“Fabrication of Imagination,” on view at Arts League of Lowell through mid-September, works on several levels in presenting recent developments in the fiber and paper arts genre and shows how artists are attempting to balance the current political and social climate with their art. The show was juried by Karen Hampton, an assistant professor in 3D fine art at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. A conceptual artist whose works address issues of colorism and kinship within the African-American community, her art practice is the synthesis of memory, history, time and cloth. “The work was submitted and I viewed it without knowing who the artists were,” Hampton said; the show’s prospectus called for 3D fiber-based work, or work referencing fiber, either wall-hung (relief) or self-standing. “I was looking for quality of work and thoughtfulness.” Louise Abbott’s handwoven tapestry … [Read more...] about FABRICATION OF IMAGINATION: FIBER ARTISTS ADD TO LOWELL’S TEXTILE HISTORY
Exhibits
ART IN THE ORCHARD: A BIENNIAL SCULPTURE HARVEST AT PARK HILL
Alane Hartley and Russell Braen, owners of Park Hill Orchard in Easthampton, Massachusetts, harmoniously blend into a single vision — their commitment to land conservation, sustainable farming, culture and community. While September through October are peak months for visitors of all ages to come to the 127-acre pick-your-own orchard, there also is the added treat of seeing the Art in the Orchard biennial (AIO 2019), which continues through November 24. There is no admission fee to enjoy this exhibition. The orchard has lots of picnic tables throughout its property to sit, take a break, relax, eat and perhaps discuss the art around you with friends and family. The rolling orchard landscape has exquisite views of Mount Tom from its Pioneer Valley location, precursor to the Berkshires for those traveling from the east. The town’s large network of mills almost rivals the scale of the … [Read more...] about ART IN THE ORCHARD: A BIENNIAL SCULPTURE HARVEST AT PARK HILL
BETH MCLAUGHLIN & SUZANNE RAMLJAK: FULLER’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY IS PURE GOLD
Founded in 1969, the Fuller Craft Museum begins the celebration of its 50th year with the opening of “Striking Gold: Fuller at Fifty” on September 7, and its 50th Anniversary Gala that takes place on Saturday, October 19. The landmark exhibition aims to celebrate the museum’s rich past and provide a look at its future direction through the works of 57 artists for whom gold is central to their work. The exhibition was co-curated by Fuller Craft Museum Chief Curator Beth McLaughlin (BM) and Suzanne Ramljak (SR), an art historian, writer, curator and former editor of Metalsmith magazine. Artscope Magazine’s managing editor, Brian Goslow, shared questions with them on the exhibition and the museum’s anniversary. How was “Striking Gold” selected as the theme for “Fuller At Fifty?” BETH MCLAUGHLIN (BM): A few years back, we started discussing Fuller Craft’s upcoming 50th anniversary and … [Read more...] about BETH MCLAUGHLIN & SUZANNE RAMLJAK: FULLER’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY IS PURE GOLD
LOVE LETTERS: MILLER WHITE COVERS YOU IN LOVE
Susan Danton, owner of Miller White Fine Arts on Cape Cod, said the exhibit “Love Letters,” that she originated and curated, was inspired by an 1846 letter from Gustave Flaubert to his lover, Louise Colet: “I will cover you with love when next I see you, with caresses, with ecstasy. I want to gorge you with all the joys of the flesh, so that you faint and die.” If you are wondering if there is a further French connection, no, she isn’t a descendant of the French revolutionary Georges Jacques Danton. Her stockbroker father changed their surname to Danton. Danton has multiple raisons d’êtres for the exhibit, calling it “an evocative inquiry into physical love, from gender to sex to sexual orientation.” Motivated in part by a “sociopolitical agenda,” to wit, the Me Too Movement, “Love Letters” is also an antidote to the hate we are seeing in our nation and “a way to provoke a discussion … [Read more...] about LOVE LETTERS: MILLER WHITE COVERS YOU IN LOVE
The Bauhaus and Harvard at the Harvard Art Museums
If you’re curious about painting, architecture, sculpture, woodcuts, textiles or any of the allied arts, now is the time (or really past time!) to scurry to the Harvard Art Museums, head straight to Special Exhibitions on the third floor and … linger, seriously. It is, after all, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany, and Harvard has been celebrating already since February! And you? The important thing is not to blame yourself. Not that you don’t deserve it, but save it at least until the end of July when this celebration finally runs out of breath. And, if you’re still reading, don’t read every label, for goodness sake, or you’ll be there ’til the end of July, panting! Celebrate, if lately, with the rest of the party by realizing that if the Bauhaus knew anything, it knew, and knows still, the truth of that old saw: “One picture is worth a … [Read more...] about The Bauhaus and Harvard at the Harvard Art Museums
TASTEFUL CONFRONTATION IN THE NATIONAL OPEN JURIED EXHIBITION AT PROVIDENCE ART CLUB
On view now through July 19, this year’s National Open Juried Exhibition (NOJE) offers a satisfying view of contemporary voices ranging, as expected from Providence Art Club (PAC), from the traditional to the experimental. There is only one problem, which hopefully Michael Rose and this team will correct next year: the NOJE needs examples of new media including digital and video/film and installation within the mixed-media and new technology formats. This year’s presentation is slightly smaller in the number of works, more manageable, and is less aggressive concerning subject matter with overt political and cultural commentary. Unlike last year in which the feeling of political activism was obvious, this year, the works on view offer more subtle and elegant visual remarks about ongoing relevant social and cultural concerns. The work that marks the exhibition with the tone of tasteful … [Read more...] about TASTEFUL CONFRONTATION IN THE NATIONAL OPEN JURIED EXHIBITION AT PROVIDENCE ART CLUB