Professor Jenny Hagar says that her work is not surrealism:“surrealism has a specific subject matter.” The artist has not labeled her work yet but said that “it comes out of being a little more landscape oriented but still a non-representational kind of abstract.”

Her art is definitely abstract. She told me that in '“Hither” (right) that there were elements that looked like the iconic remains from the World Trade Center Twin Towers that was left standing after they collapsed.'

With this insight, one possible interpretation is that the green vertical lines are symbolic of the twisted steel that stood in the aftermath of the terrorist attack on 9-11. The horizontal blue lines represent the collapsing floors of the building as they fell upon one another. This was called the pancaking effect by the government's explanation of why the building failed to withstand the impact of the jets. The whitish and red lines below the horizontal blue lines are the streets of New York, Hudson Bay, or the world outside of the site, and the rippling effect.

The liberal use of red could be a reference to the fires that followed. It also could represent the anger, frustration and angst felt by the surviving relatives, American citizens, and the rest of the caring world because of the 3000 who lost their lives. It is also the blood spilled at the site, and since, from the resulting wars. Finally, the circle or ball represents a changed world. The title ties it all together: Merriam-Webster dictionary defines hither as "to this place."

She said that she tries to "present a situation or an environment where the viewer can recognize elements, but not recognize 'it' itself. It is the height of ambiguity. I am trying to inject this very constructed element into it which is the tape line – something that is flat instead of something that is perceptible while playing with painting tropes."

Conversely, Professor Hagar also said that there is a strong undertone in all her work: science fiction. She and her husband jokingly labeled this series of work as “Paintings for a Red Planet” as a result of her love of science fiction and the influence it has on her art. The best aspect of Professor Hagar's work is that abstract art can be interpreted in so many ways. “Hither” would lead to a completely different interpretation if it represented a scene from a sci-fi movie or book.

When she is not creating art, and being a mom, Professor Hagar teaches art at SMC. She will be teaching ART 20A, Drawing I which is an introductory level drawing class this spring semester.

If you are an aspiring artist, this would be a great class to learn the foundations upon which a career in art is built. For the rest of us who can't draw a straight line, it's just beautiful art that will ignite your imagination as you find its meaning for yourself.