An exhibit running through Feb. 25 at Louisville’s Pyro Gallery celebrates the influence
of nationally recognized artist Bob Lockhart, the founder of Bellarmine’s Art Department.
“La Crème de la Crème” (“Best of the Best”) features drawings by Lockhart along with
artwork in various media by 24 of his previous students at Bellarmine and elsewhere.
The majority of the artists are graduates of or have ties to Bellarmine, where Lockhart
taught art from 1974 until he retired in 2011.
“For 47 years I had the privilege of teaching in higher education,” Lockhart said. “In recent years I’ve been thinking of a way to honor some of the most creative of the more than 7,000 students I taught. It was a difficult task. I have selected 24 artists to honor with this show.”
The artists are:
Larry Beisler
Kayla Bischoff '14
Dave Caudill
Gail Cerlan
Fong Choo (Bellarmine Artist-in-Residence)
Jaime Corum '96
Fred DeFrenzi
William Duffy
Peter Golemboski '11
Nathan Hendrickson '12
Jason Kelty '98
Shohei Katayama '10
Teresa Koester '95
Rex Lagerstrom '77
Mike McCarthy '90
Darcy Meeker
Liz Price
Mike Ratterman '96
Dan Selter
Hubert Steinhauser
Karen Terhune '82
Loyola Walter '80
Ron Weis '69
Mike Zoeller
Lockhart personally selected the artists represented. “I was so proud to able to pay
tribute to them,” he said. “It was humbling for me to see the incredible talent in
this group.”
Lockhart, a graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago, works in two and three dimensions,
producing surreal drawings in ink, graphite, oil and pastel and sculptures in alabaster,
clay, bronze, marble and wood.
His sculptures appear in the permanent collections of the Whitney Museum of Art in
New York, the Art Institute, the Indianapolis Museum and the Speed Art Museum in Louisville,
as well as at the Louisville Zoo and in the homes of private collectors.
At Bellarmine, the campus quadrangle is home to his larger-than-life sculptures of
the Knight and of Bellarmine namesake St. Robert Bellarmine.
“Crème de la Crème” continues through Feb. 25. Gallery hours at Pyro, 1006 E. Washington
St., are noon to 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays.