Art Showcases American Life at Gallery Exhibit

         For Patrick W. Costello, important papers and documents could be works of art.

         Using a form of art called engrossing, Costello could turn routine documents and resolutions into treasures. Engrossing, an American art form in the early twentieth century, combines calligraphy with illustrations to make documents that commemorate special occasions.

        The majority of the works on display in the exhibit "P.W Costello: Designer, Engrosser, Illustrator" are of people "who had in someway contributed something significant," said Hope Horn Gallery Director Darlene Miller-Lanning, Ph.D. "Combined with a portrait of that person or a scene of a business or an industry that they were connected with, it was a way of commemorating that person's life or their life in the community."

        People from across the country commissioned Costello for his engrossings. His work covers a wide variety of people and events from across the nation in the early twentieth century, giving it a strong sense of history.

        The exhibit will be on display, free of charge, at the Hope Horn Gallery in The University of Scranton's Hyland Hall from Oct. 19 to Nov. 20.

        The gallery lecture will take place on Nov. 6 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Brennan Hall, where Tom Costello, the artist's great-grandson and a 1973 graduate of The University of Scranton, will speak about the engrossings. Michael Sull, a master penman and one of the last people trained by the engrossers of Costello's time, will also speak at the lecture. Following the lecture, a reception will be held for the public in the Hope Horn Gallery from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

        The gallery is open Sunday through Friday, from noon to 4 p.m., and on Wednesdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. For additional information, contact the Hope Horn Gallery at 941-4214.