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How does an artist capture war images that speak to viewers more vividly than video or photos of chaos, violence and confusion? Skip Rohde does it with quiet images: a street lined with destroyed buildings, a child playing soccer outside his shell-damaged apartment, a soldier’s visage as his marriage crumbles under the stresses of long separation and very different experiences. Rohde recently returned to campus to exhibit some of those images in the Joan Derryberry Art Gallery. “During two decades in the Navy, I found that the quiet things are just as important as the combat itself,” said Rohde, the mechanical engineer turned career artist. “And war is one of humanity’s most defining experiences.” During his military career, he was often deployed, including stints in the Far East, Persian Gulf, Central America, northern Europe, and Bosnia. His experiences as a peacekeeper in Bosnia, a leader at sea and as a person with strong emotions influence and color his work. |
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A Memphis native, Rohde earned a mechanical engineering degree from Tech in 1977 and entered the Navy as an officer that fall. Along the way, he earned an MBA from Marymount University. After a 22-year career as a naval officer, he received a BFA from University of North Carolina at Asheville. “I would not have made it as an artist when I was young at TTU,” he said. “You have to be strong willed, self-confident and be sure you have something to say and stick with it. “Being an artist is much tougher than being an engineer,” he said. “As an engineer, you can design something and it either works or doesn’t. When you create art, it may be a couple of years before you know it’s good.” Rohde says he enjoyed eavesdropping on a painting class critiquing his work in the gallery. And he was flattered that his work was accepted without anyone initially realizing he was a TTU alumnus. Rohde maintains a studio in Asheville’s historic River Arts District and teaches art classes in the College for Seniors at the University of North Carolina at Asheville. Additionally, he is the courtroom artist for WLOS-TV in Asheville. (Spring 2008) |
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