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Three years ago, when Marquis Scholar James “Jeb” Madigan ’04 (Binghamton, N.Y.) arrived at Lafayette, he planned to study physics and philosophy and continue his oil-painting hobby. Then he took two studio art classes with Nicole Maynard, visiting part-time instructor of art, began working regularly in the College’s Williams Visual Arts Building, and changed his vision of his future.
This summer, Madigan, a double major in art and English, is working with Ed Kerns, Eugene H. Clapp ’36 Professor of Art, doing everything from helping to market ties and scarves designed by Kerns to making polyurethane casts of foot-long fish and suspending the resulting translucent, amber sculptures above a lighted mechanic’s pit.
“I’ve always been totally driven by art, but I never thought it was a practical goal,” Madigan says, explaining that Kerns and other art faculty have helped him realize that it’s possible to pursue a career as a studio artist — and to thrive in the process.
“I’d like to try my chances at being a working artist and see how that pans out,” he says. “There’s so much opportunity out there I’m learning the difference between selling myself and selling out.”
An internationally known abstract painter, Kerns has mounted more than 30 one-person shows and participated in more than 150 group exhibitions in the United States, France, Italy, Switzerland, and Mexico. His work is in numerous public and corporate collections, and has been reviewed in many journals and magazines.
Their collaboration is funded by Lafayette’s distinctive EXCEL Scholars program, in which students collaborate with faculty on research while earning a stipend. Lafayette is a national leader in undergraduate research. Many of the 180 students who participate in EXCEL each year go on to publish papers in scholarly journals and/or present their research at conferences.
Madigan, whose marketing work is related to Kerns’ recent Digital Imagery show at the Ahlum Gallery in Easton, also assisted Kerns in preparing some of the images and organizing the show. In addition, he works with art curators and dealers on projects involving the Visual Arts Building and its Grossman Gallery.
And the fish? They’re part of a collaboration between Kerns and Joe Biondo, the Visual Arts Building’s architect, which involves introducing natural imagery into architectural installations. Madigan describes his role as “director of collaboration.”
Kerns, who is preparing for a show at Lafayette this fall featuring the fish sculpture as well as the works of other prominent artists, says Madigan will help with that work as well.
“He’s coming along beautifully,” Kerns says. “He has wonderful people skills and very good mechanical skills. He’s a visual person, so he gets ideas pretty quickly. And his enthusiasm is just wonderful. He really gets behind a project.”
A series of oil paintings by Madigan will be exhibited in September at the Quadrant Book Mart & Coffeehouse, 20 North 3rd Street, just a few minutes from the foot of College Hill. The show will include 11 paintings, ranging from self-portraits to still life and figurative studies. Other exhibits are planned at two other venues.
Madigan spent the 2003 spring break as a research travel assistant to James Toia, director of the Williams Visual Arts Building’s community-based teaching program and Grossman Gallery. In that role, he helped develop and install a temporary sculpture in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains at Grass Valley, Calif.; helped collect, photograph, and analyze mushrooms that Toia uses in his artwork; and worked with gallery directors, artists, and environmental groups.
This summer, in addition to his EXCEL work, he’s proofreading a 350-page manuscript for Paul Cefalu, assistant professor of English.
Madigan’s other activities include serving as a teaching assistant for various art classes each semester since fall 2001, working as an English department assistant during the fall 2002 and spring 2003 semesters, and working as a legal and historical research assistant at Binghamton University and as a legal and marketing assistant at Levene, Gouldin & Thompson LLP in Binghamton, both during the summer of 2002.
On campus, he’s a member of the varsity golf team and intramural chess, football, softball, and basketball teams. He’s also a member and former vice president and scholarship chair of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.