Ryan Scully featured in the CWU Observer
Thursday, October 20, 2011
http://www.cwuobserver.com/story/student-endows-naked-legacy
Student endows naked legacy
Thursday, October 20th, 2011
BY ZACH SMITH
Staff Reporter
What started out over ten years ago as a bunch of cyclists hanging out in the art building in their underwear is now one of the most talked about pieces of art on the Central Washington University campus.
The name of the painting is "Some Shaven" and hangs in the Recreation Center weight room. The painting is nearly 20 feet long by four feet tall. Oh yeah, and the subjects are the bare legs of a group of cyclists.
"It's become a little bit of a cult classic in the building," said Robert Ford, acting director for University Recreation. "It keeps people wondering. That's what's great about art, it makes you think a little bit."
Ryan Scully, a 2002 Central graduate, painted "Some Shaven" in 2001. The oil on canvas painting was done for an advanced painting class and it took Scully nearly six months to complete. A former cyclist himself, Scully said his goal for this painting was to get away from the differences between athletes of different sports and find a common ground between them.
"The legs are the core of sports," Scully said. "They are the common denominator behind it all... The scars, the tan lines show how we got there."
According to Scully, "Some Shaven" was not intended to be a public piece of art and he was admittedly surprised when the school wanted it. After the painting was donated it hung in the old Samuelson Union Building.
However, when the Student Union and Recreation Center (SURC) opened in 2006, "Some Shaven" found a new home hanging in the Recreation Center's weight room.
"It's more of an athletic piece," said associate director of student union operations Cherie Wilson. "So it made sense that's where it should go."
Although Scully did say the gym was a strange place for his painting to hang, he thought it was a good place for it because it was painted out of the love of the sport.
According to Ford, since the piece was moved to the Recreation Center, a common sentiment from students who see the painting is simply, "What's with the legs?" Confusion seems to be a common reaction from students.
"It's really weird that it's here," said Dylan Walker, senior marketing. "It makes no sense to be here."
Another typical reaction from students is the painting lacks diversity.
"I think it needs some women," said Sara Gundermann, senior nutrition. "I work out in there and I don't see any women's legs."
Scully admitted that he understands "Some Shaven" has the potential to confuse or even offend people who see it, but as he put it, "that's art."