As students enter the Music and Speech Center, their eyes may be drawn to the new pieces of art that flow and dance across the main lobby. “Light which can be heard,” colorful life–size sculptures in the new Roe Green Center by Olga Ziemska, were installed Friday to adorn the new entrance.

“I knew I was going to have dancer silhouettes,” Ziemska said. “I knew I would have students to interact with and the basic idea already held all of these things, so I immediately wanted to involve the community.”

Ziemska is an award-winning Cleveland-based artist. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Columbus College of Art and Design in 2000.

Junior theater major Aungelique Scott attended the drawing session for the sculptures during the spring semester. She said student actors and dancers who participated in the session got a chance for Ziemska and other students to draw their different forms.

“They drew the different shapes that students did, whatever shape you wanted to do,” Scott said. “She put different body shapes together depending on the flow.”

Ziemska said the drawing sessions were a way to involve the students and to become an inspiration for the sculptures. She added that in order to make the work flow better, she had to create an “everyman” type figure.

“I didn’t anticipate how unique everybody’s silhouette would end up being,” Ziemska said. “It was changing the look and feel of the whole piece. So, what I chose to do was bring in more photos of those who went through the process with me.”

The 14 sculptures are acrylic, made to be very durable. On each silhouette are acrylic hemispheres that contain images of students, alumni and faculty who were a part of music, dance and theater events.

“I absolutely love how she represented the beauty of collaboration with art,” Scott said. “Within each sculpture, there were little pictures. To me, that told a story of that particular individual and speaks to a variety of different art forms.”

Ziemska and her crew installed 13 of the 14 sculptures in five hours Friday and finished up Monday.

“I’ve loved installing and witnessing the faces of students seeing the work for the first time,” Ziemska said. “I haven’t received a reaction like that.”

Check out http://www.olgaziemska.com for more information on Olga Ziemska’s art.

Contact Shauna Carter at [email protected].