November 13, 2003

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Art and Art History will host New York-based digital artist John Simon Jr. as the juror for the 28th Juried Student Annual Exhibition at the UAB Visual Arts Gallery.

Simon, whose work has been featured at the Whitney Museum of American Art, will judge the annual exhibition. Simon also will present a lecture at 7 p.m. Monday, November 17, in the UAB Humanities Building, Room 105, 900 13th St. S. A potluck supper will precede the talk at 6 p.m. at the UAB Visual Arts Gallery on the first floor of the UAB Humanities Bldg. The lecture is free and open to the public. For information call 205-934-0815.

The Juried Student Annual Exhibition highlights the works of students enrolled in the UAB Department of Art and Art History. The works will be on display Nov. 21-Dec. 12. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday – Thursday; 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Friday; 1-5 p.m. Saturday. The gallery is closed on Sunday and public holidays.

Simon’s works explore the relationship between art and technology. Using seemingly simple approaches, Simon develops complex, changing works of art. His “Every Icon” project, which runs continuously, tries to find every possible combination of black and white squares in a grid. He also has used outdated computer components as wall-mounted art objects to run the “Every Icon” project. A comprehensive display of his works can be found on his Web site, www.numeral.com.