Veteran's Art Show 2018

The Visual Arts Department at Kankakee Community College is continuing the tradition of honoring a veteran artist by hosting an exhibition by Yvette M. Pino.

“Take a second look,” Pino says in her artist’s statement. “This is what I tell people when they view my work. The textures I create, those optical layers, are built with the intent to lure the eye to travel deeper within. As a result, one may be able to find deeper metaphorical meaning as well.

“I believe that a work of art lacks substance if it has not encountered a speed bump or two during its creation. The same philosophy applies to my life. That is why I firmly believe that my life experiences are relevant tools for my creative process. I combine personal experience with bouts into the fictional.”

The exhibit will be on display Nov. 7 to Dec. 7, 2018 in the Art Department Gallery, Room R103, at KCC. A reception at the gallery will be Thursday, Nov. 8 from 10-11 a.m. in conjunction with the KCC Veteran’s Appreciation Ceremony, which begins at 11 a.m. the same day. The veteran’s ceremony will be in KCC’s Harold and Jean Miner Memorial Library, lower level.

Pino was a cook with the 101st Airborne Division from 2002-06. She completed two deployments to Iraq, where she painted murals and was coined the unofficial “Division Artist.” In 2007, Pino joined the National Guard and served with the 1175th Military Police Battalion. She was activated in relief of the 2008 Missouri Floods.
Pino has a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Wisconsin, Madison (2011) and a Certificate in Museum Studies from Northwestern University (2018). She founded the Veteran Print Project in 2010, and has paired more than 100 veterans with artists to communicate and create prints based on the veteran’s story. Pino currently works for the Wisconsin Veteran’s Museum as the traveling art exhibit coordinator. She also serves on the Madison Arts Commission, and the board of the National Veteran Art Museum.

The art exhibit at KCC is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. and Saturdays 8 a.m. - 1 p.m.

KCC is located KCC is located south of downtown Kankakee off River Road, near U.S. 45-52, or take Interstate 57 to Exit 308 and follow the signs. Directions are online at kcc.edu/directions.

For more information about the exhibit, contact KCC Art Professor Chelise Slowik at cslowik@kcc.edu or 815-802-8717.