On Wednesday, March 12, the 1st year Alfred MFA painting cohort visited the studio of Düsseldorf artist, Cornelius Quabeck. The next day, Thursday, March 13, Cornelius visited the Oberbilk studio of the Alfred painters, and we each had individual critiques with the visiting artist. Cornelius is a painter, printmaker, and musician. On dedicating oneself to a subject matter, Cornelius states, “Spend time with a subject or object, and new things get revealed.” Cornelius is currently working on a series of skulls. He states, “The skull is not arbitrary, it is about death” and “to work with the skull repeatedly is a way for me to process the concept of death.” As a greater philosophy of art making, Cornelius states, “learn from the experience of art making – to be more confident with what you do as you make the art.”

The next week, on Tuesday, March 18, the 1st year Alfred MFA painting cohort visited the studio of Düsseldorf artist, Paul Schwer. The next day, Wednesday, March 14, Paul visited the Alfred painters, and we each had individual critiques with the visiting artist. Paul is a painter and a sculptor, well-known for his morphed plexiglass works. 

Cornelius and Paul shared their own unique experience and path through the arts. Our exchange with these artists provided different and valuable feedback as we develop our work, fostering our voice.

📸 Max Heaton