Summer Exhibits at Silvermine Arts Center

Kite Charles Hinman and Master Printer Gary Lichtenstein

Silvermine Arts Center, located in New Canaan, CT will be kicking off its summer exhibitions with an exciting collaboration of works by Charles Hinman and Gary Lichtenstein, and new works by Guild Artist Christ Durante. Silvermine's new Viewing Room features presentations of new works on paper by Guild Artists Roger Mudre and Robert Gregson. The exhibitions will open on Sunday, July 28th with a reception from 2pm-4pm, and will run through September 7th.

"Kites" features the latest collaborative silkscreens between three dimensional painting pioneer Charles Hinman and Master Printer Gary Lichtenstein. A working relationship which began in 2011 with their prints Gems, this latest body of work continues their exploration into translating the visual vocabulary of Hinman's signature hard-edged shaped canvas into the realm of prints. By combining a mutual understanding of color and the use of subtle hand embossing, they have created a suite of prints that epitomizes the core of Hinman's ideology: "Though the works at first glance appear serene and placid, they are ever changing as the surface of the ocean or the expanse of the sky. Ever dynamic, they are ever alive."

A prime example of this idea can be seen in Kite 2. At first glance, the silkscreen faithfully reconstructs Hinman's paintings down to the inclusion of subtle lines referencing the support system of his three dimensional work. As the viewer gazes at the work, the true complexity of its arrangement of space unfolds into an ever changing visual experience that expands upon Mr. Hinman's longstanding commitment to visual perceptions of space.

In his new exhibit "No Mans Land," Guild Artist Chris Durante has constructed an environment of what he calls "considered hanging," where viewers can visually and physically traverse his works. An artist who is never satisfied with making work that neatly fits into prescribed categories, Durante continually explores and blurs the lines between mediums and artistic genres. Using a combination of paintings, drawings,graffiti, found objects and a collection of other materials, Durante creates a space that furthers his exploration of boundaries into a visual experience, creating a thought provoking space, a "place of freedom," if you will, where viewers can explore ideas. About his work, Chris comments, "The inability to couple a thought with a sustained and focused action can be an asset if one can be patient and accept that condition as temporary. Let the mind wander and the hand fiddle. Attention is a slippery proposition. The unison of idea and craft will come, eventually."

Drawing - Robert Gregson

Silvermine's new Viewing Room, will present works by Guild Artists Roger Mudre and Robert Gregson. A selection of new abstract silkscreens by Roger Mudre which were produced in collaboration with Master Printer Gary Lichtenstein and an installation of recently created optically fetching geometric drawings by Robert Gregson will be featured through the summer. For more information about the exhibitions and other upcoming events at Silvermine Arts Center call 203-966-9700 or visit our website at www.sivermineart.org.

About Silvermine Arts Center

Silvermine Arts Center located in New Canaan, Connecticut is one of the oldest artist communities in the United States. Located on a four acre campus, the center consists of a nationally renowned artist guild, award winning school of art offering multi-disciplinary art classes for all ages, an art and fine crafts shop and galleries, offering over twenty contemporary and historic exhibitions annually.

The center also provides innovative free and subsidized arts education in Norwalk and Stamford schools through its outreach program, Art Partners; and hosts a lecture series, performances, and special programs throughout the year. Silvermine Arts Center is a nonprofit organization.

Gallery Hours: Silvermine Galleries are open Wednesday through Saturday, 12p.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1pm to 5 p.m. For more information, call (203) 966-9700 ext. 20 or visit the website: www.silvermineart.org.

For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

Bruce Museum features Durer, Rembrandt and Whistler

Collection of Dr. Dorrance T. Kelly Joachim and the Angel

Located in Fairfield County Connecticut, the Bruce Museum located on One Museum Dr. in Greenwich is featuring prints of old masters and works from the 19^th century through August 18^th.  This is one of the most distinguished local collections of prints that have been painstakingly assembled by Dr. Dorrance T. Kelly. The works include prints of Durer, Rembrandt and Whistler among other notable artists.

While Dr. Kelly’s collection has been comprised primarily of American 20th-century prints and prints by John James Audubon, in recent years he has also collected Old Master and 19th-century works extensively.

  James Abbott McNeill Whistler (American, 1834-1903)

   Limehouse, 1859

   Etching

   From “The Thames Set”

   Collection of Dr. Dorrance T. Kelly

These encompass splendid sheets by the great German printmaker Albrecht Dürer, including a rare etching, woodcuts, and engravings of such iconic images as his Nemesis of 1502.

Dr. Kelly's Dutch prints include several of the rare engravings after the influential Adam Elsheimer by Hendrik Goudt and no less than 28 images by the highly experimental printmaker Rembrandt van Rijn, ranging from early works of the 1630s to mature impressions from the 1650s.

Dr. Kelly's 18th-century holdings include sheets by the great Italian artists Canaletto and Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo and several fine sheets from Los Caprichos by the renowned Spanish artist Francisco de Goya y Lucientes.

Completing the collection is a group of etched cityscapes and figure studies by the American artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler.

The Triumph of Mordecai
Collection of Dr. Dorrance T. Kelly

 Together the collection attests to the quality of some of the greatest printmakers in Western Art.

The exhibition – on view through August 18, 2013 and is accompanied by a scholarly catalog and a series of educational and public programs.

The Bruce Museum is grateful to Dr. Dorrance T. Kelly for sharing this extraordinary collection with the public.

