roth will travel to Taihang Grand Canyon in Lanzhou, Henan Province, China, as part of a select group of artists chosen by the China International Culture and Artistic Center, the China National Academy of Painting, the US International Cultural Exchange Association and the United Nations Performing Arts Council to participate in the first Linzhou World Peace Art Exhibition on United Nations World Peace Day 2012. World Peace Day was established in 1981 by the United Nations General Assembly and occurs annually on Sept. 21. On this day the United Nations declares a global ceasefire and extends an invitation "to all nations and people to honor a cessation of hostilities for the duration of the day." This year marks the 30th anniversary of World Peace Day and, in commemoration, the China International Culture and Artistic Center and China National Academy of Painting are co-hosting a series of events and forums centering on the intersection of art and peace. The intent of the celebration is to "build an open and interactive environment for the gathering of worldwide artists to exploit the internal connection between art and peace [and] to promote a sustainable future of art and peace." The event will consist of a variety of forms including nature sketching, a peace forum and theatrical performances to promote the development of world peace, enhance national unity, promote international cultural communication, and ultimately contribute to international social harmony.
Voice Instructor Brittnee Siemon is an avid performer of concert, recital and opera. Originally from Springfield, Ohio, she holds degrees in voice performance and music therapy and carries Academic and Performance Distinction from Ohio University, the University of South Carolina and the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. In the United States and abroad, she has been affiliated with well-known ensembles at Boston's Old South Church, the Handel and Haydn Society and Boston Baroque. As a concert soloist in the Southeast, Dr. Siemon has appeared with the South Carolina Philharmonic, The Augusta Symphony and Choral Society, the Columbia Choral Society and the St. Augustine Music Festival. She is also the principle vocalist and co-founder of the Columbia Baroque Soloists, South Carolina's only Baroque ensemble performing with historic instruments and pitch. The ensemble debuted in 2007 and provides eight to 10 concerts per season, master classes, workshops and outreach programs.
Her recital accomplishments include premiers of early and modern works and a debut at Jordan Hall in Boston. She continues to collaborate and record regularly. In appearances with the Harvard Early Music Society, the Boston Globe hailed her Baroque operatic roles as, "poignantly sung ... florid, yet substantial." Her roles span from the interpretation of the Rameau and Monteverdi Orfeo to the title role in Vivaldi's Jepthe. Dr. Siemon has also given notable classical and contemporary operatic performances with the Spartanburg Repertory Company, Greenville Light Opera Works, Inspiration Point Fine Artist’s Colony and the Orlando Opera.
