Penn State students and museum-goers alike have one last chance this weekend to experience the works of early 20th century artist John Covert.

The exhibition at the Palmer Museum of Art, John Covert Rediscovered, is the first major presentation of the artist's work since 1976 when they were displayed at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Smithsonian Institution's museum of modern and contemporary art, in Washington, D.C.

Covert (1882-1960) may be best known for his work in the late 1910s and early 1920s when he was an active member of the Arensberg circle, a group that was part of a short lived Dada art movement in New York.

"Dadaism thrived on inner jokes," said Leo Mazow, curator of American art at the museum.

Covert incorporated aspects of linguistic humor into his works, and nowhere are they more present than in his 1923 painting "Two of Ten Commandents." The title is miswritten on purpose, because the missing letter is actually in the painting itself.

The piece depicts two naked women sitting across from each other with their knees bent towards the sky and their legs crossing each other's. The missing "M" in the work's title is formed by the legs of the two bodies, thus completing the title.

However, it is unclear which of the commandments is supposed to be represented in the picture.

Along with humor, Covert appeared to stick with certain themes throughout his art such as, subliminally placed letters and an infatuation with pyramidal shapes.

His art continued to flow seemingly uninterrupted until 1923 when he left his New York studio and took up work as a salesman for the Pittsburgh-based Vesuvius Crucible Company.

Coincidentally, in 1923 he created a piece called "The Fugitive," which seemed convenient because Covert was leaving his old life and art career behind at the same time. However, Covert found ways to continue using his creativity at his new job.

While employed at Vesuvius, Covert's boss forced him to keep meticulous daybooks, which re-corded all of his travels, as well as all the money he spent.

On each page of these daybooks he would create tiny pieces of art. One trend that exists throughout the books is his clever use of the numbers and dates. On one day, Covert takes the number 22 at the top of the page and enlarges the bases of the numerals in order to make them look like swans.

Directly below this sketch is a more detailed drawing of two swans next to each other to form the number 22.

Several pages of these daybooks are on display throughout the museum, along with photographs that the artist took throughout his career.

The exhibition is open through April 20, after which it will travel to the Suzanne H. Arnold Art Gallery at Lebanon Valley College in Annville, Pa.