Gillespie centennial to celebrate legacy of former RU distinguished professor

Heather Bell

RADFORD – The late Dorothy Gillespie has left an indelible mark on Radford University.

Her legacy of teaching and of art can be seen all over campus, where she taught as a Distinguished Professor of Art and where several of her pieces are part of the university’s permanent collection. The university is gearing up for an opening reception to celebrate Gillespie’s contribution to the art world.

The Radford University Art Museum will hold an opening reception for the Dorothy Gillespie Centennial Exhibition on Saturday, Sept. 21 at 11 a.m.

“The retrospective celebrates the 100th anniversary of the late artist by featuring works from the Radford University Art Museum’s permanent collection,” states information released about the event. “The exhibit will pay homage to the variety of styles and media in which Gillespie worked during her lifetime of artistic achievements.”

Gary Israel, Gillespie’s son and President of the Dorothy Gillespie Foundation, is planning to attend the opening ceremony. His “knowledge of his mother’s works will offer a special treat for guests wanting to learn more about the artist.”

“My mother’s connection to Radford University began in the 1960s when she loaned one of her pieces to the institute,” said Israel. “Over the years she continued to donate art to the University, and she was instrumental in procuring gifts from other artists for an ever-growing University collection. Today her paintings and sculptures are featured throughout campus.”

Gillespie was born in 1920 in Roanoke and by the time she was in her 20’s “rose to fame in New York City when she began to blaze a path as a prominent abstract expressionist,” according to biographical information. “Her works in painting, sculpture and mixed media made her a world-famous artist during an era when opportunities for women artists were extremely limited. “

Gillespie  had a deep regard for Radford University, where not only taught as a distinguished professor of art, but was also responsible for starting the art museum’s permanent collection by “acquiring a variety of important works for the museum, including 250 pieces from the estate of prominent New York art dealer, Betty Parsons. Gillespie was also responsible for the museum’s acquisition of 281 works by noted American artist Adolf Dehn. She continued to add to the collection well into the 21^st century.”

RU Art Museum Director Steve Arbury says Gillespie’s work has brought happiness to those who view it.

“Dorothy Gillespie’s magical art has brought joy to many thousands over the years and it continues to do so,” said Arbury. “The Radford University Art Museum is fortunate to house the largest public collection of her work.”

In a memorial writing after Gillespie’s death in 2012, Radford University noted “Gillespie knew she wanted to be an artist from the age of five, but her parents wanted her to attend Radford University and become a schoolteache.. Her parents finally relented after the family preacher visited one day. When Gillespie told him that she would be attending art school, he replied,“Well, you have a God-given talent.”

Gillespie’s experimented with many styles of art, but it is her abstract expressionist works that gained her the most fame over the years.

“Gillespie created numerous site-specific installations across the United States and beyond, with her most famous being an installation at the Rockefeller Center in New York City in 2003,”according to Jason Hutchens of Radford University. “And while she pioneered work in abstract expressionism, she is perhaps best known for her large-scale metal sculptures featuring colorful arrangements of metal strips that curl and wind into bursts of bright colors and wiggly, abstract shapes.”

The Dorothy Gillespie Centennial Exhibition will run from Sept. 21 through Dec. 6, 2019 at the Radford University Art Museum at the Covington Center. Admission to both the opening reception and the exhibit are free.