About the Bruce Museum: Explore Art and Science at the Bruce Museum, located at One Museum Drive in Greenwich, Connecticut. The Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am to 5 pm and Sunday from 1 pm to 5 pm; closed Mondays and major holidays. Admission is $7 for adults, $6 for students up to 22 years, $6 for seniors and free for members and children under 5 years. Individual admission is free on Tuesday. Free on-site parking is available and the Museum is accessible to individuals with disabilities.  For additional information, call the Bruce Museum at (203) 869-0376 or visit the website at www.brucemuseum.org. 

For area information on Fairfield County www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com.

Biennial International Miniature Print Exhibition at Center for Contemporary Printmaking

Anne Desmet

The Center for Contemporary Printmaking schedules five major exhibitions per year, in the Grace Ross Shanley Gallery, including an Annual Members' Exhibition, and 3 solo or group shows featuring prominent printmaking artists. The Biennial International Footprint Competition and Exhibition takes place on even-numbered years and the Biennial International Miniature Print Competition and Exhibition takes place on odd-numbered years.

On view through September 1 is the 9th Biennial Miniature Print Exhibition at the Center for Contemporary Printmaking located on 299 West Ave. in Norwalk. Visitors can view 225 tiny prints on the wall and 600 additional miniature prints in loose-leaf portfolios. View original miniature prints from 30 countries worldwide, including Argentina, Austria, Australia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, England, Estonia, France, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Thailand, Germany, Scotland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Switzerland, Sweden and the Ukraine.

S. Ragavan

A series of workshops are also being offered in July. To register for a workshop call 203-899-7999 or email info@contemprints.org.

On July 17 there will be a workshop on the figure and the monotype with Monitor Nomi Silverman from 6 to 9 pm and is open to 6 participants. Participants in this class will work from the model, using printing inks and working in much the same way as Degas. The work is printed with the assistance of artist/printmaker Nomi Silverman. Subsequent reworked impressions can also be pulled to achieve depth of color. Or as Degas frequently did, a second paler or ghost impression can also be printed and used as a ground for later pastel additions.

A two day weekend workshop on painterly solarplate prints will take place from July 20-July 21 with Kate McGloughlin.  Participants will create a suite of painterly prints using solar plates and monoprinting techniques to realize their imagery. Workshop participants are invited to bring existing solar plates, or create new ones, using wet and dry media to discover the rich visual vocabulary achieved by various inking and wiping techniques.

A four-day workshop will take place from July 26- July 29 on the painterly print with Julio Valdez. his intensive workshop combines two of the most exciting and safe contemporary printmaking techniques: "silk aquatint" and "monotype". Participants use waterbased inks and a silk aquatint (silk collagraph) plate, a non-acid alternative to etching, to create a series of prints and related works on paper.

For more information visit http://www.contemprints.orghttp://www.contemprints.org.  For area information visit www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com.

The Glass House - Exhibition through November

The Glass House, a site of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is hosting two exhibits, SNAP and Gnomon/ Wave this summer and fall that are unique to this fascinating attraction in Fairfield County.

E.V. DAY: SNAP!
On view May 2 - November 30, 2013

SNAP! is a site-specific exhibition by New York-based artist E.V. Day. Conceived for the building known as Da Monsta (1995), the last building completed by Philip Johnson on the Glass House campus, SNAP! comprises four recent sculptures as well as site-specific installations for the building's interior and exterior. E.V. Day is the first artist the Glass House has invited to reinterpret the building, originally intended as a visitor center and now used as a project space for contemporary art.

Upon arrival at the Glass House, visitors will immediately encounter Day's reinterpretation of Da Monsta. Responding to Philip Johnson's statement that "the building is alive," Day boldly casts a series of massive red nets across its undulating volume, capturing and staking Da Monsta to the ground. The interaction between artwork and building continues inside. 

After entering Da Monsta, visitors first see individual sculptures by Day, including Spinneret (a study for Spidey Striptease), 2008; Wet Net, 2009; Pollinator, 2011; and Bandage Dress (white with chain), 2012. Once viewers enter the second gallery, they encounter a dramatic, site-specific installation that explores the expressive contours of Da Monsta with a deconstructed Herve Leger Bandage dress deployed as an architectural element.

NIGHT (1947-2015)
Tauba Auerbach, Gnomon/Wave Fulgurite I.I, 2013
On view May 2 – September 1, 2013

The Glass House will debut New York-based artist Tauba Auerbach's Gnomon/ Wave, a sculpture made for Night (1947 – 2015), a "sculpture-In-residence" series presented on the Mies van der Rohe glass coffee table inside the Glass House. Auerbach's first sand sculpture, Gnomon/Wave evokes a solid wave of light composed of tiny particles. The physical form of the work resembles that of a gnomon, the vertical shadow casting part of a sundial.

Throughout the day, Gnomon/Wave will cast a moving shadow along and through the glass table where it rests. It will be on view until early September 2013. Night (1947 – 2015) presents a series of contemporary sculptures that contend with the legacy of Night, a 1947 sculpture by Alberto Giacometti that disappeared from the Glass House in the mid-1960s, as well as the architecture of the Glass House itself. Guest curator Jordan Stein organized this unfolding sculpture exhibition, held in the same spot where Giacometti's Night once stood, over the course of three years. On display for three to six months at a time, the individual works presented in Night (1947 – 2015) each "disappear" after their run, making room for new works and new absences.

About the Glass House

Built between 1949 and 1995 by architect Philip Johnson, the Glass House is a National Trust Historic Site located in New Canaan, CT. The pastoral 49-acre landscape comprises fourteen structures, including the Glass House (1949), and features a permanent collection of 20th century painting and sculpture, along with temporary exhibitions. The tour season runs from May to November and advance reservations are required. For more information, and to purchase tickets, visit www.philipjohnsonglasshouse.org.  For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com.