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Artscope Magazine | November/December 2024

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November/December 2019

HEROIC ARTIFACTS: SCULPTOR JOHN MAGNAN BRINGS MARVEL TO LIFE

// Current Exhibits, Exhibits, Featured, November/December 2019, November/December 2019, Visual Arts

by Don Wilkinson

Like many others, sculptor John Magnan’s initial foray into the world of Marvel Comics was through the series of movies collectively known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). When he went to see 2011’s “Thor” because of a longstanding interest in Norse mythology, Magnan jokingly admits to developing a bit of a “man crush” on the film’s star, Chris Hemsworth. More importantly, he had a fascination with a particular object: Thor’s hammer. First, a little background: in August 1962, in “Journey into Mystery #83,” Marvel Comics introduced a superhero based on the thunder god of Norse myth. As reimagined by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the Mighty Thor was lame Dr. Donald Blake, who when he tapped his walking stick against the ground, was transformed into a muscle-bound, long blond-haired do-gooder. In the comics, Thor’s hammer is a fierce weapon of elemental power capable of drawing … [Read more...] about HEROIC ARTIFACTS: SCULPTOR JOHN MAGNAN BRINGS MARVEL TO LIFE

COMIC RELIEF: THE ART OF THE SUPERHERO AT ADDISON

// Current Exhibits, Exhibits, November/December 2019, November/December 2019, Visual Arts

by Ami Bennitt

The notion of what is iconically American may change over time, but two seemingly timeless American icons, actual superheroes made popular by decades at the top of popular culture in comic books, on television shows and feature films, are the leaders of the infamous Justice League — Superman and Wonder Woman. But the intriguing exhibition, “Men of Steel, Women of Wonder,” on view at Addison Gallery of American Art through January 5, invites us to consider and then reconsider these favorites through modern and varied lenses. Organized by the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas, the exhibition showcases 70-plus paintings, photographs, mixed media, interactive, film/video and 3D works by artists varying in age, race and country of origin. Superman was first seen in comics in 1938 as an alien who draws power from the sun. In addition to the highest strength, … [Read more...] about COMIC RELIEF: THE ART OF THE SUPERHERO AT ADDISON

PLANNED ADOLESCENCE: CONNECTING THE DOTS OF CHILDHOOD IN NEWPORT

// Exhibits, Featured, November/December 2019, November/December 2019, Visual Arts

by Suzanne Volmer

Exhibition titles are crafted to encapsulate evocative meaning as descriptors of content. Newport Art Museum’s appropriation of Bob Dylan’s song title of “Forever Young” is intended to maximize the sensory impact of a show about childhood and adolescence. “Forever Young: Representations of Childhood and Adolescence,” the museum’s current exhibition, is a massive survey across two buildings and shown in multiple gallery rooms. It is a comprehensive exploration perhaps with too much included, but the museum has a large board of trustees with diverse interests and the show can be seen in deference to that fact by relating a something-for-everyone strategy. A suggestion for audiences to rein in the exhibit visually is to start at the museum’s John N.A. Griswold House, then step outside for a break before continuing onward for the rest of the show next door in the museum’s Cushing/Morris … [Read more...] about PLANNED ADOLESCENCE: CONNECTING THE DOTS OF CHILDHOOD IN NEWPORT

CELEBRATED AT BIRTH: WORCESTER EXHIBITION EXPLORES THE ART OF MOTHERHOOD

// Current Exhibits, Current Issue, Featured, November/December 2019, November/December 2019

by Beth Neville

Anxiety, fear, joy and hope are all possible emotions women experience when anticipating the birth of a child. In the not too distant past, fear of dying was also mingled in mix and is still a possibility. The current “With Child: Otto Dix/Carmen Winant” exhibit at the Worcester Art Museum brings all these joys and fears into focus. Brilliantly researched by guest curator Marcia Lagerwey, the three-part exhibit is a must-see, with the possible exception of children and teens. A bonus exhibit, “Reflections on Pregnancy and Birth,” is alone worth the trip to WAM. Featuring superb paintings, prints and poetry by local artists, the subjects run the gamut from screaming babies to dreamy mothers-to-be floating in the sea under starry skies. All three exhibits are timely, bringing the Dix and Winant works to public attention at precisely the moment when the civic discussion of women’s body … [Read more...] about CELEBRATED AT BIRTH: WORCESTER EXHIBITION EXPLORES THE ART OF MOTHERHOOD

PORTRAIT PERFECT: A FACE TO FACE REVIEW IN NEW BRITAIN

// Current Issue, Exhibits, Featured, November/December 2019, November/December 2019, Visual Arts

by J. Fatima Martins

Artists. We know their work, but we don’t always know their faces. In “For America: Paintings from the National Academy of Design,” on view through January 20 at the New Britain Museum of American Art, over 90 paintings spanning from 1809 to the present featuring the artist’s face in self-portrait form or as portraits by other artists are presented with examples of their representative work, personalizing what the artist makes as art, with who they are as people. The exhibition was organized to highlight the National Academy of Design’s (NAD) expansive collection, and to remind audiences of the Academy’s fundamental mission and educational goals as a teaching and collecting institution that is a “forward-thinking” place to train artists in the best academic practices and promote and exhibit their work. What’s important is the historical fact that from 1839 to 1994, the NAD required … [Read more...] about PORTRAIT PERFECT: A FACE TO FACE REVIEW IN NEW BRITAIN

STAYING CONTEMPORARY: ARTIST PROGRAM MAINTAINS THE GARDNER’S HERITAGE

// Current Exhibits, Current Issue, Exhibits, Featured, November/December 2019, November/December 2019, Visual Arts

by Elizabeth Michelman

With a gala air, the Gardner Museum prepares its sparkling Renzo Piano wing for “In the Company of Artists: 25 Years of Artists-in- Residence.” Laura Owens’s giant gold-and-magenta banner winks with a smiley face on the museum’s façade: “ShowTime.” In the Hostetter Gallery, photographers complete their shots of newly installed works by the seven returning resident artists. Lee Mingwei, creator of the museum’s Living Room, hovers near its door in a floor-length robe of charcoal silk, protecting the artists being interviewed within. In the distance, Lee’s “Sonic Blossom” singers are practicing Schubert’s Lieder with which to surprise gallery guests. In the garden, the mobile artist Charmaine Wheatley chats with a guard while sketching his portrait. Pieranna Cavalchini, the Gardner’s curator of contemporary art and director of the residency program, glides along the stairways and … [Read more...] about STAYING CONTEMPORARY: ARTIST PROGRAM MAINTAINS THE GARDNER’S HERITAGE